Transcript Mekong River Commission MRC Water Utilization Programme: GEF International Waters Project (GEF/World Bank)

Mekong River Commission
Meeting the Needs - Keeping the Balance
MRC Water Utilization Programme:
GEF International Waters Project
(GEF/World Bank)
Potentials and
Challenge
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At 4,800km long, Mekong is one
of the world’s longest rivers.
Basin supports one of the most
productive and diverse freshwater
ecosystems.
Least spoiled & least developed,
and potential for development is
far from utilized.
Only four countries are members.
Total population living in the
Lower Mekong Basin is at
present 60 million people => 100
million by 2025.
Average flow = 15,000 m3/s, but
not evenly distributed.
Majority of them living below
poverty line.
Issues to be addressed by
WUP
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1995 Mekong Agreement to address two most important
issues:
– water sharing/maintenance of agreed flow level; and
– Environment protection and the ecological balance.
Other related issues:
– Change of flow regime/quality;
– sea water intrusion,
– impact on navigation;
– Growing demand for water/energy and inter-basin
diversion,
– Degradation of aquatic ecosystem (fish)
– Inadequate knowledge of river basin behavior and
water quality conditions.
How Issues/challenges are
addressed
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WUP broad objective: set up a mechanism to
implement 1995 agreement by:
Facilitating agreements among countries on
required set of rules/agreements;
Developing a modeling package and knowledge
base for supporting learnt decision-making;
Capacity building and technical collaboration with
upstream countries;
Ensuring ownership and participation.
Progress to date
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Rules:
– Data sharing and exchange agreement
signed in November 2001;
– Procedures for Implementing “equitable
and reasonable use” to be signed later this
year,
– By 2005 = three more rules on water use
monitoring, maintenance of water quantity,
and quality.
Progress to date
(Cont.)
Proposed development
scenarios
Decision Support Framework
Validated
Planning
Data
Hydrological
model
Basin simulation
model
Rules for
Water
Utilisation
Knowledge
Base
Hydrodynamic &
salintiy models
Impact Analysis Tools
Assessment
Framework
Environment
Assessment
Planning assessments
Socio-economic
Development of
Decision Support
Framework, and
Training of trainers
and end users in
progress – July 03.
 Progress toward Flow
Management.
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MRC and Flow Management
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The EP and WUP have developed a 3 phase
approach to flow guidelines
1 – An interim flow plan to prevent
deterioration in the short term
 Phase
 Phase
2 – A field based comprehensive flow
plan
3 – Evaluation of proposed
interventions
 Phase
MRC and Flow Management
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Interim Flow Plan
Based on existing knowledge
 Using an expert panel approach
 Deliberately conservative
 It will protect “bottom lines”
MRC and Flow Management
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Interim Flow Plan
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Main difficulties :
 Collating
the existing knowledge
 Identifying
the “bottom lines”
MRC and Flow Management
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Comprehensive Flow Plan
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Based on field assessments and flow
modeling
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Intended to allow prediction of ecological and
subsistence consequences of flow changes
Vegetation zones linked to floodreturn periods
Back Dynamic
Q
1:20
1:2
IV
580
400
300
200
120
80
50
Tree -Shrub
Lower Dynamic
Upper
II, III
lower
Wet Bank
I wslf
dslf
Aquatic
MRC and Flow Management
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Comprehensive Flow Plan
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Main difficulties
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Results will provide information to decision
makers – but not make the decision
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Can we effectively model flow over the
Cambodian floodplains?
Flow (discharge)
is measured as
velocity x cross
sectional area –
but cross section
area is difficult to
measure where
the river is 50 km
wide!
MRC and Flow Management
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Assessment of Interventions
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This will involve cooperation between BDP,
WUP and EP
Proposed Interventions
WUP
BDP
Define Scope
Consequences :
Water Quantity & Quality
Options
EP
Ecological &
Subsistence
Consequences
BDP
National/ Regional
Macroeconomic
Assessment:
(Hydropower, Irrigation,
Forestry, Fisheries, Other
Decision Makers
BDP
Other
stakeholders
MRC and Flow
Management
meeting the needs
maintaining the
balance