Arthur Ryzak CE 397 – Transboundary Water Resources Transboundary Aquifers of the Arabian Peninsula
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Transboundary Aquifer Systems
Regional Challenges
Sustainable Solutions
International Cooperation
Conclusions
Readings
Questions for Discussion
Transboundary Aquifer Systems 97% of the world’s liquid freshwater resources lie beneath the ground. These waters, known as aquifers, are available to humans in varying degrees. Sometimes they have chemical properties, such as salinity which make them unsuitable for use, and sometimes they are simply too difficult to access for their exploitation to be practical. When these underground stores of water are regularly replenished as part of the hydrologic cycle, they are termed renewable groundwater resources, and are considered one of nature’s gifts to humanity. Sometimes, however, the rate at which these waters are “recharged” is so low, that they must be considered essentially non-­‐renewable. Often times these non-­‐renewable waters are parts of vast aquifer systems underlying the boundaries of several states. Hydrological Setting to Illustrate the Occurrence of Essentially Non-­‐renewable Groundwater Resources Source: UNESCO-­‐IHP (2006) Page 1 of 6 Arthur Ryzak CE 397 – Transboundary Water Resources Source: UNESCO-­‐IHP (2009) Regional Challenges When one thinks of the Saudi Arabian Peninsula, one often thinks of vast expanses of sand, and the occasional camel. It is true that the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia promotes itself on its national website as home to the largest sand desert in the world. There is not much precipitation on the Saudi Peninsula, and the rain that does occur is usually sporadic. Consequently, there are essentially no large rivers. Groundwater recharge does occur during these events, but as a whole renewable groundwater resources for the region are low. There are, however, vast quantities of non-­‐renewable groundwater in the aquifers shown above. Abdulrazzak estimates these reserves at 2,175 billion cubic meters (2,175 km^3). These aquifers are of varying quality, and are mostly unsuitable for direct consumption without some form of treatment. However, they are in many cases the only source of water which can be used for the vast agricultural projects in the region. In fact, governments in the region have been known to encourage the “mining” of these non-­‐renewable aquifers, as they provide in many cases the only source of water for agriculture, and governments have seen internal agriculture as necessary for self-­‐sufficiency and food security. This policy is changing, as governments realize the water is running out. Page 2 of 6 Arthur Ryzak CE 397 – Transboundary Water Resources Water Usage and Demand in the Arabian Peninsula Renewable Water Groundwater (1)
Population
GDP
Water
Withdrawal Desalination Mining
(millions)
(1000 USD/c/yr) (m^3/c/yr)
(m^3/c/yr)
(m^3/c/yr)
(m^3/c/yr)
Saudi Arabia
26.0
21.3
99
979
40
840
Yemen
22.0
2.3
97
176
0
79
UAE
5.4
35.3
35
941
176
730
Oman
2.6
21.2
550
519
42
-­‐73
Qatar
1.2
76.9
71
541
150
320
Bahrain
0.9
30.2
157
484
111
216
Total
58
1009
3640
519
2112
Total Water Usage
Total Nonrenewable Mining
Total Renewable Reserves
Total Nonrenewable Reserves
37 km^3/yr
28 km^3/yr
131 km^3
2175 km^3
(to depth of 300m below ground surface)
(1) -­‐ Estimate based on a ssumption of 1 00% utilization of renewable water resources Data Source -­‐ Gapminder.org a nd Aquastat -­‐ 2 007 through 2 010
Sustainable Solutions It is clear that the current groundwater utilization practices in the region cannot sustainably support the population. Supply must either be increased, or demand decreased. Hydrology in the region is variable, and rain does fall regularly in some regions. In fact, Yemeni have utilized these waters to support their population for thousands of years, through the practice of terrace farming. These ancient practices have largely been abandoned and replaced with the tube-­‐well agriculture that now dominates. Terrace farming not only produces a crop, but also recharges the underlying aquifers. There are future projects planned to utilize more of these waters, but Yemen is very capital limited. Desalination now provides a large portion of the municipal water in many parts of the region. However, with a fixed cost of approximately $0.50 – $2.00 US dollars/ m^3 to produce, as well as large initial capital outlays, it is unfeasible in some regions. Additionally, it is currently not generally used for agriculture, which is by far the largest consumer of water in the region. Wastewater reusage is also increasing in the region, but also has limited applicability. Piping projects have been designed, but once again, these waters would only provide a small portion of the water necessary for current agriculture, and additionally, governments are reluctant to become dependent on their neighbors for water. Page 3 of 6 Arthur Ryzak CE 397 – Transboundary Water Resources Improved agricultural practices hold great promise for the future. Greenhouse agriculture, for example, can require only 1/20th the amount of water needed to produce a crop. Municipal supplies have leakage rates approaching 50% in many cases, and offer room for improvement. If the water runs out, it will be necessary for populations to relocate. In fact, Sana’a Yemen is currently facing a water crisis, and it is projected that there will shortly be millions of Yemeni “water refugees” looking for new homes. International Cooperation and the Law of Transboundary Aquifers It is clear from the above that the region faces many challenges to meeting its water needs. However, it is also clear that there are sustainable solutions. Cooperation between stakeholding nations would not only facilitate the drive towards sustainability, but would also contribute to general stability in the region. The United Nations recognizes this, and has been a major impetus in working towards international cooperative agreements, through such agencies as the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). Specifically, there is a wealth of work being done through the ISARM (International Shared Aquifer Resources Management Programme), as well as the International Groundwater Resources Assessment Centre (IGRAC), among others. In 2008 the UN adopted A/RES/63/124 (2008), the draft articles of “The Law of Transboundary Aquifers”. Consideration of the final form of these articles is an agenda item for the 2012 General Assembly meeting in 2012. To date, these draft articles have been used in the creation of at least one international agreement on transboundary aquifers; namely, the Guarani Aquifer Agreement of 2010, in South America. The draft articles of the Law of Transboundary Aquifers include the following provisions: •
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Each state has sovereignty over its portion of the aquifer system, according to the articles and international law Equitable and reasonable utilization Obligation not to cause significant harm Regular exchange of data and information Aquifer states encouraged to enter into bilateral or regional agreements amongst themselves Protection, preservation, and management Technical cooperation with developing states Protected by the rules and principles of international law during times of armed conflict Page 4 of 6 Arthur Ryzak CE 397 – Transboundary Water Resources Conclusions The water resources situation in the Arabian Peninsula may look grave, but perhaps the greatest resource of the human population is its adaptability. Potential sustainable solutions have already been developed, and the greatest minds in the field are regularly assembling at various forums to work towards solutions. Nations are recognizing that they can achieve more through such cooperation than they can independently. As yet, however, there are no international agreements in the region. The Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia (ESCWA), which includes all the regional states among its fourteen members, had an expert group meeting in Lebanon in 2009, and identified the following: Major obstacles to adopting and implementing regional and basin-­‐level agreements: •
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Direct result of the situation at the national level where in most cases the national institutions in charge of water resources lack a clear mandate, which leads to overlaps and gaps The lack of local/basin institutions Unfavorable political environment Readings Required: •
UN (2009) General Assembly A/RES/63/124, “The law of Transboundary Aquifers” http://www.isarm.org/dynamics/modules/SFIL0100/view.php?fil_Id=227 Supplemental: •
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Abdulrazzak, Mohamed (1997) Freshwater Resources in Arid Lands. “The future of freshwater resources in the Arabian peninsula” UNU Global Environmental Forum V Report. http://archive.unu.edu/unupress/unupbooks/uu02fe/uu02fe06.htm UNESCO-­‐IHP (2009) “Atlas of Transboundary Aquifers” SC-­‐2009/WS/22 http://www.isarm.org/publications/324 UNESCO-­‐IHP (2006) “Non-­‐Renewable Groundwater Resources: A guidebook on socially-­‐
sustainable management for water-­‐policy makers” SC-­‐2007/WS/4. http://unesdoc.unesco.org/images/0014/001469/146997e.pdf Websites: •
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http://www.gapminder.org/world http://www.fao.org/nr/water/aquastat/main/index.stm http://www.un-­‐igrac.org/publications/119 http://www.whymap.org/whymap/EN/Home/whymap_node.html Page 5 of 6 Arthur Ryzak CE 397 – Transboundary Water Resources Questions for Discussion •
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What opportunities are there for cooperation between states to address the water resources challenges of the region? In what ways do the draft articles of “The Law of Transboundary Aquifers” apply to the groundwater mining situation of the region? How can the obstacles to implementing agreements be overcome? Page 6 of 6