Climate Change Sensitive Water Resources Management

The book provides an overview of climate change-sensitive water resources management with consideration of adaptation approaches, the assessment of climate change impacts, current contemporary management techniques, and ecological responses. Comprehensive assessments and studies from eight countries using innovative approaches that aid water management under evolving climates are documented. Topics ranging from hydrologic design to management and policy responses to climate change are discussed, which demonstrate updated theories that highlight methods, tools, and experiences on the topic of water resources under climate change. The generic approaches discussed, and their applications to different climate change-related problems, make this book appealing to a global readership. The practical and applied methodologies presented in the book and through insightful case studies discussed will provide readers worldwide with ready-to-use information to manage water resources sustainably under evolving climate. This book is ideally suited for water resource managers, scientists, professionals from water management agencies, graduate students, and national laboratory agencies responsible for water and environmental management.

This book discusses different aspects of water resources, ranging from hydrology and modeling to management and policy responses. Climate changes and the uncertainty of future hydrological regimes make sustainable water resources management a difficult task, requiring a set of approaches that address climate variability and change. The book focuses on three main themes: hydrological changes, adaptive decision-making for water resources, and institutional analysis and risk management. It discusses the applications and limitations of climate change models and scenarios related to precipitation projection, which predicts to the future availability of water. It also offers interesting examples from around the globe to describe the policy options for dealing with climate change. Addressing emerging issues that need to be resolved and techniques that can be applied for sustainable climate-change-sensitive water resources protection and management, this practical, state-of-the-art reference book is a valuable resource for researchers, students and professionals interested in sustainable water resources management in a changing climate.

Many challenges, including climate change, face the Nation¿s water managers. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) has provided estimates of how climate may change, but more understanding of the processes driving the changes, the sequences of the changes, and the manifestation of these global changes at different scales could be beneficial. Since the changes will likely affect fundamental drivers of the hydrological cycle, climate change may have a large impact on water resources and water resources managers. The purpose of this interagency report is to explore strategies to improve water management by tracking, anticipating, and responding to climate change. Charts and tables.

Water is an increasingly critical issue at the forefront of global policy change, management and planning. There are growing concerns about water as a renewable resource, its availability for a wide range of users, aquatic ecosystem health, and global issues relating to climate change, water security, water trading and water ethics. This handbook provides the most comprehensive reference ever published on water resource issues. It brings together multiple disciplines to understand and help resolve problems of water quality and scarcity from a global perspective. Its case studies and 'foundation' chapters will be greatly valued by students, researchers and professionals involved in water resources, hydrology, governance and public policy, law, economics, geography and environmental studies.

Describes the water management community¿s needs for climate change info. and tools to support long-term planning. Technical specialists and program managers have worked with their planners, water operators, and environmental compliance managers to identify the information and tools most relevant to their programs. They also have engaged and consulted with other Federal, State, and local agencies and stakeholder groups that have a role in water and water-related resource management to identify complementary priorities and individual perspectives. This report will help focus research and technology efforts to address info. and tools gaps relevant to the water management user community. Charts and tables. This is a print on demand report.

The main focus of this book is sustainable management of water resources in a changing climate. The book also addresses the question of how to define and measure the sustainability of Integrated Water Resources Management (IWRM). The sustainability of IWRM is an important issue when planning and/or developing policies that consider the impact of climate change, water governance and ecohydrology in the context of a more holistic approach to ensure sustainable management of water resources. Sustainable IWRM is more about processes, and relatively little systematic or rigorous work has been done to articulate what components are the most essential to ensure the ongoing sustainability of IWRM efforts. The chapters cover topics including global prospective of IWRM; allocation of environmental flows in IWRM; echohydrology, water resources and environmental sustainability; climate change and IWRM; IWRM and water governance including social, economic, public health and cultural aspects; climate change resiliency actions related to water resources management sustainability and tools in support of sustainability for IWRM. This book will be of interest to researchers, practitioners, water resources mangers, policy and decision makers, donors, international institutions, governmental and non-governmental organizations, educators, as well as graduate and undergraduate students. It is a useful reference for Integrated Water Resources Management (IWRM), ecohydrology, climate change impact and adaptations, water governance, environmental flows, geographic information system and modeling tools, water and energy nexus and related topics.

A prime concern in contemporary environmental science is the proper management of water supply and usage. It is critical to develop effective processes to manage these resources and decrease negative impacts on the ecosystem. Hydrology and Water Resource Management: Breakthroughs in Research and Practice is an innovative source of scholarly research on the latest technologies and techniques in optimizing current processes in managing water resources. Highlighting a range of pertinent topics such as climate change, sustainability, and water treatment, this book is an ideal reference source for engineers, professionals, researchers, students, and academics interested in emerging trends within environmental science.

The latest developments regarding the theory and practice of effectively resolving conflict in water resources and environmental management are presented in this book by respected experts from around the globe. Water conflicts are particularly complex and challenging to solve because water and environmental issues span both the societal realm, in which people and organizations interact, and the physical world which sustains all human activities. For instance, when large-scale water diversions take place across political jurisdictions, conflicts may ensue among stakeholders within and across regions, while the water transfers may cause severe damage to sensitive ecological systems. Therefore, to arrive at realistic and fair resolutions, one must take into account not only the economics and politics of the situation but also the water quantity and quality changes that may occur within the altered hydrological system as well as the ecosystems contained therein. When the effects of climate change and the closely connected activities of energy production and usage are also considered, the complexity of the problem becomes even greater and messier. Accordingly, one must adopt an integrative and adaptive approach to water and environmental governance that specifically recognizes the conflicting value systems of stakeholders, including nature and future generations even though they are not present at the bargaining table. The 16 chapters in this leading-edge book are written by authors who presented their original research at the International Conference on Water Resources and Environment Research (ICWRER) 2013, which was held in Koblenz, Germany, from June 3rd to 7th, 2013, and subsequently submitted expanded versions of their research for review and publication in this timely book. The rich range of contributions are put into perspective in the first chapter and then categorized into four main interconnected parts: Part I: Management and EvaluationPart II: Global, Trans-boundary and International Dimensions Part III: Consensus-building, Bargaining and Negotiation Part IV: Ecological and Socio-economic Impacts