Water Resources Management In Balkan Countries

This book presents an overview and knowledgeable on water resources management in Balkan countries – Slovenia, North Macedonia, Serbia, Croatia, Greece, and Bulgaria. The book shows the state of the art and also the latest research findings of the different aspects of water resources management in Balkan countries with case studies that reveal the best practice in water resources management, development, and protection. Researchers and scientists from the Balkan countries present their experiences and expertise on a wide range of water resources topics. Therefore, the book is of particular interest to decisions planners/makers and stakeholders. Also, the book will be useful to experts, professionals, researchers, scientists, practitioners, academics working in the field of water resources management in Balkan countries and analogous regions.

A source of up-to-date information on current water resources, their quality and quantity, in every country in the Balkans. Institutional structures, water management issues and water monitoring problems are analyzed, with special reference to international waters, using characteristic case studies, including the Sava River, Lake Ohrid, The Nestos/Mesta River, the Neretva River estuary, and coastal waters in Turkey. Contributions written by experts from France, the UK and the USA demonstrate state-of-the-art electronic networking and the management of distributed water databases. The protection of water resources in the Balkans has become a high profile issue since the collapse of communism in the area, the break up of former Yugoslavia, and ethnic tensions in Kosovo. Transboundary river pollution and the development of international water basins call demand urgent regional co-operation, which will be facilitated by the International Network of Water-Environment Centres for the Balkans, the initiation of which is described in the final conclusions of the book.

Better water management will be crucial if we are to meet many of the key challenges of this century - feeding the worlds growing population and reducing poverty, meeting water and sanitation needs, protecting vital ecosystems, all while adapting to climate change. The approach known as Integrated Water Resources Management (IWRM) is widely recognized as the best way forward, but is poorly understood, even within the water sector. Since a core IWRM principle is that good water management must involve the water users, the understanding and involvement of other sectors is critical for success. There is thus an urgent need for practical guidance, for both water and development professionals, based on real world examples, rather than theoretical constructs. That is what this book provides. Using case studies, the book illustrates how better water management, guided by the IWRM approach, has helped to meet a wide range of sustainable development goals. It does this by considering practical examples, looking at how IWRM has contributed, at different scales, from very local, village-level experiences to reforms at national level and beyond to cases involving trans-boundary river basins. Using these on-the-ground experiences, from both developed and developing countries in five continents, the book provides candid and practical lessons for policy-makers, donors, and water and development practitioners worldwide, looking at how IWRM principles were applied, what worked, and, equally important, what didn‘t work, and why. Published with the Global Water Partnership

In a world facing a growing water crisis, conflicts regarding water sharing and environmental issues are expected to grow, especially in transboundary river basins, where 40% of the world's population lives. This book represents one of the first attempts to bring together methodologies and analytical tools from socio-economic, international policy, engineering, and water management specialists dealing with transboundary water resources. The book is divided into three parts. Part I introduces state--of-the-art concepts in institutional policy and conflict analysis. Part II presents engineering approaches and models for transboundary water management and conflict resolution. Part III analyzes cases in international river basins and enclosed seas.

Environmental protection is one of the areas where the Balkan countries still face a big challenge to catch up with their western neighbors. After the 1990s conflicts and the breakup of Yugoslavia, six new Balkan states emerged. Apart from integrating environmental concerns into the new policies, a major challenge is environmental management across new borders. What used to be six international river basins in the Balkans have now evolved into 13 internationally shared river basins and four transboundary lake basins. The situation is similar for areas of high ecological value, many of which are often located in mountainous border areas. To ensure effective protection, entire ecosystems have to be addressed regardless of the political borders that are dividing them on a map. Transboundary cooperation between countries sharing one or more natural resources is therefore indispensable for creating common frameworks that promote their sustainable use while offering an opportunity for confidence-building between cooperating countries.

This book puts great emphasis on the importance of Integrated Water Resources Management IWRM as the way forward towards food, water, and energy security. It offers better ways and means of managing the limited water resources; using water more efficiently; adopting new policies in order to cope with climate change and drought; increase water supply through the use of non conventional water resources, especially waste water; inducing stakeholders participation and information exchange and raise public awareness to the value of water. It is an important book for all those involved in all aspects of water resources and contains valuable information for scientists, researchers, farmers, extension services and students.

This book examines the current economic practices of water management in the Southern Kurdistan Region (SKR) and suggests ways to change environmental conditions to encourage the region's decision-makers to pursue sustainable resource development through interstate and within Kurdistan Region KRG-consumers' co-operation. The focus is on: making a comparative study of water resources between Iraq, its neighbouring countries, MENA and the world averages; conducting a sector analysis to identify and quantify available water resources, the needs and sub-optimality in their uses; analysing current allocation of water and quantifying and suggesting necessary reductions in wasteful use of water resources; designing water policies and suggesting measures that improve regional water planning and management practices; developing techniques and models in the projection of demand, supply and future utilisation patterns and quantification of the water gap; suggesting alternatives for provision of water to areas facing scarcity on the basis of sustainable long-term and minimum cost solutions; suggesting necessary mechanisms for approaching interstate co-operation and for participating in the building of inter-regional institutions; proposing economically and environmentally optimal practices for within region and interstate co-operation and resource management; suggesting opportunities for increased government investment in the development and management of the water market.