PROCEEDINGS OF THE SEVENTH SESSION OF ... - IRC Wash

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E S C A P 8 0

PROCEEDINGS OF THESEVENTH SESSION OF THECOMMITTEE ON NATURAL RESOURCES

WATER RESOURCES SERIES

No. 54

JN!TED NATIONS

WATER RESOURCES SERIES

I.* FLOOD DAMAGE AND FLOOD CONTROL ACTIVITIES IN ASIA AND THE FAR EASTFlood Control Series No. 1. United Nations publication, Sales No. 1951.II.F.2. Price SUS 1.50. Available in separate Englishand French editions.

2.* METHODS AND PROBLEMS OF FLOOD CONTROL IN ASIA AND THE FAR EASTFlood Control Series No. 2, United Nations publication, Sales No. 1951.II.F.5. Price $US 1.15.

3.* PROCEEDINGS OF THE REGIONAL TECHNICAL CONFERENCE ON FLOOD CONTROL IN ASIA AND THE FAR EASTFlood Control Series No. 3, United Nations publication, Sales No. 1953.II.F.1. Price $US 3.00.

4.* RIVER TRAINING AND BANK PROTECTIONFlood Control Series No. 4, United Nations publication, Sales No. 1953.II.F.6. Price SUS 0.80. Available in separate Englishand French editions.

5.* THE SEDIMENT PROBLEMFlood Control Series No. 5, United Nations publication, Sales No. 1953.II.F.7. Price SUS 0.80. Available in separate Englishand French editions.

6.* STANDARDS FOR METHODS AND RECORDS OF HYDROLOGIC MEASUREMENTSFlood Control Series No. 6. United Nations publication, Sales No. 1954.II.F.3. Price SUS 0.80. Available in separate Englishand French editions.

7.* MULTIPLE-PURPOSE RIVER BASIN DEVELOPMENT, PART I, MANUAL OF RIVER BASIN PLANNINGFlood Control Series No. 7, United Nations publication, Sales No. 1955.II.F.1. Price SUS 0.80. Available in separate Englishand French editions. /

8.* MULTIPURPOSE RIVER BASIN DEVELOPMENT, PART 2A, WATER RESOURCES DEVELOPMENT IN CEYLON, CHINA:TAIWAN, JAPAN AND THE PHILIPPINESFlood Control Series No. 8, United Nations publication, Sales No. 1958.1I.F.2. Price SUS 1.25.

9.* PROCEEDINGS OF THE REGIONAL TECHNICAL CONFERENCE ON WATER RESOURCES DEVELOPMENT IN ASIA ANDTHE FAR EASTFlood Control Series No. 9, United Nations publication, Sales No. 1956.II.F.3. Price SUS 4.50.

10.* GLOSSARY OF HYDROLOGIC TERMS USED IN ASIA AND THE FAR EASTFlood Control Series No. 10, United Nations publication. Sales No. 1956.II.F.7. Price SUS 0.40.

11.* MULTIPLE-PURPOSE RIVER BASIN DEVELOPMENT, PART 2B, WATER RESOURCES DEVELOPMENT IN BURMA, INDIAAND PAKISTANFlood Control Series No. 11, United Nations publication. Sales No. 1956.II.F.8. Price SUS 1.50.

12. DEVELOPMENT OF WATER RESOURCES IN THE LOWER MEKONG BASINFlood Control Series No. 12, United Nations publication, Sales No. 1957.II.F.8. Price SUS 0.80. Available in separate Englishand French editions.

13. PROCEEDINGS OF THE THIRD REGIONAL TECHNICAL CONFERENCE ON WATER RESOURCES DEVELOPMENTFlood Control Series No. 13, United Nations publication. Sales No. 19S9.H.F.2. Price SUS 1.75.

14. MULTIPLE-PURPOSE RIVER BASIN DEVELOPMENT, PART 2C, WATER RESOURCES DEVELOPMENT IN BRITISH BORNEO,FEDERATION OF MALAYA, INDONESIA AND THAILANDFlood Control Series No. 14, United Nations publication. Sales No. 1959.II.F.5. Price SUS 2.00.

15. HYDROLOGIC NETWORKS AND METHODSFlood Control Series No. 15, United Nations publication, Sales No. 60.II.F.2. Price SUS 3.00.

16. A CASE STUDY OF THE DAMODAR VALLEY CORPORATION AND ITS PROJECTSFlood Control Series No. 16, United Nations publication, Sales No. 60.II.F.7. Price SUS 1.50.

17. EARTHMOVING BY MANUAL LABOUR AND MACHINESFlood Control Series No. 17, United Nations publication, Sales No. 61.II.F.4. Price SUS 1.50.

18. MULTIPLE-PURPOSE RIVER BASIN DEVELOPMENT, PART 2D, WATER RESOURCES DEVELOPMENT IN AFGHANISTAN,IRAN, REPUBLIC OF KOREA AND NEPALFlood Control Series No. 18, United Nations publication, Sales No. 61.H.F.8. Price SUS 1.00.

19. PROCEEDINGS OF THE FOURTH REGIONAL TECHNICAL CONFERENCE ON WATER RESOURCES DEVELOPMENTFlood Control Series No. 19, United Nations publication, Sales No. 62.II.F.2. Price SUS 2.00.

20. A CASE STUDY OF THE COMPREHENSIVE DEVELOPMENT OF THE KITAKAMI RIVER BASINFlood Control Series No. 20, United Nations publication. Sales No. 62.II.F.7. Price SUS 0.75.

21. PROCEEDINGS OF THE REGIONAL SYMPOSIUM ON DAMS AND RESERVOIRSFlood Control Series No. 21, United Nations publication. Sales No. 62.II.F.11. Price SUS S3.00.

22. PROCEEDINGS OF THE SEMINAR ON FIELD METHODS AND EQUIPMENT USED IN HYDROLOGY AND HYDRO-METEOROLOGYFlood Control Series N.->. 22, United Nations publication. Sales No. 63.II.F.4. Price SUS 1.50.

23. PROCEEDINGS OF THE FIFTH REGIONAL CONFERENCE ON WATER RESOURCES DEVELOPMENT IN ASIA AND THEFAR EASTWater Resources Series No. 23, United Nations publication. Sales No. 63.II.F.7. Price SUS 2.50.

24. PROCEEDINGS OF THE REGIONAL SEMINAR ON DEVELOPMENT OF GHOUNDWATER RESOURCESWater Resources Seriss No. 24, United Nations publication. Sales No. 64.II.F.5. Price SUS 3.00.

25. PROCEEDINGS OF THE REGIONAL SYMPOSIUM ON FLOOD CONTROL, UTILIZATION, RECLAMATION AND DEVELOPMENTIN DELTAIC AREASWater Resources Series ??••>. 25, Unilsd Nations publication. Sales No. 64.II.F.6. Price SUS 3.00.

26. MANUAL OF STANDARDS AND CRITERIA FOR PLANNING WATER RESOURCE PROJECTSWater Resources Series No. 28, United Kalions publication. Scries No. 34.II.F.12. Price SUS 0.75.

27. METHODS OF HYDROLOGICAL FORECASTING FOR THE UTILIZATION OF WATER RESOURCESWater Resources Series No. 27. United Nations publication, Sales No. 65 II.F.5. Price SUS 2.00.

28. PROCEEDINGS OF THE SIXTH REGIONAL CONFERENCE ON WATER RESOURCES DEVELOPMENT IN ASIA AND THEFAR EASTWatei SesouT^es Series No. 7.8. United Nations publication, Sales No. 66.II.F.2. Price SUS 4.50.

29. A COMPENDIUM OF MAJOR INTERNATIONAL RIVERS IN THE ECAFE REGIONWater Resources Series No. 29, United Nciior.s pub'ication. Sales No. 66.II.F.8. Price SUS 1.50.

30. ASSESSMENT OF THE MAGNITUDE AND FREQUENCY OF FLOOD FLOWSWater Resources Series No. 30. United Nations publication. Sales No. 66.II.F.7. Price SUS 3.00.

31. WATER LEGISLATION IN ASIA AND THE FAR EAST, Part I — Afghanistan, Brunei. Burma, Republic of China, Hong Kong,Iran, Japan, New Zealand. Philippines and ThailandWater Resources Series Wo. 31, United Nations publication. Sales No. 67.II.F.11. Price SUS 3.00.

32. PROCEEDINGS OF THE SEVENTH REGIONAL CONFERENCE ON WATER RESOURCES DEVELOPMENT IN ASIA AND THEFAR EASTWater Resources S«ri^s No. ??, Unitsd Nations publication, .Sales No. E.68.H.F.5. Price SUS 3.50.

33. METHODS AND TECHNIQUES OF GROUND-WATER INVESTIGATION AND DEVELOPMENTWater Resources Series No. 33, United Nations publication, Sales No. E.68.II F.6. Price SUS 3.50.

34. THE USE AND INTERPRETATION OF KYDROLOGIC DATAWater Resources Series No. 34, United Nations publication. Sales No. E.68.II.F.9. Price SUS 3.00.

35. WATER LEGISLATION IN ASIA AND THE FAR EAST. Part 2 — Water Resources Series No. 35, United Nations publication,Sales No. E.69.II.F.6. Price SUS 3.50.

Note: Publications marked with an asterisk are out of print.

Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific

tsrence

PROCEEDINGSOF THE

SEVENTH SESSIONOF THE

COMMITTEE ON NATURAL RESOURCES

Water Resources Series No. 54

UNITED NATIONSNew York

1981

ST/ESCAP/SER.F/54

UNITED NATIONS PUBLICATION

Sales No. E.81.II.F.10

Price $US 12.00

The designations employed and the presentation of the material in thispublication do not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever on the part ofthe Secretariat of the United Nations concerning the legal status of any country,territory, city or area, or of its authorities, or concerning the delimitation of itsfrontiers or boundaries.

The mention of any firm or licensed process does not imply endorsementby the United Nations.

n

FOREWORD

This publication is presented in three parts: part one consists of the report

of the seventh session of the Committee on Natural Resources of the Economic

and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP), which was held at

Bangkok, Thailand, from 30 September to 6 October 1980; part two contains

the working and technical papers presented by the secretariat; and part three

contains information and technical papers submitted by Governments.

Because of limitations of space and budget, it has not been possible to

reproduce all the papers in full; some have been summarized or abridged.

The views expressed by individual authors are their own and do not neces-

sarily reflect the views of the United Nations.

In the presentation of data in tables in the text, the use of a dash (—)

indicates nil or a negligible amount, and the use of leaders ( . . . ) indicates that

no data were available when the table was being prepared.

222

National currency equivalents for countries included in the publication

Country Cttrrency andabbreviation

Unit of currency per United States(period average)

dollar

Australia

Bangladesh

India

Indonesia

Japan

Malaysia

Nepal

New Zealand

Pakistan

Papua New Guinea

Philippines

Republic of Korea

Singapore

Sri Lanka

Thailand

Australian dollar ($A)

Taka

Rupee (Rs)

Rupiah (Rp)

Yen (Y)

Ringgit

Nepal rupee (NRs)

New Zealand dollar ($NZ)

Pakistan rupee (PRs)

Kina (K)

Peso (P)

Won

Singapore dollar ($S)

Rupee (SRs)

Baht

197 S

0.874

15.016

8.193

442.05

210.41

2.316

12.083

0.963

9.900

0.708

7.366

484.00

2.274

15.608

20.336

1979

0.895

15.552

8.126

623.05

219.41

2.188

12.000

0.971

9.900

0.712

7.378

484.00

2.175

15.569

20.419

1980(Jan.-Sept.)

0.885

15.218

7.887

627.07

232.10

2.160

12.000

0.975

9.900

0.677

7.492

592.80

2.156

16.208

20.439

Note: Conversions given show market rate/par or central rate taken as a monthly average in the market of the country.

IV

CONTENTS

Part One

REPORT OF THE SESSION

Page

T. Organization of the session 1

II. Activities of member countries in the appraisal, development and management of water resources . . 2

III. Rural community water supply and rural sanitation in relation to over-all management ofwater resources 6

IV. Integrated optimum development of the deltaic and upland portions of a river basin 7

V. Industrial water use in relation to the over-all management of water resources 8

VI. Activities of ESCAP in the appraisal, development and management of natural resources . . . . 8

VII. Activities of other international bodies in the appraisal, development and management ofwater resources 11

VIII. Programme of work and priorities in the appraisal, development and management of natural resources,

1980-1981, and programme changes; consideration of the programme of work and priorities, 1982-1983 13

IX. Revision of the terms of reference of the Committee on Natural Resources 14

X. Consideration of the agenda and arrangements for subsequent sessions of the Committee 15

XI. Adoption of the report 15

XII. Summary of conclusions and recommendations 15

Part Two

WORKING PAPERS PRESENTED BY THE SECRETARIAT

I. Review of water resources development in the region 21

II. Rural community water supply and rural sanitation in relation to over-all management

of water resources 30

III. Integrated optimum development of the deltaic and upland portions of a river basin 45

IV. Industrial water use in relation to the over-all management of water resources 62

v

Part Three

INFORMATION PAPERS SUBMITTED BY GOVERNMENTSPage

I. Australia 77

II. Bangladesh - 82

III. Burma 85

IV. China 86

V. Indonesia 97

VI. Japan ; 109

VII. Nepal 122

VIII. New Zealand 124

IX. Philippines 126

X. Samoa 133

XL Sri Lanka 135

XII. Union of Soviet Socialist Republics 142

TABLES

1. Irrigated area in 1977 and estimated increase in irrigated area from 1971 to 1977, selected countries

in the ESCAP region 25

2. Annual production and net imports of foodgrains of 16 developing countries in the ESCAP region .. 26

3. Growth rates in harvested area and yield of all cereals 26

4. Increase in electric power generating capacity 27

5. Flood damage and flood control measures in countries or areas of the ESCAP region 28

6. Urban and rural water supply 29

7. Growth rate of population served by and level of service of urban water supply in 1980 30

8. Rural population coverage and targets — WHO South-east Asia region 32

9. International Drinking Water Supply and Sanitation Decade (1981-1990); country requirements forimproved sector performance in the ESCAP region 33

10. Rural water supply and sanitation coverage in 22 countries of the ESCAP region 34

11. India's national plan outlays and rural water supply and sanitation allocations .. 39

vi

Typical features of deltaic areas 49

13. Consumptive water use for major types of industry 65

14. Past and future use of water for electric power station cooling (United States) 66

15. Thermal heat rate and cooling requirements of potential electricity generating technologies .. .. 66

16. Water-use data in selected countries 70

17. Comparison of water recirculation and consumptive use for various industries, Hungary, 1965 .. . . 71

18. Known significant pollutants for selected industries 73

19. Area of land under irrigation in Australia 79

20. Summary of flood protection, drainage and irrigation programmes in Bangladesh during the secondfive-year plan, 1980-1985 83

21. Indonesia: land surface, agricultural land, irrigated land, rainfall and water availability by region .. 100

22. Published hydrogeological maps of Indonesia, 1980 100

23. Distribution of rural water supply and sanitation facilities in Indonesia 101

24. Irrigation areas in Indonesia 102

25. Indonesia: estimation of domestic water demand for rural and urban population in the year 2001 .. 103

26. Area of agricultural regions and irrigated regions in Indonesia, 1979 103

27. Estimation of water demand for irrigation in Indonesia (year 2000) 104

28. Estimation of water used in certain industries in Indonesia 104

29. Comparison of water supply and demand in Indonesia for the year 2000 105

30. Precipitation and available water resources in Japan .. 109

31. Trends in water demand in Japan 110

32. Estimates of water demand in Japan 112

33. Estimated water balance between supply and demand in Japan, 1985 113

34. Estimated water balance between supply and demand in Japan, 1990 114

35. Strategies for reducing the water supply and demand imbalance in Japan 115

36. Trends in industrial water consumption by available supply source in Japan 119

37. Industrial water consumption in Japan by sector, 1977 119

38. List of dams in Japan 120

39. List of dams under construction in Japan in 1980 121

40. List of economic benefits from completed dams in Japan (by 1979) 121

vii

FIGURESPage

1. Pattern of channels in a river basin 46

2. Topography of the river valley and the deltaic portion of a river basin 47

3. Water levels in a delta as governed by the upland discharge and the tidal levels 47

4. Storm surge: superposition of the set-up caused by the wind on the astronomical tide 48

5. Sea-water intrusion into an open estuary 51

6. Salinity distribution in an open estuary 51

7. Shifting of intakes of fresh water in an upstream direction due to saline intrusion 52

8. Relation between saline intrusion into the Bassac River and the upland discharge at Phnom Penh . . 53

9. Principle of a coastal reservoir 53

10. Flash and gentle floods 56

11. Effect of the elimination of the overland flow 57

12. Effect of the elimination of the overbank storage 57

13. Principle of open embankments 58

14. Stages of policy analysis (PAWN) 60

15. Definitions of terms relating to industrial water utilization 64

16. Growth in water demand, United States of America (1900-1975) 68

17. Comparison of water demand, population growth and national productivity for the United States

of America (1900-1975) 69

18. Comparison of three systems for water cooling 72

19. Map of water potential of Indonesia 99

20. Relationship between safe yield, mining withdrawal and period of exhaustion 129

21. Flowchart: Ground-water Evaluation Model (GEM) for the Philippines 131

viu

Part One

REPORT OF THE SESSION

I. ORGANIZATION OF THE SESSION

1. The Committee on Natural Resources held itsseventh session at Bangkok, Thailand, from 30 Sep-tember to 6 October 1980.

Attendance

2. The session was attended by representatives of thefollowing ESCAP member countries: Australia, Bang-ladesh, Burma, China, Democratic Kampuchea, France,India, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, Mongolia, Nepal,Netherlands, New Zealand, Pakistan, Philippines, Re-public of Korea, Samoa, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Unionof Soviet Socialist Republics, United Kingdom of GreatBritain and Northern Ireland, United States of Americaand Viet Nam. Representatives of the Federal Re-public of Germany and Israel also attended, in accor-dance with paragraph 9 of the terms of reference ofESCAP.

3. Three delegations reaffirmed their position as sta-ted at the thirty-fourth session of the United NationsGeneral Assembly and at the thirty-sixth session ofthe Commission, concerning the representation of onedelegation. The delegation concerned and anotherdelegation protested and rejected that position and re-affirmed the right of that delegation as confirmed bythe decision of the General Assembly at its thirty-fourth session and drew attention to the decision takenat the thirty-sixth session of the Commission con-cerning which there had been no change.

4. The following United Nations bodies and specializ-ed agencies were represented: United Nations Child-ren's Fund (UNICEF), United Nations DevelopmentProgramme (UNDP), United Nations EnvironmentProgramme (UNEP), United Nations Industrial Deve-lopment Organization (UNIDO), International LabourOrganisation (ILO), Food and Agriculture Organiza-tion of the United Nations (FAO), United NationsEducational, Scientific and Cultural Organization(UNESCO) and World Health Organization (WHO).The Committee for Co-ordination of Joint Prospectingfor Mineral Resources in Asian Offshore Areas(CCOP), the Interim Committee for Co-ordination ofInvestigations of the Lower Mekong Basin, the Inter-national Commission on Irrigation and Drainage(ICID) and the International Council of Women (ICW)were also represented.

Opening of the session

5. Tn the absence of the Executive Secretary ofESCAP, the Deputy Executive Secretary opened thesession.

6. In his message, the Deputy Executive Secretarypointed out that although water was frequently refer-red to as man's most valuable resource, society oftenwasted it, polluted it and treated it as if it were aworthless and abundant commodity. However, withthe increasing and competing demands on existingwater supplies produced by expanding population andincreasing economic activities, society should be madeaware of the value of water and of the need to con-serve it and use it wisely.

7. The session provided an excellent opportunity topropose and discuss ways of improving policies, bothnational and regional, dealing with the protection,development and use of water resources to achieve theoptimum contribution to the welfare of the people inthe ESCAP region. In that connexion, he mentionedthe elements of the Commission's regional input intothe international development strategy for the 1980srelevant to the deliberations of the Committee. Herequested that the Committee keep those elements inmind in reviewing the past, and considering the future,activities of the secretariat in the field of naturalresources development.

Election of officers

8. The Committee elected Mr. Sunthorn Ruanglek(Thailand) Chairman, Mr. M. Munir-uz Zaman (Bang-ladesh) and Mr. I. Samarawickrema (Sri Lanka) Vice-Chairmen and Mr. Mardjono Notodihardjo (Indonesia)Rapporteur. It also elected Mr. S.M.H. Bokhari(Pakistan) Chairman of the Drafting Committee.

Adoption of the agenda

9. The meeting adopted the following agenda:

1. Opening of the session

2. Election of officers

3. Adoption of the agenda

4. Activities of member countries in the apprai-sal, development and management of waterresources

5. Rural community water supply and rural sani-tation in relation to over-all management ofwater resources

6. Integrated optimum development of the deltaicand upland portions of a river basin

PROCEEDINGS OF THE SEVENTH SESSION

7. Industrial water use in relation to the over-all management of water resources

8. Activities of ESCAP in the appraisal, develop-ment and management of natural resources

(a) Water resources

(b) Energy resources

(c) Mineral resources

(d) Remote sensing, surveying andmapping

9. Activities of other international bodies in theappraisal, development and management ofwater resources

10. Programme of work and priorities in the ap-praisal, development and management of na-tural resources, 1980-1981, programme changes;

and consideration of the programme of workand priorities, 1982-1983

(a) Water resources

(b) Energy resources

(c) Mineral resources

(d) Remote sensing, surveying andmapping

11. Revision of the terms of reference of the Com-mittee on Natural Resources

12. Consideration of the agenda and arrange-ments for subsequent sessions of the Commit-tee

13. Other matters

14. Adoption of the report

II. ACTIVITIES OF MEMBER COUNTRIES IN THE APPRAISAL,DEVELOPMENT AND MANAGEMENT OF WATER RESOURCES

(Agenda item 4)

10. The Committee had before it secretariat back-ground document E/ESCAP/NR.7/1, entitled "Reviewof water resources development in the region", andnine country papers.

Activities undertaken by countries since 1977

11. In recent years, Australia had placed much em-phasis on the development of a national approach towater resource management, identifying importantbasic principles and goals. It had undertaken a reviewof the most efficient and rational directions in the col-lection and analysis of water resources data; a num-ber of representative river basins had been comprehen-sively covered with a network of measuring devicesand studied; problems in the collection of data onwater use had received increased attention; much efforthad been devoted to studies of flood mitigation optionsfor various localities, to mapping flood-prone areas andto the implementation of flood mitigation strategies;and salinization in certain areas had been recognizedas a national problem.

12. Bangladesh had launched the second five-year plan(1980-1985) which envisaged an increase in annualcereal production from 13 to 20 million tons duringthe plan period, with the improvement and extensionof irrigation facilities. The total irrigated area hadincreased from 1.16 million ha in 1978 to 1.48 millionha in 1980. Most of the flood control, drainage andirrigation projects were labour-intensive, with emphasison small-scale and quick-yielding schemes.

13. By the end of 1979, China had built 84,000 reser-voirs with a total storage capacity of 400 billion m3.There were 2.1 million power-operated wells for agri-cultural production and the total irrigated area hadreached 47 million ha, covering 48 per cent of the totalfarmland. The total installed capacity of large andmedium-sized hydroelectric power-plants had reached17 million kW, while more than 90,000 mini-sizedhydro plants with a total capacity of 6.3 million kWhad been built to serve rural areas. In the past 30years many large multipurpose projects had beenundertaken to harness major rivers, such as the Yang-tze, Yellow, Huai and Hai rivers. Embankments witha total length of 168,000 km had been built.

14. Until December 1978, Democratic Kampucheahad carried out the construction of various water pro-jects, covering an area of 2.5 million ha of rice landthroughout the country around the Tonle Sap andalong the valleys of the Mekong and Bassac rivers.Rural areas were supplied with water, using both sur-face water and ground water to meet the needs of thepopulation.

15. Viet Nam, Mongolia and the Union of SovietSocialist Republics protested against the statementmade by the delegation referred to in the previousparagraph.

16. China reiterated its consistent position on theissue.

Part one: Report of the session

17. From 1977 to 1980, the total irrigation potentialin India was increased by 14.23 million ha. For bet-ter utilization of irrigation facilities, 43 commandarea development authorities had been set up, whichcovered 76 irrigation projects with an area of 15.13million ha. India had also formulated plans for anational perspective of water resources and for theinterbasin transfer of national rivers. The flooddamage in 1978 amounted to SUS 1,842 million. Theexpenditure on flood control in 1978/79 and 1979/80was SUS 217.7 million and 195 million respectively.The total length of the dykes in 1978 was 11,870 km.

18. Indonesia had made good progress as a result ofthe national five-year development plan, reflected bythe following figures: irrigation area, 5.29 million hain 1979; cereals production, 26.96 million tons in 1978;hydroelectric power generating capacity, 510 MW in1979; urban water supply, 36 per cent of the popula-tion in 1979; reasonable access of rural water supply,18 per cent in 1979. Substantial progress had beenmade in environmental monitoring, based on the Glo-bal Environmental Monitoring/Water OperationalGuide of UNEP/UNESCO/WMO.

19. In 1979, Malaysia had initiated a national waterresources study which covered all aspects of waterresources planning, development and management, andwould include an optimum plan for water resourcesuse and development until the year 2000. Since 1977the main areas of emphasis had been: improvementof water resources assessment; provision of irrigationand drainage facilities; promotion of fish culture; pro-vision of domestic and industrial water supply; provi-sion of flood warning and mitigation projects; develop-ment of hydropower through multipurpose dams andmini-hydro plants; provision of sewage systems inurban areas; development of ground water for ruralwater supply and upland irrigation; reduction of wastein domestic and industrial water use; and training.

20. In Mongolia, there were about 50 operationalirrigation systems of various sizes. In recent yearsextension measures aimed at nature conservation werebeing implemented, particularly along the major waterarteries of the country.

21. In New Zealand, five new irrigation schemes cover-rural water supply schemes covering an area of 260,400ing an area of 21,050 ha had been started and 23 newha had been initiated in the three-year period 1977-1980. The hydropower generating capacity increasedfrom 3,362 MW to 3,786 MW over the same period.Ten local authority schemes, totalling 119 MW, wereunder construction by August 1980. Completely satis-factory public water supplies reached about 82 per centof New Zealand's population. Technical support wasextended for: flood forecasting and data collection;

long-range forecasting of average annual rainfall; fre-quency distribution maps of high intensity rainfall; andwater quality measures.

22. In Nepal, a large number of irrigation and hydro-power projects had been under investigation or hadbeen implemented in recent years. An increase of theirrigation area by 1.5 to 2.0 million ha and also 60 MWof power was contemplated within the next five years.Land slides and soil erosion had become serious prob-lems, especially in the mountainous regions. The De- ','Apartment of Soil and Water Conservation had been \»established. An afforestation programme had beeninitiated and engineering measures undertaken toremedy the problems.

23. In an effort to solve major problems in watermanagement, such as salt water intrusion, waste waterdisposal, etc. the Netherlands had carried out a majorpolicy analysis of the water management of the coun-try. Some measures to solve those problems included:new infrastructural works in the delta; construction otwaste water treatment plants financed by taxes on pol-lution discharges; improved management of existinginfrastructure facilities; and new legislation, includingpricing and regulations, to allow more rational manage-ment of water quality and quantity. The PolicyAnalysis for the Water Management of the Netherlands(PAWN) was not a single big model, but a set ofmodels and submodels arranged by sectors (agriculture,industry, power, environment and navigation).

24. Pakistan had launched its current five-year plan in1978, keeping in view the resolutions of the Mar delPlata Action Plan. That Plan had laid maximumemphasis on conservation of developed water resources,elimination of waterlogging and salinity, flood protec-tion, and had provided for the extension of safe drink-ing supplies to 81.5 per cent of the urban and 35.8per cent of the rural population. The five-year planenvisaged modernization of water systems and improve-ments at the farm level to increase the economic effi-ciency of the developed water resources. As compar-ed with the original provision of PRs 20,410 millionfor the implementation of the plan, the proportionalavailability of funds was less during the first three yearsand the physical targets had been reduced accordingly.

25. By 1976, the Philippines had integrated all itsformer legislation on water resources into the Philip-pine Water Code, which declared that all waters be-longed to the State and that permits were required forthe drilling and abstracting of ground water and sur-face water. As for water supply, users must own,operate and maintain their own water supply systems.Except for Metropolitan Manila, government agencieshad been formed to help the local associations tech-nically, financially and institutionally, but not to main-


tain and operate the systems. Irrigation had been or-ganized on two levels: the National Irrigation Adminis-tration had established large systems, while the FarmSystems Development Corporation was helping farm-ers to run the small systems. The National WaterResources Council was responsible for the integratedand rational development and management of thewater resources of the country.

26. The Republic of Korea had drawn up plans forthe development of four major river basins serving anarea of 62,762 sq km, or 64 per cent of the country'stotal area. The programme, which cost $US 1.1 bil-lion, included the construction of 13 multipurposedams, improvement of irrigation for 215,000 ha, watersupply to 79 cities, industrial water supply and drain-age. The programme was one of the major compon-ents of the country's fourth five-year plan (1977-1981).Erosion control and afforestation programmes wouldalso be introduced during the plan period.

27. In Samoa, the major developments in waterresources had been in power generation, water supplyand sanitation. Water supply service to the publicwas generally poor and insufficient. With external aid,30 pumping units had been set up since 1977 in ruralareas, serving 25 per cent of the population. Thequality of pumped water to households was generallygood but salinity was a problem. Surface-water sup-plies were generally contaminated; the first urbanwater treatment plant had recently been completed inApia and could treat 2 million litres per day for 3,000to 4,000 people.

28. The Government of Sri Lanka had made greatefforts in the development of the Mahaweli Gangabasin. The master plan consisted of a system of 15multipurpose dams and associated trans-basin diver-sion canals for the provision of improved irrigationfacilities to serve 100,000 ha and for the developmentof 256,000 ha of undeveloped lands in the northernand eastern parts of the country's dry zone. The totalproposed installed capacity of the hydro plantsamounted to 960 MW. Under an accelerated pro-gramme of implementation, many reservoir projectshad been investigated and brought to an advancedstage, while construction under the Victoria and Ma-dura Oya Reservoir projects was started in 1980. Inaddition, irrigation and drainage programmes in otherareas of the country were being actively implemented,with particular emphasis on projects with short gesta-tion periods.

29. The United States had prepared three reports ofinterest to the Committee. The first report, Global2000 Report to the President, predicted that watershortages would become more severe and water sup-plies in developing countries increasingly erratic as a

result of deforestation. The second report, The World'sTropical Forests, discussed the linkage between waterresources and deforestation, particularly in developingcountries. The third report, The Nation's Water Re-sources, assessed the water resources of the UnitedStates from 1975 to 2000, and presented nationallyconsistent current and projected water use and supplyinformation.

30. In the USSR, during the three-year period 1977-1979, an area of 2.36 million ha of irrigated land and2.27 million ha of land under drainage had beenbrought into use. The irrigated and drained lands ac-counted for 10 per cent of the cultivated land and 32per cent of agricultural production (in monetary terms)in 1979. Great attention had been given to preventionof water pollution, recycling and reuse of industrialwater, construction of water treatment plants and rat-ing of water use. Special attention had also beengiven to the construction of regional water supplysystems from precast reinforced concrete.

31. Viet Nam laid stress on the development of sur-face- and ground-water resources for industry, agri-culture, hydropower generation and rural communitywater supply. High priority was given to expandingthe area under irrigation and drainage in order toincrease rice production. Furthermore, the countrywas trying to reduce the intrusion of saline water inthe agricultural areas close to the coast. Other effortswere concentrated on the development of the RedRiver and Mekong basins, a regional system of floodprotection; development of hydropower potential; im-provement in the quality of drinking water; develop-ment of fish farming; and co-operation in training andtechnology transfer.

Information and experience on measures takenspecifically in response to die Mar del Plata ActionPlan and the problems encountered in carryingout the recommendations of the United NationsWater Conference

32. In India, the recommendations of the Conferencehad been circulated by the Government to the variousState Governments in May 1977. The progress onfollow-up action had been reviewed at the Conferenceof State Ministers of Irrigation held in November 1977and it had been resolved that the various relevantmeasures suggested in the Mar del Plata Action Planshould be adopted as far as possible in the formula-tion of master plan and in the operation and main-tenance of irrigation systems. In order to achievemore efficient integrated planning and development ofwater resources, organizations concerned with groundwater, minor irrigation works and command areadevelopment in the central Government had beenamalgamated with the Irrigation Department. Since


the United Nations Water Conference, there had beenan increase in the collection of hydrological data andan improvement in data compilation and processing byusing modern techniques.

33. In Indonesia, an over-all review of experience onthe following topics in response to the Mar del Plata ;Action Plan was made in March 1979: assessment ofwater resources; efficiency in water utilization for vari-ous purposes; measurement and projections of waterdemands; policy, planning and management of waterresources; environmental monitoring programme, insti-tutional management and education, training and re-search. The reply to the questionnaire circulated bythe Secretary-General of the United Nations in March1980 had already been submitted.

34. In Malaysia, the following action had been taken:(a) formulation and drafting of a rational water policy,and (b) review and possible revision of the existing in-stitutional structure and legislation on water resourcesplanning, development and management.

35. Nepal had planned to provide drinking water to20 per cent of the rural population during the period1981-1985. A Local Development Ministry had beenestablished in order to accelerate the programme.

36. In New Zealand, revision and consolidation ofwater and soil conservation legislation were in the pro-cess of being drafted.

37. The Government of Samoa intended to achieve theobjectives of the International Drinking Water Supplyand Sanitation Decade by initiating programmes and anaction plan in water supply and sanitation, monitoringwater quality, promoting public education on usage andprotecting catchment areas.

38. In Sri Lanka, the following measures had beentaken in response to the Mar del Plata Action Plan;(a) formulation and drafting of a new and comprehen-sive water resources act which would provide for theestablishment of a national water resources council;(b) drafting of a new irrigation law to include up-to-date and more effective provisions for the control andregulation of water use in irrigation schemes; (c) for-mulation and laying down of appropriate policiesfor better operation and maintenance of all existingirrigation schemes; (d) initiation of measures for im-proving the existing standards and procedures for theassessment of water resources; and (e) formulation ofa decade plan providing for safe drinking water sup-plies covering 60 per cent of the rural population, andsanitary methods of excreta disposal covering 50 percent of the rural population.

Information on opportunities for mutual support inimplementing the Mar del Plata Action Plan, withparticular reference to technical co-operation amongdeveloping countries (TCDC)

39. The Committee considered the opportunities forTCDC as specified in resolution VIII of the Mar delPlata Action Plan.

40. In that regard, Australia expressed its readinessto consider any request for assistance under the TCDCconcept with due regard to budgetary constraints,other commitments in the region, the ability to providethe type of assistance requested, and the prevailinggovernment policy. Likewise, Japan declared that itwould continue to provide assistance to developingcountries in the field of water resources development.

41. Since 1977, India had participated actively in in-formation exchange and expert and consultancy ser-vices in the water resources sector. The Water andPower Consultancy Services had also increased theiractivities in developing countries. The representativeof India suggested that under TCDC the initiative hadto be taken mainly by the developing countries them-selves. International organizations might help con-siderably in the following ways: (a) by giving prefer-ence to the talents and facilities available in develop-ing countries when expert or consultancy services wereto be made available to other developing countries;(b) by organizing teams from among senior officialsof developing countries to visit projects in other coun-tries of the region and identify and publicize the faci-lities and expertise available in the region itself; (c) bycompiling and periodically updating a register ofthe facilities and expertise available in the developingcountries; and (d) by financing training and study-cum-observation and other programmes, includingparticipation in the proceedings of professional organi-zations.

42. Recognizing the importance of water resources inthe economic development and the life of people inthe developing countries, the representative of Indo-nesia recommended that a regional water resourcesdevelopment centre, similar to the Regional MineralResources Development Centre (RMRDC), should beestablished to promote co-operation in training andadvisory services for water resources developmentamong developing countries. It also suggested thatcopies of the Mar del Plata Action Plan should bewidely circulated among the national agencies con-cerned.

43. The Committee noted with interest examples ofTCDC in the water resources field. Technical co-operation between Malaysia and Thailand had beenachieved through a joint study of the Golok River


basin. The Government of Samoa was planning tohold a seminar in 1981 on water supply and sanitationfor countries in the South Pacific region. In SriLanka, engineers from the Department of Irrigationhad been sent to the International Rice ResearchInstitute (IRRI) in the Philippines to study rice irriga-

tion and water management, while arrangements hadbeen finalized to send an engineer to the Republic ofKorea for a course in water management. It was men-tioned that the recent activities in the development ofthe Mahawcli basin in Sri Lanka would be of interestto other developing countries of the region.

in . RURAL COMMUNITY WATER SUPPLY AND RURAL SANITATIONIN RELATION TO OVER-ALL MANAGEMENT OF

WATER RESOURCES(Agenda item 5)

44. The Committee had before it document E/ESCAP/NR.7/2, which contained a background docu-ment prepared by WHO and some country papers.

45. The Committee noted with concern the informa-tion provided by WHO that while the ESCAP regioncontained 57 per cent of the total world population,it received only 29 per cent of the total external assis-tance provided for rural water supply and sanitation.It also noted that the estimated annual investmentsrequired to meet assumed achievable targets of 100per cent for water and only 30 per cent for sanitationfor the ESCAP region (excluding China) were $US1,504 million and 104 million for rural water supplyand sanitation respectively. It agreed that the targetsof the International Drinking Water Supply and Sani-tation Decade could be achieved provided the coun-tries mobilized adequate internal resources as required.

46. The Committee heard with interest accounts ofthe various activities being carried out in a number ofcountries in the provision of rural water supply andsanitation facilities in preparation for the Decade.

47. Concern was expressed about the possible detri-mental effect of over-abstracting ground water for irri-gation purposes, thus lowering the ground water tableand rendering ineffective the shallow wells used for thedrinking water supply. The dangerous environmentalhealth effects of the extensive development of waterresources were also pointed out. Countries were there-fore urged to give careful consideration to those mat-ters.

48. The Committee recommended that considerationshould also be given to the allocation of water re-sources through the introduction of appropriate licens-ing or pricing policies.

49. It noted the magnitude of the rural water supplyand sanitation problem, which was quite formidable,and the need to adopt a strategy to provide an ade-quate coverage of water supply and sanitation of therural population of the region by 1990.

50. It endorsed the elements of the strategy describedin the document. It stressed that one of the principalelements of the strategy was the need to integrate the

provision of rural water supply and sanitation in theover-all planning for water resources development ofeach country. Wherever possible, multipurpose pro-jects should include rural water supply and sanitationalong with irrigation, power generation or other uses,rather than leaving the former for subsequent planningand execution. Co-ordination among different agenciesat the early planning stage would lead to considerableeconomies and to a conceptually more satisfactory andoptimum solution.

51. Other elements of the strategy should include:adoption of a national policy assigning a high priorityto the provision of rural water supply and sanitation;inclusion of rural water supply and sanitation in pro-grammes in integrated rural development; participationof the rural community in the planning, constructionand operation and maintenance of the projects; anincreased allocation for that sector in the national bud-get; identification and formulation of suitable projectswhich could be considered for international funding;an intensive and effective programme of manpoweiplanning and training; co-ordination among the vari-ous agencies involved in that activity; appropriatelegislation to protect the quality of water resources;health education in generating local interest in watersupply and sanitation; application of appropriate cri-teria and standards to meet the needs of rural com-munities, or the skills of village people; incorporationof local materials and equipment to the extent pos-sible in the design and construction of the local sys-tem; and support for research and development ofappropriate technology.

52. The Committee pointed out that only a smallfraction of the total amount spent on armaments wouldbe sufficient to finance the total investment require-ments for the International Drinking Water Supply andSanitation Decade the success of which, however, wouldbe achieved only in an atmosphere of peace anddetente.

53. The Committee noted with interest the many use-ful activities of WHO and UNICEF and the impor-tant role that they played in the provision of ruralwater supply and sanitation. It also noted the acti-vities of UNESCO in that field.


IV. INTEGRATED OPTIMUM DEVELOPMENT OF THE DELTAIC ANDUPLAND PORTIONS OF A RIVER BASIN

(Agenda item 6)

54. The Committee considered document E/ESCAP/NR.7/3 and commended Professor A. Volker on hav-ing prepared an excellent paper which was useful forthe guidance of countries.

55. The Committee noted that the main problemsusually encountered in the development of the deltaicand upland portions of a river basin to achieve op-timum benefits included inaccessibility, water alloca-tion, supply of water and possible regulation from up-stream, floods and possible flood control upstream,navigation, protection of water quality, waterlogging,siltation, erosion, soil conservation, storm surges andsait-water intrusion; those were of (sometimes conflict-ing) interest to both the delta occupants and those inthe upstream parts of river basin.

56. The resolution of the major problem of conflictinginterests which at the same time would lead to theachievement of optimum benefits called for an inte-grated approach to the development of the water re-sources of a river basin by means of which alterna-tive schemes of development would be formulated andtheir corresponding economic, social and environmen-tal impacts would be evaluated.

57. To ensure the proper and timely implementationof the integrated development of a river basin, it wasnecessary to establish both an organizational and alegal framework.

58. The Committee pointed out that a river basincould encompass more than one country, in which caseits development required co-operation among all theriparian countries. In that connexion reference wasmade to the recommendations of the United NationsWater Conference concerning co-operation in the fieldof share water resources, and concern was expressedabout the delay in the codification of laws to guidethe development of such resources.

59. The Committee expressed the view that masterplans which should merely serve as a general frame-work should take into full consideration the socialaspects of development in order to be valid, and mustbe kept under constant review. Moreover, institutional,administrative, technical and legal constraints must alsobe taken fully into consideration.

60. The Committee endorsed the following recom-mendations:

(1) The comprehensive master plans should in-clude the development of the upland and del-taic portions of the basin;

(2) In the formulation of master plans for inte-grated river basin development, various al-ternatives should be considered for the allo-cation of water between interested categoriesof water users (urban and rural settlements,irrigation, industry, hydropower, navigation,fisheries, salinity control, protection of waterquality, etc.), taking into due account theinterdependence between water requirementsand other interests of the deltaic area and theupland portion of the river basin in connexionwith their economic, environmental and socialmerits;

(3) The master plan, justified from the technical,economic, environmental, social and culturalpoints of view and adopted by the relevantauthorities, should serve as a guide to beused by planners and decision makers in theprocess of national planning, the phasing ofthe development of the two portions of theriver basin and the selection of priority ofhydraulic and other projects, as well as inthe elaboration of institutional and legal as-pects of integrated water use in the basin;

(4) The master plan should take fully into con-sideration the flood protection requirementsof the river basin;

(5) During the development of a river basin con-tinuous monitoring of the hydrologic andmorphologic effects of that development onthe various portions of the river basin shouldbe carried out;

(6) ESCAP, in co-operation with other appro-priate agencies, should organize a symposiumon the mechanisms and effects of salt-waterintrusion in surface and ground water and onmeasures to control such intrusion.


V. INDUSTRIAL WATER USE IN RELATION TO THE OVER-ALLMANAGEMENT OF WATER RESOURCES

(Agenda item 7)

61. The Committee had before it a note by the ESCAPsecretariat (E/ESCAP/NR.7/4).

62. A brief review of the characteristics of variouscompeting demands for water indicated that the re-quirements for community water supply would con-tinue to increase, while those for agriculture, fisheries,salt-water intrusion control and inland navigationwould remain more or less constant. Requirementsfor municipal water supply would not increase verymuch after a given level of services had been reached.While requirements in the industrial sector could in-crease, it was in that sector where the greatest scopefor flexibility and adjustment existed because of im-provements in technology, recycling, salvage of mate-rials and increase in efficiency of water use.

63. The Committee agreed that increasing industrialoutput need not necessarily require a correspondingincrease in the total industrial water requirements,which could be minimized through technological im-provements, recirculation, reduction of losses, theformulation of national policy and introduction oflegislation encouraging industry to devise and utilizewater-saving measures, the employment of economicinstruments, including appropriate water-pricing poli-cies, which would encourage industries to adopt moreefficient and less wasteful use of water, and the mount-

ing of vigorous publicity and public information pro-grammes to publicize the adoption of water-savingmeasures by industries.

64. For example, data on industrial water use report-ed by the Association of Industries in the Netherlandsfor the period 1957 to 1979 had revealed that whileindustrial production had increased, the volume ofwater used by industries had declined, especially be-tween 1968 to 1972. It was estimated that therewould be a 22 per cent reduction in 1980. New in-dustrial plants in Japan were being designed to achieveabout 95 per cent recirculation, while currently about70 per cent of the water was being recirculated. Thecurrent emphasis in the USSR was on attaining 80 to90 per cent recirculation of water in industries andzero discharge of pollutants. Effluent from seweragetreatment plants was being used to irrigate farms.

65. A number of countries, for example, Indonesiaand Japan, were resorting to the use of ground waterfor their industrial water needs. However, docliningground-water levels, salt-water intrusion and land sub-sidence had resulted in some industries shifting to apiped water supply system.

66. It was recommended that prevention and controlof water pollution should be made a component ofnational plans for economic and social development.

VI. ACTIVITIES OF ESCAP IN THE APPRAISAL, DEVELOPMENTAND MANAGEMENT OF NATURAL RESOURCES .

(Agenda item 8)

67. The Committee reviewed the activities of thesecretariat in the field of natural resources as reportedin documents E/ESCAP/NR.7/5-9 and E/ESCAP/NR.7/11-15.

Water resources

68. The Committee noted with interest the progressmade in the activities of the secretariat in the field ofwater resources development, as described in docu-ments E/ESCAP/NR.7/5-9.

69. The Committee endorsed the activities of thesecretariat and its efforts to promote regional co-opera-tion and disseminate information in the field of waterresources development. It stressed that close co-opera-tion among members of the United Nations system wasessential. It was important that the views and needsof regional and subregional bodies organized under the

auspices of ESCAP should be considered by the exist-ing mechanisms established to promote regional inter-agency co-operation, such as the Interagency TaskForce on Water for Asia and the Pacific.

70. In particular, the work carried out on integrateddevelopment, use and management of water was muchappreciated. The recommendations of the Seminar onthe Improvement uf litigation Performance at theProject Level, held at Krasnodar, USSR, from 23August to 5 September 1980 were endorsed.

71. While endorsing in general the criteria for settingwater pricing as recommended by the Export GroupMeeting on Water Pricing, held at Bangkok from 13to 19 May 1980, it was pointed out that not all thecriteria might be applicable under certain conditionsand specific problems faced by some countries.


72. The Committee noted with interest the reports ofthe Training Course on Flood Loss Prevention andManagement, organized at Bangkok from 7 to 18 July1980, and of the Study Tour on Methods of FloodControl conducted in China from 28 July to 16 August1980 for the benefit of the Typhoon Committee.

73. It commended the secretariat on its efforts tomonitor the implementation by countries of the Mardel Plata Action Plan and suggested that such moni-toring should be institutionalized. To implement therecommendations concerning TCDC emphasized inresolution VIII of the Plan, it was suggested that thesecretariat should organize groups of experts from theregion to visit countries and discuss their problems inwater resources development for which solutions mightalready be available on the basis of the experience ofthe experts.

74. The Committee expressed concern over the lackof activities organized by the secretariat in the SouthPacific island countries in the field of water resources.The hope was expressed that that situation would beimproved through the initiation of projects involvingthe South Pacific members as well as through theirincreased participation in relevant activities of thesecretariat. The Committee endorsed the suggestionthat the regional adviser on water resources shouldvisit some of the South Pacific island countries to iden-tify major needs and common problems in the fieldof water with a view to formulating useful subregionalactivities which could help in the solution of thoseproblems.

Energy resources

75. The Committee considered document E/ESCAP/NR.7/11, covering activities of ESCAP in the energyfield, document E/ESCAP/NR.7/15, the report of theWorking Group Meeting on Energy in the South Paci-fic, and document E/ESCAP/NR.7/24, which contain-ed statistics of energy resources and energy productionof countries of the region. The Committee was in-formed of further progress made since the documentswere issued.

76. The Committee noted that in response to an en-quiry circulated by the secretariat, a number of replieshad been received from member countries indicatingthe usefulness of the recurrent publication ElectricPower in Asia and the Pacific, and the Committee waspleased to note that the publication would be con-tinued. However, the Committee suggested that infuture consideration should be given to the possibilityof expanding the publication to incorporate informa-tion pertaining to other sources of energy, providedthe secretariat would have sufficient resources to under-take additional work.

77. The Committee expressed interest in the proposedmeeting on financing of rural electrification, which hadthe objective of finding proper solutions to solve thevital problems of financing. It noted, however, thatthe meeting could be organized only if reports on thecurrent situation of rural electrification were receivedfrom a sufficient number of countries, in which casethe work programme would have to be revised toinclude the meeting.

78. The Committee noted that a guidebook on biogasdevelopment incorporating information pertaining toChinese design digesters would be available early in1981.

79. The Committee expressed the hope that theESCAP regional preparatory meeting for the UnitedNations Conference on New and Renewable Sources ofEnergy, to be convened in December 1980, would pro-vide a good input to the Conference. It also notedthat the report of the expert group meeting on fuel-wood and charcoal to be organized jointly with FAOin January 1981 would be an additional input to theConference.

80. The Committee expressed its appreciation of theincreasing activities of ESCAP in the South Pacificarea. It was grateful that the Working Group Meet-ing on Energy in the South Pacific had been held atApia in June 1980 and noted that follow-up action hadbeen taken as follows: (a) analytical papers on theevaluation of the energy situation in the South Pacifichad been revised and circulated, (b) the preliminarydraft project document on a Pacific regional energyprogramme had been prepared and distributed, and(c) an information document containing country paperspresented at the meeting had been compiled in con-densed form for distribution.

81. The Committee expressed its keen interest in theproposed regional energy development programme, butnoted that no action would be taken until the UNDPprogramming mission which was currently visitingmember countries of the region had completed itswork.

82. The Committee noted with appreciation the sup-port given to ESCAP by UNDP and by donor coun-tries, namely, Australia, Finland, India, Japan andNew Zealand, for undertaking various activities in theenergy field during the period between the sixth andseventh sessions of the Committee.

83. The Committee appreciated the work of thesecretariat. It suggested, however, that considerationshould be given to the possibility of taking up otherequally important subjects, such as conventional energyresources, energy conservation in the domestic sectorand homes, small-scale hydroelectricity and water

10 PROCEEDINGS OF THE SEVENTH SESSION

desalination with the use of solar energy. The Com-mittee also suggested that co-ordination among officeswithin the ESCAP secretariat should be improved soas to enable the report of the secretariat on its acti-vities in the field of energy to be more comprehensiveand include other planned activities, such as theESCAP/RCTT Symposium on Solar Science andTechnology, held at Bangkok from 25 November to4 December 1980, and the Intergovernmental Meetingon Agro-industries, with Emphasis on Production ofEnergy and New Resources held at Tokyo from 21 to27 October 1980.

84. The Committee was informed that an ASCOPE(ASEAN Council on Petroleum) meeting covering sub-jects connected with energy would be held at Manilain 1981 by ASEAN countries.

Mineral resources

85. The Committee considered the programme ofactivities undertaken by the secretariat in the field ofgeology and mineral resources development as reportedin documents E/ESCAP/NR.7/12 and E/ESCAP/NR.7/14.

86. The secretariat was commended on the workcarried out and the progress made in connexion withthe Regional Mineral Resources Development Centre(RMRDC), the Southeast Asia Tin Research andDevelopment Centre (SEATRADQ, the Committeesfor Co-ordination of Joint Prospecting for MineralResources in Asian Offshore Areas (CCOP) and inSouth Pacific Offshore Areas (CCOP/SOPAQ, thespecialized regional geological maps, the publicationof the Mineral Resources Development Series, and theholding of seminars to promote the investigation anddevelopment of mineral resources.

87- The Committee was informed of the conclusionsand recommendations of the Seminar on ModernMethods of Mineral Prospecting, which was held atTashkent, USSR, from 20 August to 6 September1980 with the financial and technical support of theGovernment of the USSR and UNDP.

88. Tt considered and endorsed the recommendationsof that Seminar concerning the co-operation and assis-tance of international organizations:

(1) That a similar seminar to review the trendsand new methods and techniques being usedin mineral exploration and developmentshould be held in about four years;

(2) That specialized training of national profes-sional personnel for periods of three to fourmonths should be provided by the UnitedNations system;

(3) That ESCAP/UNDP should develop a pro-gramme for specialized training of youngprofessional personnel for periods of two ormore years in the USSR and/or in otherdeveloped countries;

(4) That ESCAP should undertake to translatetechnical papers from the USSR on geology,geophysics and geochemistry into English andto distribute the information to the membercountries;

(5) That regional geological centres and labora-tories should be established in the ESCAPregion that would be designed to solve someof the more pressing problems faced by thedeveloping countries;

(6) That ESCAP should study in detail the or-ganization of a seminar on drilling. It wouldbe especially important that an appropriatecountry to organize and host the seminarshould be identified and that the programmeshould be designed for field geologists;

(7) That, in view of the importance of coal as asource of energy for the developing countries,a seminar on exploration, evaluation anddevelopment of coal resources should be held,possibly in the USSR, as soon as possible.

89. In that connexion, the Committee noted with ap-preciation that the USSR was ready to study the pos-sibility of organizing and hosting the next seminar ontrends and new methods and techniques used in mineralexploration and development, and the seminar on ex-ploration, evaluation and development of coal resources.

90. The Committee expressed its appreciation of thesupport given by UNDP to RMRDC, SEATRADC,CCOP and CCOP/SOPAC and strongly urged thatcontinued support be given to those worth-while re-gional and subregional projects during the next pro-gramming cycle (1982-1986).

91. It also expressed appreciation to India for provid-ing the services of a co-ordinator for the preparationof the third edition of the Oil and Natural Gas Mapof Asia and for the offer to provide the services of anexnert to art as r.n-ordinator for the preparation ofthe third edition of the regional Mineral DistributionMap of Asia in the form of an atlas. It also notedwith appreciation that a similar offer had been madeby New Zealand to provide assistance in the prepara-tion of the mineral distribution map. Appreciationwas expressed to Japan for its preparation of the gra-vity map of the eastern ESCAP region.

92. The Committee noted with appreciation the state-ment made by the representative of Japan that his

Part one: Report of the session 11

Government would continue to provide technical andfinancial co-operation in support of the regional pro-grammes for the development of mineral resources. Itendorsed the statement that the activities of bodiesconcerned with regional mineral development such asRMRDC, CCOP and CCOP/SOPAC should be con-ducted under the umbrella of ESCAP.

Remote sensing, surveying and mapping

93. The Committee was informed of the programmeof activities of the secretariat in the field of remotesensing, surveying and mapping as reported in docu-ment E/ESCAP/NR.7/13.

94. It noted that the economies of ESCAP develop-ing countries were primarily based on the developmentof their natural resources and that those countriesurgently needed to speed up the completion of theirresource data bases to be able to develop realisticplans for their accelerated economic growth. Remotesensing was therefore particularly important for thedeveloping countries and most of these in the ESCAPregion had established national remote sensing pro-grammes and were developing methodologies for map-ping natural resources and monitoring environmentalchanges.

95. The Committee was informed that in pursuanceof the request made at the thirty-fifth session of theCommission for UNDP assistance for a three-yearregional co-operation programme on remote sensingwhich would provide a mechanism for informationexchange on projects of common interest, as well assharing of training facilities and the conduct of jointresearch/pilot projects, a preparatory mission, withUNDP support, was fielded in May-June 1980 toassess and formulate a programme for regional co-operation in the field of remote sensing based on effec-tive involvement and co-operation among nationalcentres and/or services within the region.

96. The mission, comprising one UNDP consultant,one ESCAP consultant (senior remote sensing officialfrom an ESCAP developing country), one representa-

tive each of United Nations Headquarters, the ESCAPsecretariat and FAO, and a consultant provided byFrance, visited Thailand, Bangladesh, India, Indonesia,the Philippines, Republic of Korea, Japan, China andViet Nam to consult with government authorities. Inaddition, a questionnaire requesting views on theformulation of the regional remote sensing programmewas sent to each member and associate member ofESCAP.

97. The mission, after careful analysis of all the in-formation available, prepared its report and a draftproject document for a three-year multidisciplinaryregional remote sensing programme. The main com-ponents of the recommended programme were: in-formation exchange (symposia, newsletter, documenta-tion services); training (workshop/study tour, on-the-job training, short-term/medium-term courses); andjoint research and pilot applications projects. It alsorecommended the establishment of an intergovernmen-tal consultative committee of participating countriesto provide policy guidance for the regional programme.The mission report and draft project proposal werebeing distributed to all ESCAP countries for theirconsideration. The regional programme was expectedto be implemented in 1982.

98. The Committee strongly supported the recommen-dation of the mission for a multidisciplinary regionalremote sensing programme and expressed its apprecia-tion to the secretariat for its endeavour to obtain sup-port from UNDP and donor countries for the regionalprogramme.

99. Tt endorsed the view that the three-year regionalco-operation project to be funded by UNDP wouldprovide a significant contribution towards upgradingremote-sensing capabilities in participating ESCAPcountries. Since countries of the region needed fur-ther substantial assistance for advanced training andmodern remote sensing equipment, the Committee urg-ed prospective donor countries from within and out-side the region and some international agencies to in-form the secretariat at an early date of the nature oftheir support.

VII. ACTIVITIES OF OTHER INTERNATIONAL BODIES IN THEAPPRAISAL, DEVELOPMENT AND MANAGEMENT OF

WATER RESOURCES(Agenda item 9)

100. The Committee had before it documents E/ESCAP/NR.7/1-4 and E/ESCAP/NR.7/11. Thosedocuments gave a detailed description of the activitiesof some of the international bodies over the past threeyears. They were supplemented by oral presentationsfrom the international bodies present.

United Nations Environment Programme

101. UNEP had launched a global regional seas pro-gramme, which included conservation of coastal areas,mangroves and deltaic areas. Its regional seas actionprogramme consisted of: environmental assessment, en-


vironmental management, consideration of legal factors,and institutional and financial arrangements. UNEP'ssouth Asia co-operative environment programme wasconcentrating, inter alia, on the conservation of mon-tane ecosystems and watersheds, and coastal areas.Furthermore, UNEP had continued to support theefforts of the Mekong secretariat.

United Nations Children's Fund

102. Among the fields in which UNICEF had givensupport were surveying and programming, training,supply of equipment and materials and other technicalsupport, health education and control of water quality,and the local manufacture of equipment and material.The Committee was informed that the World Bank'sTechnical Advisory Group, with which UNICEF col-laborated, aimed at providing solutions to sanitationproblems in urban areas which could not afford asewage system.

Interim Committee for Co-ordination of Investigationsof the Lower Mekong Basin

103. Fourteen hydro projects were already in opera-tion with a total capacity of 230 MW, generating about1,000 GWh annually, and a total area of about 500,000ha had been put under irrigation. Recent studies ofthe Mekong River basin had indicated that a hydro-power potential of 42,000 installed capacity and 225,000GWh was available. The total potential area whichcould be irrigated in the basin was estimated at 6.4million ha. Other efforts were aimed at salinity andflood control, navigation improvement, fisheries, en-vironmental social and economic benefits.

International Labour Organisation

104. ILO considered the use of local resources ofmanpower and material, appropriate technology andlocal participation extremely important in the plan-ning, development and operation of water resourcesand facilities. Several studies had been carried out onthe subjects of irrigation and drinking water supply incountries of the ESCAP region, particularly emphasiz-ing labour-intensive and indigenous technologies forconstructing irrigation works and the use of local ma-terials. Furthermore, ILO support had been given tothe training, safety and health of workers, and toemergency employment schemes for seasonally unem-ployed rural workers.

United Nations Educational, Scientific andCultural Organization

105. The plan for the second phase of UNESCO'sinternational hydrological programme (1981-1983) gave

increased emphasis to education and training and tothe dissemination of information relating to waterresources management. The regional hydrology pro-gramme for 1981 was expected to include two or threetraining courses in both the south-central Asian regionregion and the south-east Asian region. UNESCOalso planned a number of pilot projects to assist coun-tries in the assessment of their water resources.

World Health Organization

106. WHO activities in the fields of sanitation andwater supply had intensified considerably since theUnited Nations had made preparations to declare 1981-1990 the International Drinking Water Supply andSanitation Decade. WHO, which was a technical co-operation rather than a funding agency, had providedtechnical co-operation for promoting and supportingnational Decade programmes, which were to becomeself-sustaining, and had encouraged TCDC and theflow of external funds to support national Decade acti-vities. The water supply and sanitation programmeswere carried out together with support programmesfor health and hygiene, education and community par-ticipation.

International Commission on Irrigation and Drainage

107. The purpose of ICID was to stimulate and pro-mote the development and application of scientifictechniques of irrigation, drainage, flood control andriver training, taking into consideration engineering,economic and social aspects (as well as environmentalaspects). That objective was carried out by ICIDthrough global and regional meetings; interchange ofinformation; studies and experiments; dissemination ofpublications; and co-operation with international or-ganizations having related objectives.

International Council of Women

108. Women should be involved in training related tothe acquisition of water, which was vital for rural life.That included pump repair and other skills for improv-ing the water supply. The Committee was informedthat organizations should assist in the training of wo-men to enable them to participate more actively innational development.

109. One delegation pointed out that the reports ofthe agencies represented had not provided informationon follow-up action to the Mar del Plata Action Plan.The hope was expressed that in future such informa-tion would be provided.


VHI. PROGRAMME OF WORK AND PRIORITIES IN THE APPRAISAL,DEVELOPMENT AND MANAGEMENT OF NATURAL RESOURCES,

1980-1981, PROGRAMME CHANGES; AND CONSIDERATIONOF THE PROGRAMME OF WORK AND PRIORITIES,

1982-1983(Agenda item 10)

110. The Committee reviewed the programme of workand priorities in the field of natural resources develop-ment for 1980-1981 as set out in documents E/ESCAP/NR.7/10 and E/ESCAP/NR.7/16-18. It also consider-ed the draft programme of work and priorities in thatsector for 1982-1983, set out in documents E/ESCAP/NR.7/19 and Add.l, E/ESCAP/NR.7/20 and Add.l,E/ESCAP/NR.7/21 and Add.l, and E/ESCAP/NR.7/22 and Add.l.

111. The Committee heard with interest the statementof the UNDP Regional Representative a.i. that UNDPwas currently engaged in consultations with the mem-bers of the United Nations family, including ESCAP,in preparation for the formulation of the UNDP inter-country programme for the third cycle, 1982-1986. Itwas pleased to learn that UNDP had a definite com-mitment to support the proposed regional energy deve-lopment programme, RAS/80/001.

112. The Committee noted that the availability ofresources for the successful implementation of the pro-gramme of work was of vital importance. An appealwas made to relevant organizations to provide finan-cial support to those programme.

Water resources

113. The Committee recommended that ESCAP shouldorganize a meeting on water resources development inthe first half of 1981 for the benefit of South Pacificisland countries to discuss the major needs and prob-lems in the field of water and their possible solutions.The hope was expressed that the organization of sucha meeting would be the start of further secretariat acti-vities in the South Pacific in the sphere of water. Itwas recommended that the 1980-1981 programme ofwork and priorities in the water sector, as set out indocument E/ESCAP/NR.7/10, should be amendedaccordingly.

114. The Committee endorsed the draft programmeof work and priorities for 1982-1983 as set out in docu-ment E/ESCAP/NR.7/19 and Add.l, with the addi-tion of a project on water quality management.

115. In endorsing the programme for 1982-1983, theimportance of subprogramme 16.02 on policy, plan-ning and management was stressed. In that connexionthe USSR reaffirmed its readiness to host a seminar on

water resources development planning in 1982 and astudy tour on capital investment aspects of waterresources development in 1983.

116. Also in connexion with programme 16.02, theUnited States delegation brought to the attention ofthe Committee that new techniques were availablewhich could be of assistance to ESCAP in the moreeffective implementation of its work programme inthe water sector.

117. The Committee also pointed out that in the fieldof irrigation there was still plenty of scope for manage-ment reform and system design. It suggested the con-tinuance of case studies in that regard.

118. A note of caution was sounded concerning theapplication of low-cost technology in the field of wateruntil possible disadvantages had been evaluated byscientific studies. It recommended the continuance oftraditional methods which, however, should be mademore cost-effective.

119. Some delegations expressed the view that a meet-ing or seminar on droughts should be held in 1983.However, other delegations considered such a meetingto be unnecessary since at a number of meetings heldrecently on the same or on related subjects, forexample, the International Symposium on Droughts atNew Delhi, and the United Nations Conference onDesertification, discussions had been held and recom-mendations made which were relevant to the droughtproblem.

120. It was suggested that in drawing up the medium-term plan for 1984-1989, the establishment of a re-gional water resources development centre should beconsidered.

Energy resources

121. The Committee considered documents E/ESCAP/NR.7/16 and E/ESCAP/NR.7/20 and Add.l. Thework programme for 1982-1983 in document E /ESCAP/NR.7/20 was tentative and might be modifiedextensively, depending on the outcome of various acti-vities on energy currently being undertaken, as men-tioned in the document.

122. The Committee was informed that activity02.02.01, "Meeting on national energy policies and


energy planning", included in the work programme for1982-1983, was a modification of an activity of thecurrent work programme, 1980-1981, which had notbeen implemented in 1980 owing to certain modifica-tions in the priorities within the sector.

123. The Committee stressed the importance of ruralelectrification development and was informed that thesubject could be considered as part of activity 02.02.02of the current work programme for 1980-1981, througha seminar on planning, management and economics ofenergy for rural areas. Alternatively, that subjectmight be dealt with at an ad hoc meeting to be pro-posed as an addition to the work programme, 1982-1983, provided that a sufficient number of membercountries of the region would submit to the secretariat,for analysis and evaluation, national reports onmanagement and financing of rural electrification inline with the report of India distributed to the coun-tries late in 1979.

Mineral resources

124. The Committee considered the programme ofwork and priorities in the appraisal, development, useand management of mineral resources, 1980-1981(E/ESCAP/NR.7/17) and the draft programme ofwork, 1982-1983 (E/ESCAP/NR.7/21 and Add.l).

125. It endorsed the amendments to the 1980-1981programme as set out in document E/ESCAP/NR.7/17, with the addition of the following specific activi-ties:

15.02.09 Support to CCOP

15.02.10 Establishment of a CCOP for the IndianOcean area

It also endorsed the draft programme of work, 1982-1983, as given in documents E/ESCAP/NR.7/21 andAdd.l.

126. In connexion with the seminar on tungsten, theCommittee was pleased to note that preparations wereunder way for holding the seminar in the autumn of1981 in south China.

Remote sensing, surveying and mapping

127. The Committee considered documents E/ESCAP/NR.7/18 and E/ESCAP/NR.7/22 and Add.l, andendorsed the programme of work and priorities forremote sensing, surveying and mapping, 1980-1981, andthe draft programme of work, 1982-1983, as set outin those documents.

128. In connexion with the proposed UNDP regionalremote sensing programme, the Committee felt thatspecial attention should be given to the type of train-ing on remote sensing techniques which should reallysatisfy the needs of the individual member countries.The suitability of the location of ground receiving sta-tions and the availability of satellite imagery were ofthe utmost importance for the implementation of theprogramme and should therefore be ensured.

IX. REVISION OF THE TERMS OF REFERENCE OF THECOMMITTEE ON NATURAL RESOURCES

(Agenda item 11)

129. The Committee considered document E/ESCAP/NR.7/23, which contained some suggestions for therevision of its terms of reference. It suggested fur-ther minor modifications and recommended the follow-ing terms of reference:

"The Committee on Natural Resources shall havethe following functions:

natural resources development in the region,in particular in the field of water, energy andmineral resources development;

"2. To discuss in depth technical and other rele-vant subjects dealing with water, energy andmineral resources;

"3. To consider and recommend policies, strate-gies, methods and techniques for the proper

investigation, development and utilization ofwater, energy and mineral resources, havingdue regard to economic, social and environ-mental considerations, to identify problemsimpeding the desirable rate of progress inthese fields, and to recommend appropriatemeasures, including required training pro-grammes;

"4. To nromotc regional and subre°iona! co-operation in water, energy and mineral re-sources development;

"5. To review and evaluate the activities of thesecretariat in the field of water, energy andmineral resources development and to makerecommendations for the formulation andimplementation of the programme of work inthese fields, with particular emphasis on acti-tivities in priority areas as defined by the


Commission from time to time, taking intoaccount the work being done in these fieldsby the United Nations and other relevant or-ganizations;

"6. To perform such other functions and activi-ties as the Commission may request in allmatters concerning water, energy and mineralresources development in the region;

"7. To liaise as necessary with, and to take intoaccount the relevant recommendations of,other legislative committees established by theCommission and other relevant bodies.

The Committee shall meet once every yearand take up separately, but not exclusively,every third, year, the subjects of energy, waterand mineral resources development, and re-port to the Commission."

130. While agreeing on those terms of reference, theCommittee stressed that the principles of integratedland and water management and the relationship be-tween land use and the elements of the hydrologicalcycle should be taken fully into consideration at alltimes with a view to optimizing the use of water andassociated land resources.

X. CONSIDERATION OF THE AGENDA AND ARRANGEMENTS FORSUBSEQUENT SESSIONS OF THE COMMITTEE

(Agenda item 12)

131. The eighth session of the Committee scheduledfor 1981 would deal mainly with the topic of energy.The Committee was informed that energy would alsobe a main topic for discussion in the Committee onDevelopment Planning at its third session, scheduledfor January 1981. The secretariat therefore decidedthat the proposed provisional agenda on energy mat-ters for the eighth session of the Committee on NaturalResources would be prepared and submitted for con-sideration by the Commission at its thirty-seventh ses-sion in March 1981.

132. The Committee agreed with that arrangement butsuggested that the provisional agenda endorsed by theCommission should be finalized in consultation withthe ESCAP member countries.

133. The Committee suggested that considerationshould be given to the inclusion of some of the follow-ing topics in the agenda for the tenth session:

(1) Multidisciplinary and systems approach forintegrated river basin development;

(2) Review of implementation of the Mar delPlata Action Plan;

(3) Assessment and consideration of irrigationefficiency in the irrigated areas of the ESCAPregion;

(4) Pollution problems related to the current pro-grammes of low-cost technology applicationsto water supply and sanitation in the ESCAPregion;

(5) Report by the Interagency Task Force onWater for Asia and the Pacific and discussionof the report;

(6) The effects on water allocation and waterquality of industrial development in develop-ing countries.

XI. ADOPTION OF THE REPORT(Agenda item 14)

134. On 6 October 1980, the Committee adopted the report on its seventh session, for consideration by the Com-mission at its thirty-seventh session.

. SUMMARY OF CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS

tries themselves. However, international or-ganizations could help in the following ways:

(a) By giving preference to the talents andfacilities available in developing countrieswhen expert or consultancy services wereto be made available to other developingcountries;

135. The pertinent conclusions and recommendationsof the Committee for the attention of the Commissionwere the following:

The Committee:

(1) Suggested that under TCDC the initiative hadto be taken mainly by the developing coun-


(b) By identifying and publicizing the facili-ties and expertise available in the region;

(c) By compiling and periodically updating aregister of the facilities and expertiseavailable in the developing countries;

(d) By financing training, study tours andparticipation in professional meetings(paragraph 41).

(2) Agreed that the Decade targets could beachieved provided the countries mobilizedadequate internal resources as required (para-graph 45).

(3) Expressed concern about the possible detri-mental effect of over-abstracting ground waterfor irrigation purposes and the dangerouseffects of the extensive development of waterresources (paragraph 47).

(4) Recommended that consideration be given tothe allocation of water resources through theintroduction of appropriate licensing or pric-ing policies (paragraph 48).

(5) Recognized the need to adopt a strategy toprovide an adequate coverage of water supplyand sanitation of the rural population of theregion by 1990 (paragraph 49) and endorsedthe elements of such a strategy (paragraphs50 and 51).

(6) Expressed concern about the delay in the codi-fication of laws to guide the development ofshared water resources (paragraph 58).

(7) Endorsed the following recommendations:

(a) The comprehensive master plans shouldinclude the development of the uplandand deltaic portions of the basin;

(b) In the formulation of master plans forintegrated river basin development vari-ous alternatives should be considered forthe allocation of water between interestedcategories of water users (urban and ruralsettlements, irrigation, industry, hydro-power, navigation, fisheries, salinity con-trol nrntpntinn nf watpr nnpiitv f»tr* ^

, £ „._ w _ . . n — ' - - j - , , ,

taking into account the interdependencebetween water requirements and otherinterests of the deltaic area and the up-land portion of the river basin in con-nexion with their economic, environmen-tal and social merits;

(c) The master plan, justified from the tech-nical, economic, environmental, social andcultural points of view and adopted by

the relevant authorities, should serve as aguide to be used by planners and decisionmakers in the process of national plan-ning, the phasing of the development ofthe two portions of the river basin andthe selection of priority of hydraulic andother projects, as well as in the elabora-tion of institutional and legal aspects ofintegrated water use in the basin;

(d) The master plan should take fully intoconsideration the flood protection require-ments of the river basin;

(e) During the development of a river basin,continuous monitoring of the hydrologicand morphologic effects of that develop-ment on the various portions of the riverbasin should be carried out;

(f) ESCAP, in co-operation with other ap-propriate agencies, should organize asymposium on the mechanisms andeffects of salt-water intrusion in surfaceand ground water and on measures tocontrol such intrusion (paragraph 60).

(8) Recommended that prevention and control ofwater pollution should be made a compon-ent of national plans for economic and socialdevelopment (paragraph 66).

(9) Endorsed the activities of the secretariat andits efforts to promote regional co-operationand disseminate information in the field ofwater resources development and stressed thatclose co-operation among members of theUnited Nations system was essential (para-graph 69).

(10) Endorsed the recommendations of the Seminaron the Improvement of Irrigation Perform-ance at the Project Level (paragraph 70).

(11) Endorsed in general the criteria for settingwater prices as recommended by the ExpertGroup Meeting on Water Pricing (paragraph71).

(12) Suggested that monitoring of the implemen-tation of the Mar del Plata Action Planshould be institutionalized (paragraph 73).

(13) Suggested that the secretariat should organizegroups of experts from the region to visitcountries and discuss their problems in waterresources development (paragraph 73).

(14) Expressed concern over the lack of activitiesin the South Pacific countries organized bythe secretariat in the field of water resources


and suggested that the regional adviser onwater resources should visit some of thePacific island countries to identify major needsand common problems (paragraph 74).

(15) Endorsed the activities of ESCAP in theenergy field and the report of the WorkingGroup Meeting on Energy in the South Paci-fic (paragraph 75).

(16) Suggested that the publication Electric Powerin Asia and the Pacific should be expandedto incorporate information pertaining to othersources of energy (paragraph 76).

(17) Suggested that consideration should be givento the possibility of taking up such impor-tant topics as conventional energy resources,energy conservation in the domestic sector,small-scale hydroelectricity and water desali-nation using solar energy (paragraph 83).

(18) Noted and endorsed the recommendations ofthe Seminar on Modern Methods of MineralProspecting (paragraph 88).

(19) Expressed its appreciation of the supportgiven by UNDP to RMRDC, SEATRADC,CCOP and CCOP/SOPAC and strongly urg-ed the continuation of that worth-while workduring the period 1982-1986 (paragraph 90).

(20) Expressed appreciation to India, Japan andNew Zealand for providing staff and servicesresulting in the preparation of several mapsuseful for mineral prospecting (paragraph91).

(21) Noted that the UNDP-supported mission hadvisited Thailand, Bangladesh, India, Indone-sia, the Philippines, the Republic of Korea,Japan, China and Viet Nam regarding re-mote sensing. After analysis of the informa-tion available, the mission prepared a draftproject document for a three-year multidis-ciplinary regional remote sensing programme(paragraphs 96 and 97). The Committeestrongly supported the recommendation of themission for a multidisciplinary regional re-mote sensing programme (paragraph 98).

(22) Endorsed the view that the three-year regionalco-operation project to be funded by UNDPwould assist the ESCAP countries in upgrad-ing their remote sensing capabilities andurged prospective donor countries to supportthat effort also (paragraph 99).

(23) Recommended that ESCAP should organizea meeting on water resources developmentfor the benefit of the South Pacific island

countries and that the 1980-1981 programmeof work in the water sector should be amend-ed accordingly (paragraph 113).

(24) Endorsed the programme of work and priori-ties for 1982-1983, including the addition of aproject on water quality management (para-graph 114).

(25) In connexion with subprogramme 16.02 onpolicy, planning and management, noted thatthe USSR had reaffirmed its readiness to hosta seminar on water resources developmentplanning in 1982 and a study tour on capitalinvestment aspects of water resources deve-lopment in 1983 (paragraph 115).

(26) Suggested that case studies in the field ofirrigation water management and system de-sign should continue (paragraph 117).

(27) Suggested that consideration should be givento the establishment of a regional water re-sources development centre in drawing up themedium-term plan for 1984-1989 (paragraph120).

(28) Endorsed the amendments to the 1980-1981programme to include the addition of sup-port to CCOP and the establishment of aCCOP for the Indian Ocean area (paragraph125).

(29) Endorsed the programme of work and priori-ties for remote sensing, surveying and map-ping, 1980-1981 and the draft programme ofwork, 1982-1983 (paragraph 127).

(30) Recommended revision of the terms of refer-ence of the Committee on Natural Resources(paragraph 129).

(31) Stressed the need to urge full recognition ofthe principles of integrated land and watermanagement and the relationship betweenland use and the elements of the hydrologicalcycle (paragraph 130).

(32) Agreed that the provisional agenda for theeighth session would be prepared and submit-ted for the consideration of the Commissionat its thirty-seventh session in March 1981but suggested that the provisional agendashould be finalized in consultation with theESCAP member countries (paragraphs 131and 132).

(33) Suggested that in the agenda for the tenthsession, consideration should be given to theinclusion of some of the six topics listed inparagraph 133.

Part Two

WORKING PAPERS PRESENTEDBY THE SECRETARIAT

I. REVIEW OF WATER RESOURCES DEVELOPMENTIN THE REGION

(E/ESCAP/NR. 7/1)

INTRODUCTION

The last review of water resources development incountries of the region prepared by the secretariat waspresented to the Committee on Natural Resources atits first session in November 1974. It included dataup to 1972. The present review covers the major sec-tors of water resources development of the countries,namely, irrigation, hydroelectric power, flood controland urban and rural water supply and covers the periodfrom 1972 to 1978 (or 1977), for which years data areavailable. The main purpose of this review is toevaluate the progress made in each sector of waterresources development in meeting various requirements.

A. IRRIGATION

1. Increase in irrigated area and improvementof service

Table 1 shows the arable land area in 1977 andirrigated area in 1971 and 1977 in 16 developing Asiancountries. During the period from 1971 to 1977 thetotal irrigated area of these 16 countries increased byabout 13.2 million ha (or 12.4 per cent), of which 5.7and 4.1 million ha were in China and India respec-tively. In Bangladesh, the Philippines, the Republicof Korea, Sri Lanka and Thailand there was a 21 to30 per cent increase in irrigated area during the six-year period. In Nepal the irrigated area increased by71 per cent.

There was a high percentage (46 per cent) ofarable land under irrigation in east Asia in 1977, whilethe averages in south-east Asia and south Asia wereonly 20 and 27 per cent respectively. China, Pakistan,the Republic of Korea and Sri Lanka had about 46per cent or more of arable land being irrigated in 1977,while Burma, the Lao People's Democratic Republic,Malaysia and Nepal had only 11 per cent or less.This comparison indicates that there was still a greatpotential for irrigation development in many coun-tries of the region for increasing their foodgrain pro-duction.

In most developing countries of the region, gov-ernment agencies were responsible for the constructionof reservoirs, headworks, canals and main distributionsystems down to the outlets. The construction of fieldchannels, as well as field drains and land shaping forirrigation, is considered to be the responsibility of the

farmers. However, because of the low capability ofthe farmers to carry out this work, the utilization ofwater and the efficient operation of irrigation systemshas usually been delayed. In recent years, the Govern-ments of many countries have recognized this difficultproblem and changed their policies. In some pro-jects the Governments have extended the irrigationconstruction work, including land shaping and farmroads, down to the farm level. Some countries havealso made efforts to co-ordinate assistance to farmersin related aspects, such as the provision of fertilizers,credit and agricultural extension. For example, inIndia, to ensure better co-ordination among the vari-ous disciplines at different levels, 37 command areadevelopment authorities covering 47 irrigation projectswere set up during the period 1974-1978. These 47projects cover a total irrigated area of about 14 millionha. In the Philippines, since 1969 the World BankGroup has financed 11 irrigation projects covering atotal area of about 400,000 ha to increase rice produc-tion. These projects provided improved irrigation anddrainage facilities, better road systems for efficiency ofoperation and the marketing of farm products, andstronger supporting services to assist farmers in adop-ting new irrigation techniques. The Government ofThailand started the land consolidation and irrigationimprovement project in 1971. It consists mainly ofland levelling and reshaping, provision of irrigationand drainage facilities at the farm level and the con-struction of farm roads. By the end of 1977 con-struction work on 20,923 ha had been completed, andwork on 14,685 ha was undertaken in 1978.

2. Production and net imports of foodgrains

In most countries of the region, irrigation develop-ment is mainly for the increased production of cereals,namely, paddy or wheat for domestic consumption.Table 2 shows the average annual production of allcereals for the periods 1969-1971 and 1976-1978 in 16developing countries of the region. Except for theLao People's Democratic Republic, all the countriesmade substantial increases in their foodgrain produc-tion. A comparison of the average annual productionduring these two periods shows an increase in cerealproduction in these 16 countries of 96.9 million tonsat an annual rate of increase of 2.9 per cent. InChina, Indonesia, Iran, Pakistan, the Philippines andthe Republic of Korea, the rate of increase exceeded3.0 per cent per annum. Undoubtedly the expansion

21


of the irrigated area and the improvement in irrigationwater supply played an important role in the increasedproduction of cereals in these countries. However, theincreased foodgrain production in these countries didnot appear to match their increased requirements sincetheir imports also increased during the period underreview.

Table 2 also shows the average annual net im-ports of foodgrains during the periods 1969-1971 and1976-1978 in these 16 countries. Among these coun-tries, only three (Burma, Nepal and Thailand) export-ed foodgrains. The other 13 countries imported alarge amount of foodgrains annually. The total netimports of foodgrains of these 16 countries increasedfrom 13.8 million tons per year in 1969-1971 to 20.9million tons per year in 1976-1978. Pakistan changedfrom an exporter in 1969-1971 to an importer in 1976-1978. Thailand expanded its exports from 2.8 milliontons per year to 4.1 million tons per year.

3. Growth of harvested area and yield of cereal crops

The progress of irrigation development in thecountries of the region was also reflected in the in-crease of the harvested area and yield of cereals, asshown in table 3. The 16 countries expanded theirharvested area from 285.8 million ha in 1969-1971 to307.1 million ha in 1976-1978 at a rate of 1.0 per centper cent per year. Owing to the conversion of agri-cultural land to other uses, the harvested area in theRepublic of Korea decreased by about 12 per cent(251,000 ha). It is noted that in three countries (Phi-lippines, Sri Lanka and Thailand) there was a substan-tial increase in harvested area at a rate exceeding 3.0per cent per year, which is probably due to theexpansion of their irrigated areas, as shown in table 1.

The average unit yield of cereals in these 16 coun-tries increased from 1.53 tons per ha in 1969-1971 to1.74 tons per ha in 1976-1978, with a rate of increaseof 1.8 per cent per year, as shown in table 3. Therewas a large variation in unit yield among these coun-tries. In four countries (Lao People's DemocraticRepublic, Nepal, Sri Lanka and Thailand), the averageunit yield of cereals decreased during the period. Inthe Republic of Korea the average yield increased by48 per cent during the same period. Indonesia, Iranand Pakistan marip annri imnmvpmipnts in this rpoarH

While the average yield of cereal crops was 5 tonsper ha in the Republic of Korea and 2 tons per haor more in China, Indonesia, Malaysia and Viet Nam,it was below 2 tons per ha in the other countries in1976-1978.

Depending on the condition of water control andthe advancement of modern techniques, the degree towhich high-yielding varieties of rice were adopted va-ried greatly among the countries of the region. The

Philippines had the highest rate of adoption (68 percent in 1976-1977), the Republic of Korea reached 44per cent, and Indonesia, India and Pakistan 30 to 40per cent, while in the same year only 7 per cent ofBurma's rice area and 11 per cent of Thailand's wereplanted with high-yielding varieties.1

B. HYDROELECTRIC POWER

1. Increase of electricity generating capacity

The installed generating capacities of hydro andthermal electricity of 17 countries, including threedeveloped countries or areas in the region, for 1972and 1978 are listed in table 4. Three of them (Fiji,Hong Kong and Singapore) do not have hydropower.

During the period 1972-1978 the total installedcapacity of hydropower in these 17 countries increasedby 37 per cent, while the total thermal generatingcapacity increased by 65 per cent. As shown in table4, the average annual rates of increase for thermalpower are higher than the rates for hydropower in allcountries except India, the Republic of Korea and SriLanka. For the region as a whole, the share of hydro-power continued to decline from 27.7 per cent in 1972to 24.1 per cent in 1978. This is probably due to thefact that the construction of hydropower plants takeslonger and costs more per kilowatt of capacity. InAfghanistan, Nepal, New Zealand and Sri Lanka thetotal hydro installed capacity exceeded the thermalcapacity in 1978.

The electricity generation of hydro and thermalpower plants and per capita generation in 1978 of these17 countries are also shown in table 4. The per capitaelectricity generation clearly reflects the stage of indus-trial development and standard of living in each coun-try. In three developed countries (Australia, Japanand New Zealand), per capita electricity generationranged from 4,857 to 6,933 kWh. In Hong Kong andSingapore it was 1,875 and 2,527 kWh respectively. Inother developing countries it varied widely, from 11kWh in Nepal to 894 kWh in the Republic of Korea.

The total generation of hydropower plants of the17 countries in 1978 was 160,702.9 million kWh, whichwas only 18.4 per cent of the total electricity genera-

capacity shared 24.1 per cent of the total installedcapacity as mentioned above. This indicates that thehydropower plants are generally used to meet the peakload requirements or generate less kWh per kW ofinstalled capacity.

1 D. Dalrymple, Development and Spread oj High-Yielding Varietiesof Wheat and Rice in the Less Developed Nations, United States Depart-ment of Agriculture, Foreign Agricultural Economic Report 95, 1978;and A. Palacpac, World Rice Statistics, International Rice Research Insti-tute, 1979.

Part two: Working papers 23

2. Exploited hydro in relation to total potential

The estimated hydro potentials and the ratios ofexploited capacity to total hydro potential of 14 coun-tries or areas are also shown in table 4. In threedeveloped countries, 45 to 63 per cent of the totalhydro potential had been exploited by 1978. By con-trast, in many developing countries less than 10 percent of their hydro potential had been developed by1978. Most of these developing countries are import-ing fuel oil for their thermal power plants. As theprice of oil has been continuously increasing and inorder to reduce the foreign currency requirements forthe import of fuel and to promote industrial develop-ment, it appears that there is a need for developingcountries to exert more efforts in the investigation andimplementation of economic hydropower projects.

3. Pumped storage project development

India, Japan and the Republic of Korea have builtnuclear power plants. By 1978 the total installed capa-city of nuclear power in Japan had reached 12,854MW. For technical and economic reasons the nuclearpower units have to run near full capacity continuous-ly. To meet the varied load of the electric power sys-tem, hydropower plants can have multiple functions.Not only can they supply electric power, but they canregulate its output to meet the peak load for the econo-mic operation of the system. Pumped storage hydro-power plants especially can play a very important rolein this respect. In recent years most hydro projectsbuilt in Japan have been of the pumped storage type.At the end of September 1978 the total installed capa-city of 25 existing pumped storage hydropower plantshad reached 8,380 MW, or 31 per cent of the total in-stalled capacity of all hydropower in that country. Therewere six power plants of this type, with large installedcapacity ranging from 500 MW to 1,212 MW. In Sep-tember 1978, 60 hydro projects with a total installedcapacity of 11,507 MW were under construction, ofwhich 13 projects with a total capacity of 10,039 MWwere of the pumped storage type.

four cyclones developed a year on average during theperiod 1971-1978. The tropical cyclone causes heavyrainfall, floods and storm surges. Storm surges wipeout and wash away villages and drown thousands ofpeople. In the cyclone-affected area, Bangladesh andIndia frequently suffer considerable losses.

Table 5 shows the maximum annual cyclone andflood damage and the average annual damage in 14countries or areas of the ESCAP region for the periodunder review. The seven countries in the typhoon-affected area sustained an average annual damage of$US 1,901 million, while seven countries in the cyclone-affected area suffered an average annual damage of$US 994 million. In years when more severe typhoonsand cyclones strike the countries, much greater damageis inflicted. As shown in table 5, in 1972 Japan sus-tained flood damage of $US 3,011 million, which wasabout twice the average annual damage. In that year,508 persons lost their lives in floods. In the Philip-pines and the Republic of Korea there were also largenumbers of dead and missing when very strong ty-phoons struck these countries.

In the cyclone-affected area, a large number oflives were lost in Bangladesh and India during theperiod. The cyclone which hit Andhra Pradesh (India)on 19 November 1977 was the most severe storm ofthe State in the last 100 years. The storm causedvery heavy rain in Prakasam, Guntur, Krishna andeast and west Godavari districts. Tidal waves 5 to6 m high washed away at least 28 villages on thenight of 19 November. About 10,000 persons and250,000 heads of cattle were reported lost.

Because of economic development and increaseof population in flood-prone areas, flood damage isliable to increase. The average annual damage inJapan and India during the period 1961-1970 was $US587 and 207 million respectively.3 By comparison,the average annual damage in these two countries forthe period 1972-1978 had increased to $US 1,690 and857 million respectively.

C. FLOOD CONTROL

1. Cyclone and flood damage

According to statistical data, 32.8 tropical cyclones2

developed per year on average during the period 1959-1978 in the western North Pacific Ocean, of which 4.8cyclones were classified as tropical depressions, 10.0as tropical storms and 18.0 as typhoons.2 In the ty-phoon-affected area, China, Hong Kong, Japan, thePhilippines and the Republic of Korea are most fre-quently hit by destructive typhoons, which bring inten-sive rainfall and floods. In the north Indian Ocean

2. Flood control measures and annual expenditure

In most countries of the region the dike is theprincipal measure of flood control. As shown in table5, all countries or areas for which data are availableextended the length of their flood dikes during theperiod under review. In Indonesia the length of flooddikes had increased from 1,500 km in 1970 to 4,036km in 1978.

By 1978 there were seven countries in the regionwhich had established flood forecasting and warning

! ESCAP, Water Resources Journal, June 1980.

3 "Second tcn-ycar review of water resources development in the ESCAPregion (1960-1970)", Water Resources Journal, September 1973.


systems in order to mitigate flood damage. Australiahad 120 river basins with flood forecasting systems,while India and New Zealand had 55 and 50 basinsrespectively with flood forecasting in 1978.

Among the seven countries for which data areavailable, Japan spent the largest amount on floodcontrol works, which is about three times its averageannual damage. India, Indonesia, the Philippines andthe Republic of Korea also spent a significant amountto protect their people and property from flood inun-dation.

D. URBAN AND RURAL WATER SUPPLY

1. Population served

The relevant data4 on the urban and rural popu-lation served in 1975 and 1980 in 15 developing coun-tries in the region are listed in table 6. The compu-ted growth rates of the population served from 1975to 1980 of the countries for which data are availableare shown in table 7, which indicates that Fiji, Indo-nesia, Nepal, the Philippines and Samoa made goodprogress in expanding their services, with growth ratesexceeding 5 per cent per year during the period 1975-1980.

The status of water supply services in 1980 variesgreatly among these countries. In all of them, thepercentage of urban population served is higher thanthat of the rural population, which had reasonableaccess to safe water or service. Table 6 indicates thatin Singapore 99.5 per cent of population was served in1980, while in Afghanistan and Maldives only 20 and12 per cent respectively of the urban population wereserved in 1980. A high percentage of the urban popu-lation was also served in some other countries, suchas peninsular Malaysia, Nepal, the Philippines and thecountries of Oceania.

The percentages of the rural population havingreasonable access to safe water were much lower. Therewere six countries where less than 20 per cent of therural population had reasonable access to safe waterin 1980. In Afghanistan and Maldives, only 8 and0.5 per cent respectively of the rural population hadreasonable access to safe water. The statistical dataclearly indicate that rural water supply needs muchimprovement in many developing countries of theregion.

2. Level of service of urban water supply

Some information on the level of service of urbanwater supply in the countries is included in table 7.

4 Country reports for the International Drinking Water Supply andSanitation Decade.

Afghanistan, Nepal and Pakistan, the supply of waterin most urban water supply systems was intermittent.These systems supplied water only 2 to 10 hours aday.

In many countries of the region more than 60per cent of the population served in the urban areaobtained water from public standposts in 1980, asshown in table 7. For these countries the distributionsystems have to be greatly expanded to enable morepeople to be served with house connexions.

There is no information on the adequacy of thewater supply services to meet the requirements of cus-tomers. In arid and semi-arid regions and small islandcountries, such as Maldives and many countries in theSouth Pacific, the scarcity of water available fromsurface and ground-water sources poses a serious prob-lem. As shown in table 7, the average consumptionof water in Afghanistan was only 10 to 40 litres percapita per day, which is far below the normal require-ment of urban residents.

3. Constraints and difficult problems in urbanand rural water supply development

Habitat: United Nations Conference on HumanSettlements, held at Vancouver in 1976, urged theadoption of water programmes for urban and ruralareas, with realistic standards for quality and quan-tity, to be implemented by 1990, if possible. Thetarget of the International Drinking Water Supply andSanitation Decade is "water for all" by the end of theDecade. The targets set by some countries are shownin table 6. It would require considerable effort and in-vestment by the countries to achieve these targets,considering the constraints and problems which theyface.

The constraint most frequently encountered bythe developing countries mentioned in the countryreports is the shortage of engineers, skilled techniciansand experienced managers for the planning, construc-tion, operation and maintenance of water supply sys-tems. In the rural areas, it is even more difficult torecruit qualified personnel.

The second most important constraint in develop-ing rriuntrip"; nf trip rpoinn is thp. shnrtawp. nf rnrKtrnr*.-

--^j ~ ~ — — — ^ — - - — - - - - - • <j,- — —

tion materials and equipment, such as pipes and fit-tings. The manufacturing sector in these developingcountries has not yet developed to the stage where itcould supply the requirements of the water supplysector. To import these materials and equipment re-quires a large amount of foreign currency, which is inshort supply in most developing countries.

There are many other constraints, such as lack ofdata for the assessment of ground water, lack of co-


ordination among agencies, inefficient administration,etc.

It is also noted that the water supply sector ishighly subsidized by the Governments in most deve-loping countries of the region. Subsidization by theGovernment is often detrimental for the efficient opera-tion of the system and is a large drain on the financial

resources of the Government. In many countries theusers of public standposts do not pay for the water andthe capital cost of rural water supply systems is fullysubsidized by the Government.

If the Decade targets are to be achieved, seriousconsideration needs to be given to the removal of theseconstraints and the solution of these problems.

Table 1. Irrigated area in 1977 and estimated increase in irrigated area from 1971 to 1977,

for selected countries in the ESCAP region

1. East Asia

C h i n a

R e p u b l i c o £ K o r e a . . . .

Subtotal

2. South-east Asia

Burma

Indonesia

Lao People's Democratic Republic

Malaysia

Philippines

Thailand

Viet Nam

Subtotal

3. South Asia

Afghanistan

Bangladesh

India

Iran

Nepal

Pakistan

Sri Lanka

Subtotal

Total 383 283

1977arable land area

(1 000 ha)

105 550

2 067

(107 617)

9514

15 000

950

3 150

5 250

15 750

5 250

(54 864)

7910

8913

165 300

15 330

2 300

20 040

1 009

(220 802)

Irrigated area(1 000 ha)

1971

43 000"

868

890

4 490

19

256

920"

2 106

980

2 360

1047

31 100

5 251

117

12 986

439

1977

48 700

1082

(49 782)

1 000

4 900

11

335

1 113

2 576

980

(10 915)

2 480

1300

35 200

5 840

200

13 800

540

(59 360)

/ O0O ha

5 700

214

110

410

- 8

79

193

470

0

120

253

4 100

589

83

814

101

Increase

Percentage

13.3

24.7

12.4

9.1

—

30.9

21.0

22.3

—

5.1

24.2

13.2

11.2

71.0

6.3

23.0

Irrigated area aspercentage of

^_ ftipfint0 //Iff n

area in 1977

46

52

(16)

11

33

1

11

21

16

19

(20)

31

15

21

38

9

69

54

(27)

106 829 120 057 13 228 12.4 31

Source of arable land area and irrigated area: FAO, Production Yearbook,, 1978.

Note: • As at 1972.


Table 2. Annual production and net imports of foodgrains of16 developing countries in the ESCAP region

19691971

1

209 8397 507

8 27621711

9861 7047 HI

15 56110 031

3 61516 727

111 1466 0923 475

11 6681 495

436 884

Annual production of all cereals(1 000 ions)

1976-1978

2

258 7809 424

9 95327 399

8651 8469 779

18 05611 449

4 38519115

134 2538 4953 657

147141654

533 824

Difference

Amount

3

48 9411917

16775 688- 3 1142

2 6382 4951 418

7702 388

23 1072 403

1823 046

159

96 940

Annual rateof increase

(percentage)

4

3.13.3

2.63.4—

1.14.62.11.9

2.81.92.74.90.73.41.5

2.9

19691971

5

4 6372 625

-6431260

67847745

- 2 7981 146

6612923 617

446-248-218

954

13 795

(1 000 tons)

1976-1978

6

7 8313 421

-5562 609

1141 191

864- 4 075

1 499

681 8192 3482 376-120

3431 138

20 870

Difference

7

+ 3 194+ 796

+ 87+ 1349

+ 47+ 344+ 119

-1277+ 353

+ 2+ 527

- 1 269+ 1 930

+ 128+ 561+ 184

+ 7 075

1. East Asia

C h i n aR e p u b l i c o £ K o r e a . . . .

2 . South-east Asia

BurmaIndonesiaLao People's Democratic RepublicMalaysiaPhilippinesThailandViet Nam

3. South Asia

AfghanistanBangladeshIndiaIranNepalPakistanSri Lanka

Total

Sources of columns (1), (2), (5) and (6): FAO, computer printouts, March 1980.

Table 3. Growth rates in harvested area and yield of all cereals

Harvested area 0} all cereals, 1 000 ho Unit yield of all cereals, tons per ha

1969-1971 1976-1978 Annual rate(percentage) 1969-1971 1976-1978 Increase

1. East Asia

ChinaRepublic of Korea

2. South-east Asia

BurmaIndonesiaLao People's Democratic Republic .MalaysiaPhilippinesThailandViet Nam

5. South Asia

AfghanistanBangladeshIndiaIranNepalPakistanSri Lanka

Total

114 7442 148

5 14010 825

680716

5 5137 7435 160

3 19310 074

100 3087 3181 9819 673

622

285 838

127 9361 897

5 26611 123

703698

6 8729 6825 615

3 39110 252

103 0547 4352 200

10 125824

307 073

13 192-251

12629823

- 1 813591939

455

198178

2 746117219452202

21 235

1.6-1.9

0.40.40.5

3.23.21.2

0.90.30.40.21.50.74.1

1.0

1.833.50

1.61

13.22.391.30

1.94

1.131.661.110.831.751.212.40

1.53

2.024.98

1.892.461.232.641.421.962.04

1.291.861.301.141.661.451.99

1.74

0.191.48

0.280.45

-0.090.250.12

-0.150.10

0.160.200.190.31

-0.090.24

-0.41

0.21

1.45.2

2.32.9

1.41.3

-1.10.7

1.91.62.34.6

-0.82.6

-2.8

1.8

Sources of columns (1), (2), (5) and (6): FAO, computer printouts, March 1980.

1. East AsiaH o n g K o n g . . . .

J a p a n

R e p u b l i c of K o r e a .

2. South-east Asia

I n d o n e s i a . . . .

M a l a y s i a . . . .

P h i l i p p i n e s

S i n g a p o r e . . . .

T h a i l a n d . . . .

3. South Asia

A f g h a n i s t a n . . . .

India

Iran

Nepal

S r i L a n k a . . . .

4. Oceania

A u s t r a l i a . . . .

F i j i

New Zealand

Total

Source of columns (1), (2), (4,

Notes:

Installed gt

Hydro1

—

20 734.0

341.1

308.9293.2

849.0—

516.0

191.5

6 787.0

804.032.9

192.0

4 467.5

3 270.61.3

38 789.0

. (5). (9),

Table 4. Increase in

nerating capacity* in 1072(MW)

Thermal*2

1 835.4

64 562.0

3 874.3

480.1"

726.71 600.0

729.0

1 123.4

76.311 172.0

2 100.0

20.2

70.0

11903.5

52.8822.5

4.2

101 152.4

(10), (12)

Total3

1 835.4

85 296.0

4 215.4

789.01 019.9

2 449.0729.0

1 639.4

267.817 959.0

2 904.0

53.1

262.0

16371.0

52.84 093.1

5.5

139 941.4

and (13):

' Public electric utilities and self-generating industries.* Including steam, diesel, gas turbine anc

°Asat 1976.

" Public electric utilities only.• Peninsular Malaysia only.' Including 13,761 MW of international" As at 1977.

electric

Installed generating capacity* in 1978(MW)

Hydro4

—

27 316.0712.0

636.4354.8

748.0—

910.0

258.7

10 023.0s

1 804.0

36.3°

331.0

6 113.1

3 766.01.3

53 010.6

Thermal*5

2 920.3c

103 901 0

6 950.0

1 863.4"1 661.8

2 875.01 610.02 421.2

137.2

16 152.0s

6 785.026.0°

70.0

17 547.7103.6°

1 857.09.0

166 890.2

Total6

2 920.3°

131 217.07 662.0

2 499.82 016.6

3 623.01 610.0

3 331.2

395.926 175.0s

8 589.0

62.3°

401.0

23 660.8

103.6°5 623.0

10.3

219 900.8

power generating

Average annual growthrate of generating capacity,

19721978

(percentage)

Hydro7

—

4.713.0

12.83.2——

9.9

5.1

8.1

14.4

2.4

9.5

5.4

2.4

5.4

Thermal8

12.38 3

10.2

15.414.710.314.1

13.6

10.3

7.7

21.6

6.6

6.7

18.314.513.5

8.7

capacity

Generation in 1978(millions of km)

Hydro9

—

74 647.0

1 808.0

1 298.7

751.02 750.0

—

2 109.5

589.638 019.0s

6 249.0

128.1°

I 365.9

14 770.7

16 209.07.4

160 702.9

Thermal*10

8 333.1484 804 0

31 511.0

3 422.1

7 030.613 290.0

5 898.011 094.4

250.5

60 909.0s

13 598.0

13.6°

19.1

64 379.0

261.8°5 484.0

17.4

710 315.6

United Nations, Electric Power in Asia and the Pacific, 1973 and 1978 (manuscript).

nuclear power generating units.

rivers.

Total11

8 333.1°559 451.0

33 319.0

4 720.87 781.6

16 040.05 898.0

13 203.9

840.198 928.0s

19 847.0

141.7°

1 385.0

79 149.7

261.8°

21 693.124.8

871 018.5

Per capitageneration

in 1978

(km)

n

1 875.1°

4 857.0894.0

33.3586.9

346.22 526.6

292.0

54.0

157.3s

561.0

11.1°

97.2

5 558.6

445.2°

6 933.0161.0

Estimatedhydro

potential

(MW)

13

—

51 4992 301

31500

1 958*7 903

—

22 344r

5 000

42 096

14 000

83 000

1540

9 765

8 43513.8

Ratio olexploited

capacity tototal

potential(percentage)

14

—

5331

2

189

—

4

5

2413

.04

21

63

459

3-a'

1

Table 5. Flood damage and flood control measures in countries or areas of the ESCAP region

oo

Maximum annual flood damage during 1972-1979

Year Loss of lifeand missing

Area inundatedand/or damaged

(km2)

Damagca

(millions ofUS dollars)

Average annualdamage,

1972-1979(millions o]US dollars)

Length of dik.esUrn)

1970 1978

Number ofbasins with

floodforecasting

systems in 1978

Annualexpenditure onflood controlwor^s, 1978(millions ofUS dollars)

Typhoon-affected area

Hong Kong

Japan . . . .

Malaysia

Philippines .

Republic of Kore i .

Thailand

Viet Nam .

Subtotal .

Cyclone-affected area

Austral ia

Bangladesh

Burma . . . .

India . . . .

Indonesia

N e w Zealand .

Sri L a n k a .

Subtotal .

Total

1972197219781972197219781977

209508

884C

682106

1974197419751977197619761978

502 225—

10 00095—

1 000

9 470242

153

695

79 000

143011

2227114"169135

41 690

11056635

(1 901)

2816 600

5984 9001207

18 269

406630

6 070

17511

4 887

4.6

44

93

416380129

1 29433188

82

42857

13

(994)

2 895

, , .

7 0001 5002 510119

4 469"

10 8344 036"3 000

120——55—50— '

164"1506.6

Sources: ESCAP, Water Resources Journal, June issues from 1973 to 1980; and country replies to secretariat's questionnaire for 1976, 1977 and 1978.

Notes:

" In 1975 prices.b The damage in 1979 was $US 217 million, and there were 390 dead and missing.c In 1978, 1,057 dead and missing.d As at 1976."Total plan outhy for flood control Rs 6,750 million for period 1978-1963.

1. South-east Asia

B u r m a . . . .

Indonesia

M a l a y s i a ( P e n i n s u l a r )

P h i l i p p i n e s

S i n g a p o r e . . . .

T h a i l a n d . . . .

2 . S o u t h Asia

A f g h a n i s t a n .

M a l d i v e s . . . .

N e p a l

P a k i s t a n . . . .

S r i L a n k a

3. Oceania

F i j i . . . .

S a m o a . . . .

Solomon Islands .

Tonga . . . .

Sources: Country reports

Total population in197 S

Urban Rural(thousands)

7 197 23 077

25 700 106 700

12 970 30 600

6 900 34 970

623 12 105

3 079 10 550

190 392

36 110

for preparation for

Notes:

"As at 1979."As at 1978."As at 1987." As at 1979, excluding 2,250,000 nomads."By the end of 1988.' Including urban and rural population.

Total poptilation in1980

Urban Rural(thousands)

8 407

29 200"

4 441"

17 900

2 390

2 290"

33

820

23 051

3313

230

48

20.7

25 122

114 400"

6 536"

30 700

—

37 000

11 040"

125

13 589

59 620

415

129

190

95.6'

Table 6. Urban and rural water supply

Population served in 1975

Urban

Number(thousands)

2 159

9 000

8 300

1 640

450

1 447

152

32

the International Drinking Water

Percentage

30

35

64

24

72

47

80

90

Rural

Number(thousands)

3 000

6 400

10 100

—

542

1477

235

66

Supply and Sanitation

Percentage

13

6

33

—

4

14

60

60

. . .

Decade,

Population

Urban

Number(thousands) Percentage

2 564

10 500"

3 917"

13 100

2 378

460

4

680

15 681

1 590

193

43

19.6

1980.

30.5

36

88.2

73

99.5

20

12

83

68

48

84

95

95

served in 1980

Rural

Number(thousands) I

4 120

20 597"

2 618"

14 100

—

11 100

880

0.7

904

10 300

307

110

45.6

76.4'

Percentage

16.4

18

40.1

46

—

30

8

0.5

6.6

17.3

74

85

24

79.9

Population expected to be served in 1980

Urban

Number(thousands)

27 000

1 700"

1 314

35 332

3 922

Percentage

56

75

100

85-88°

55e

100

100

100

Rural

Number(thousands) Percentage

. . . . . .

57 500 42

100

80c

. . . . . .

11378 66

48 870 66

8 101 60

o

to


Table 7. Growth rate of population served by, and level of service of, urban water supply in 1980

Growth rate of served population,1975-1980 Level of service of urban water supply in 1980

1.

2.

3.

South-east Asia

South Asia

A f g h a n i s t a n . . . .

N e p a l . . .

P a k i s t a n

Oceania

Fiji

Solomon Islands

Urban

3.54.0

9.6

8.6

1.9

4.96.0

Rural(percentage)

6.534.07.0

10.8

5.5

10.8

Continuous or intermittentsupply of water

Intermittent

Intermittent

Intermittent

Percentage of populationserved with house connexion

16

53

31

3430

56

10010095

Average consumption(litres per capita per day)

10-4040-50

1)4

140-300

Source of information on level of service: Country reports for the International Drinking Water Supply and Sanitation Decade, 1980.

II. RURAL COMMUNITY WATER SUPPLY AND RURAL SANITATIONIN RELATION TO OVER-ALL MANAGEMENT OF

WATER RESOURCES(E/ESCAP/NR. 7/2)

Note by the secretariat

The following report, prepared by the WorldHealth Organization on rural community water supplyand rural sanitation in relation to over-all managementof water resources, is well researched and places inproper perspective the magnitude of the rural watersupply and sanitation problem and its relation to theover-all management of water resources.

It is pointed out that water resources develop-ment, including the provision of water supply, has animportant environmental health impact. This is par-ticularly true in the provision of water supply facilities.While such facilities improve the health of the popu-lation by providing reasonable access to safe water, thesame facilities could also actually cause some problemsif the waste water were not properly disposed of. Anumber of environmental problems arising from waterresources development with particular reference to therural community are mentioned.

• This paper was prepared by the South-East Asia Regional Office ofthe World Health Organization, New Delhi, with the assistance of Pro-fessor M. B. Pescod, University of Ncwcastle-upon-Tync, United King-dom, who acted as a short-term consultant.

The main problems, however, may be succintlystated as (a) competition for the allocation of theavailable water resources among competing demandsand (b) the host of problems associated with the pro-vision of rural water supplies, the major ones beinginadequate financial and manpower resources, lack ofa data base, improper maintenance of existing facili-ties, institutional problems, lack of public participationand health education programmes designed to over-come old social customs and habits in order to makethe facilities acceptable to the rural population, andlow priority assigned to the sector in national econo-mic and social development plans.

The core of the strategy recommended to over-come the above problems is the adoption of a mini-mum needs small-scale project approach for ruralareas, together with the use of appropriate technologyin the functional and structural design of the projects.The simplicity and low cost of such projects wouldalso minimize maintenance problems. The problemof competing demand for water of the various sectorscan be minimized through the establishment of na-tional water resources data systems to provide an ade-quate data base for the appraisal of the water re-sources in each country.


INTRODUCTION

It is indeed a matter of regret, and perhaps areflection on our priorities in planning, that even todaya large portion of the world's population does not havereasonable access to such basic amenities as a safewater supply and proper disposal of excreta anddomestic wastes. Often this is because not enoughattention has been paid to the needs of rural watersupply and sanitation in the over-all management ofwater resources programmes in the developing coun-tries.

By integrating rural needs into their over-all plansand by concurrently incorporating environmental andhealth aspects in their planning process, water resourcesplanners will contribute successfully to an accelerationin the pace of rural water supply and sanitation pro-grammes and to a reduction in water-borne and water-related diseases.

The report of the 1976 ESCAP Regional Pre-paratory Meeting for the United Nations Water Con-ference included a section on rural community watersupplies as a special issue of great significance in theESCAP region. In 1977 the United Nations WaterConference in Mar del Plata, Argentina, stressed theneed for the systematic planning of the distributionof water among various users and the co-ordination ofcommunity water supply and waste disposal planningwith over-all economic development. The Conference'sAction Plan for Community Water Supply and Sani-tation called for improved co-ordination at the countrylevel and regular consultation among the Governments,international organizations and non-governmental or-ganizations concerned.

The Mar del Plata resolution on community watersupply recommended, inter alia, that "national develop-ment policies and plans should give priority to thesupplying of drinking water for the entire populationand to the final disposal of waste water", and Govern-ments were asked to "adopt programmes with realis-tic standards for quality and quantity to provide waterfor urban and rural areas by 1990, if possible". Arecommendation was made and latter endorsed by theUnited Nations General Assembly to designate theperiod 1981-1990 as the International Drinking WaterSupply and Sanitation Decade. Noting these recom-mendations the Thirtieth World Health Assembly in1977 urged member States:

(1) To appraise as a matter of urgency the sta-tus of their community water supply, sanitation faci-lities and services and their control;

(2) To formulate within the context of nationaldevelopment policies and plans, by 1980, programmeswith the objectives of improving and extending those

facilities and services to all people by 1990, namelywithin the International Drinking Water Supply andSanitation Decade; and

(3) To ensure that people consume water of goodquality by periodic inspections of water sources andtreatment and distribution facilities, by improvingpublic education programmes on the hygiene of waterand wastes, and by strengthening the role of healthagencies in this respect.

A. MAGNITUDE OF THE RURAL WATERSUPPLY AND SANITATION PROBLEM

1. Demographic information

About one half of the world's population of morethan 4000 million live in Asia and the Pacific regionand make up two-thirds of the world's developingcountry population. Member countries of the WHOsouth-east Asia region1, with a total estimated popula-tion of 1,082 million in 1980, account for roughly onethird of the population in developing countries. Inthis same region, the rural population, which wasabout 685 million in 1970 (81.3 per cent of thetotal population) is expected to reach 845million (78.1 per cent) by 1980. Approximately 518million people live in absolute poverty2 in south,east and south-east Asia and this makes up 89 percent of the world's poverty population. The numberof absolute poor has increased since 1970 because ofhigh population growth rates and the failure of policiesto redistribute income adequately or raise the produc-tivity of those afflicted by the course of poverty.

The large proportion of the total population livingin rural areas (ranging from 72.9 to 94.3 per cent forcountries in the south-east Asia region), combined withthe large number of communities and high populationdensities in many countries, make rural communitywater supply and sanitation a formidable task in theregion.

2. Targets for rural community water supplyand sanitation

The WHO mid-decade review of 1976 consideredthe progress achieved in different regions and, in keep-ing with such rates of progress, proposed regional tar-gets for 1980 and required investment levels. These

1 Bangladesh, Burma, Democratic People's Republic of Korea, India,Indonesia, Maldives, Mongolia, Nepal, Sri Lanka and Thailand.

' "Absolute poor" includes those people who per capita income isbelow the level at which, in that country, it is possible to secure the mini-mum requirements of life, i.e., essentially nutrition, clothing and shelter.


Table 8. Rural population coverage and targets —WHO south-east Asia region

Decade

Second UN Development Decade

(1971-1980)

International Drinking Water Supplyand Sanitation Decade

(1981-1990)

1970

1975

1980

1990

Year

(covered)(covered)(target)

(target)

Esl. ruralpopulation(millions)

676

750

835

922

% rural population coveredor targeted

Water supply Sanitation

9 419 6

35 (35) 15 (60)

100 50

Note: ( ) values shown in brackets refer to WHO western Pacific region.

proposals were approved by the 29th World HealthAssembly in 1976 and included a 1980 target for theWHO south-east Asia region of 35 per cent coverageof the rural population with reasonable access to safewater supply and 15 per cent coverage with rural sani-tation (see table 8). Equivalent target figures for thewestern Pacific region of WHO were 35 per cent and60 per cent coverage, respectively.

Following the United Nations Water Conference,WHO in co-operation with the World Bank carriedout a rapid assessment exercise and prepared rapidassessment reports of member States in 1978. Thesereports included anticipated coverage of rural watersupply and sanitation and indicated that many coun-tries were not contemplating achieving full coverageof the population with either service by 1990.

A recent regional consultation meeting of WHOsouth-east Asia region member States held in NewDelhi reconsidered these rapid assessment report pro-jections and revised 1990 targets were proposed for theregion. It was agreed that all countries should try toachieve 100 per cent coverage of the population witha minimum service level of access to safe water, al-though it was realized that certain areas with specificproblems might not be served. A maximum feasiblelevel of 50 per cent coverage of the rural populationwith sanitation was also agreed to, but general feelingwas that this could be achieved only if radical organi-zational changes were made to deliver the service.Table 9 indicates country requirements for improvedsector performance in 22 countries of the ESCAPregion.

3. Present levels of service vis-a-vis targets

For rural communities in Asia and the Pacific, thecriterion of minimum service level is "reasonable accessto safe water", which generally implies that the house-wife or members of the household do not have to

spend a disproportionate part of the day in fetchingwater for the family. The source of supply might bea treated surface water or, perhaps more likely, anuntreated but uncontaminated water, such as thatfrom protected boreholes, springs and sanitary wells.Tables 7 and 10 show the position in the WHO south-east Asia region and countries of the ESCAP region,from the data available.

The levels of service mentioned in tables 7 and 9do not necessarily imply levels of utilization, particu-larly when poor and inappropriate design has led tosocial unacceptability. As rural communities are in-creasingly served with water supply, consideration willhave to be given to general sanitation in villages.

4. Investment needs to achieve targets

To achieve the 1990 global targets set for theInternational Drinking Water Supply and SanitationDecade it was estimated3 that the then level of invest-ment for the rural phase alone (estimated at $US 1,545million during 1975-1980) would have to be increased 3.9times for rural water supply and 4.0 times for excretadisposal (at 1977 price levels), assuming the same levelsof service and methods of implementation as in the past.The oil crisis is likely to add significantly to the costsof achieving the 1990 targets and will probably strainthe ability of governments to divert national resourcesto the sector in those developing countries which haveto import oii. If the unserved population is to bereached and the sector is not to take up a dispropor-tionate share of the national development budget indeveloping countries of the region, political commit-ment and new approaches will be required in the plan-ning and implementation of rural water supply andsanitation programmes.

3 Report on Community Water Supplies, prepared by WHO in colla-boration with the World Bank for the United Nations Water Conference,Mar del Plata, March 1977, E/CONF.70/14, 19 January 1977.

Table 9. International Drinking Water Supply and Sanitation Decade (1981-1990):country requirements for improved sector performance in the ESCAP region

Country WHO/RO CCC CNP/QOLI/PCRP Sectorplanning

Sector finance

TA+C.4 ICG/TAR Pro']. Id.

Project development

SOSI

GW SW

Sector mana\

Institutional

Reorg. Coord.

lemcnt

ManpowerDev.

Afghanistan EM 1A 190/ -/87

Bangladesh SEARO 1A 90/18/91

Burma SEARO 1A 140/57/75Fiji WP 3C 1 210/79/67

India SEARO 1A 150/31/79

Indonesia SEARO 1A 300/48/82Iran EM 3B 2 160/37/55

Malaysia WP 2C 930/73/70

Maldives SEARO 1A 90/NA/80Mongolia SEARO 2A 830/NA/52

Nepal SEARO 1A 110/27/96

Pakistan EM 1A 190/28/74

Papua New Guinea WP 2B 490/42/87Philippines WP 2B 450/69/66

Republic of Korea WP 2C 820/80/40Samoa WP IB 280/ - /80Singapore" WP 3C 2 880/93/ 0

Solomon Islands WP IB 250/ - /90Sri Lanka SEARO 1A 200/79/76

Thailand SEARO 2A 420/67/86

Tonga WP — —Viet Nam WP 1A 160/- /80

a Government fully capable of resolving any sector problems.

Legend:WHO/RO World Health Organization/Regional OfficeSEARO Southeast Asia Regional OfficeWP Western PacificEM EMRO, Eastern Mediterranean, AlexandriaCGC Country group classification. See table, national

to Decade planningGNP/QOLI/PCRP Per capita cross national product/quality of life

populationSector planning Policies, priorities, targets and programmingTA Technical assistanceCA Capital assistanceICG/TAR Internal cash generation/tariffsProj.Id. Project identificationProj-Prep. Project preparationSOSI Source of supply investigation

XX(r)san

X(r)sanX

X(r)sanX(r)san

Xsan

X(r)sanXsan

X

X

X(r)sanX(r)san

X(r)san

X

X(r)san

X

XXX

XX(CA)

X

XX

XX

X

XX

Xsan

X

XX

X

X

X

XXXX

XX

X

XX

X

X

XX

X

XX

X

X

X(L)

X(L)

X

X(r)san

X

Xsan

XX(L)

Xsan

X(L)

Xsan

X(IP)

X(IP)X(L)

X(r)san

XXsan

X

X

Xsan

X

XXX

X

X

X

X

X

XX

XX

XXXX

WPC

WRM

XX(IP)

X(IP)

XX

XX

XXX

XX

XX

XXX

XX

XX

XX

X(r)X

X

XX

XX

XX

X(IP)XX

XX

5'00S3

I

and sector data relevant

index/percentage rural

GW Ground waterSW Surface waterReorg. ReorganizationCoord. Coordination and improvementO&M Operation and maintenanceManpower dev. Staffing and training of sector personnel (all levels)(IP) In progress(P) Planned(r) Rural areasan SanitationWRM Water resources management(L) Large projectsWPC Water pollution controlX Country requirement


Table 10. Rural water supply and sanitation coveragein 22 countries of the ESCAP region

Country

Afghanistan1" .

Bangladesh

Burma . . . .

Fiji

India

Iran

Maldives

Mongolia . . . .

Nepal

Pakistan

Papua New Guinea .

Philippines

Republic of Korea

Solomon Islands .

Sri Lanka

Thailand . . . .

Viet Nam

Population(million)

15.581.2

31.5

0.6. 631.7

133 5

34.813 0

0 1

1.513.3

74.92.9

44.5

36.402

2 30.2

14.1

43.80 11

50.6

Rural

(percentage •of total)

7191

7567

7982

5570

805296

748766

40800

907686

5080

Percentage of rural

Safe water

850

1462

106

3349

5.3NA

5

17

10

3436

23

24131277

20

Sanitation

Very low

Very low5

93C

820

NA63

NA

Very low2

10c

33NA

95

2056

30100NA

Source: National sector and data sheets of countries of the ESCAPregion.

" Derived from WHO/World Bank sector, rapid assessment andother reports prepared at different times.

b Figures from country report.c Stated figure may be an overestimate according to ESCAP na-

tional and sector data sheets.

B. WATER RESOURCES DEVELOPMENT ANDRURAL WATER SUPPLY AND SANITATION

1. The need for a new strategy

The development of water resources, involving asit does the development of irrigation systems, powergeneration, urban and rural water supply, flood con-trol and drainage, has often concentrated more heavilyon irrigation, power generation and urban watersupply, for which volumetric flow requirements (andconsequently capital investment requirements) havebeen very large indeed, compared tn rural drinkingwater supply requirements; it has been assumed thatthe relatively small drinking water supply needs of therural communities in the region served would some-how be easily met from the large flows brought intothe ESCAP region.

Unfortunately, this approach has not proved satis-tory, since it has tended to neglect water quality,water-related diseases, environmental sanitation and,above all, the entire environmental impact of water

resources development projects on health and theecosystem. It is, therefore, suggested that a new stra-tegy be called for, in which all aspects of the problemare integrated into a balanced and systematic con-sideration of the whole. Such a strategy involveswater resources planning at both the macro- and micro-levels, co-ordination of the inter-sectoral aspects, andincludes an environmental impact assessment. Therural community, generally the weakest and most de-fenceless sector of human society, must not be forgot-ten, as that community is the subject and object of allrural development projects. In fact, much economycan be achieved by undertaking wherever possiblemulti-purpose projects which include rural watersupply and sanitation along with irrigation, power gen-eration or other uses, rather than leaving the formerto later planning and execution, all too often by an-other agency. Co-ordination between different agen-cies at the early planning stage could lead to consider-able economies and to a conceptually more satisfac-tory and optimum solution.

Since expenditure on water resources comprises asizable proportion (generally between one sixth andone half) of the total development expenditure indeveloping countries of the ESCAP region, it providesa convenient entry point through which to channelresources.

Large- and medium-scale dam construction hasbeen a feature of water resources development through-out the region. Unfortunately, this type of schemehas benefitted relatively few people in rural areas,although the fortunate few have had their incomes andland value increased through complete governmentsubsidy.4 Thus, even in rural areas, these largerschemes have been inequitable in the distribution ofbenefits but in addition, particularly when power pro-duction has been an important component, majorbenefits have been derived by urban dwellers.

Another serious shortcoming of irrigation damshas been the lack of planning for the farmer's end ofthe water delivery system. Poor planning has resultedin canal distribution systems being incomplete and,even where they have been built, no provisions weremade for operation and maintenance. Consequently,many of the potential benefits have never been realiz-VsVJ U11U i U l g V 1 U 1 U 1 J- 'Vk'UlUllVtIO 1V11IUII1 >U ULfjVVk fJ \S t WA fc . .

Even when large numbers of people had to be reset-tled as a result of a reservoir inundating a broad area,the evidence suggests that no attempt was made, atleast in earlier projects, to provide new settlementswith safe water and suitable sanitation facilities.

4 There are of course a few exceptions to this general trend, such as theirrigation works works in Tamil Nadu State, India, where the over-allshortage of water resources has resulted in the development of a largenumber of minor irrigation works in which the domestic drinking waterneeds of communities are incorporated.


One of the most imaginative water resourcedevelopments in the world is the lower Mekong Riverbasin development scheme within the ESCAP region.The Committee for Co-ordination of Investigations ofthe lower Mekong Basin (now the Mekong InterimCommittee) has, over the years, endeavoured to pro-mote improvements in environmental health facilitiesin the basin through studies of existing services andadvice on the best use of available resources for thephased development of water supplies, sewerage anddrainage, refuse disposal and rural sanitation. Its im-pact in rural areas has, however, been somewhatlimited, as indicated by the statistics on coverage ofrural water supply and sanitation in riparian countriesof the Lower Mekong.

In recent years there has been a tendency to en-courage a change in emphasis in water resources deve-lopment from large-scale projects to small projectsdesigned to satisfy the basic requirements of all ruralcommunities in a region. Apart from the experiencein Tamil Nadu, India, cited earlier, a promising stra-tegy for the development of small-scale rural waterresources has recently been delineated for north-eastThailand in a study undertaken for the Water ResourcesPlanning Sub-Committee of the National Economicand Social Development Board.5

A preliminary survey indicated that large schemeshad provided irrigation water to only about 3 per centof the population in north-east Thailand but, by im-proving the distribution systems, they could reason-ably be extended to cover 8.9 per cent of farmer fami-lies. Reliable rivers in the region could provide pump-ed irrigation for a further 10 per cent of the popula-tion, leaving another 80 per cent still to be suppliedfrom other sources. For all areas inaccessible tolarge reservoirs or reliable rivers, small water projectsof different types have been recommended for develop-ment over the next five years to provide a minimumsupply of water for minimal supplementary irrigationof crops, minimal dry season watering of garden plots,watering of animals and domestic water needs. A"bottom-up" approach for project development and alarge measure of villager participation and self-help isanticipated in planning and implementation of theprogramme. From the point of view of the Decadeobjectives, advantage must be taken during the imple-mentation of such schemes to incorporate, at the veryleast, simple systems to ensure safe water for domesticuse and sanitary excreta disposal.

2. Integrated rural development

Wherever a particular project of integrated ruraldevelopment is being planned, the water supply andsanitation component should be an integral part.

5 Asian Institute of Technology, Water for the North-east: A Strategyfor the Development of Small-Scale Water Resources, vol. 1, Main Report(Bangkok, 1978).

To rely on rural development to achieve the De-cade targets would, however, imply total integratedrural development for all by the year 1990, which isjust not possible. The problems of planning large-scale programmes of total rural development are toonumerous to contemplate, but this approach can befollowed in many a rural area where integrated deve-lopment is already being planned.

Being agriculturally based, rural communitieswithout access to water resources will be unable toproduce sufficient food to maintain a reasonable ca-loric intake and health will be poor. Providing fortheir basic needs in irrigation and animal watering aswell as safe water and excreta disposal should go along way towards promoting the health of rural peopleand improving their quality of life. Social producti-vity and economic growth rely on a sound health basewhich in turn is dependent on water resources develop-ment and primary health care facilities in rural areas.

Too often, large irrigation and hydropowerschemes have brought improved agricultural producti-vity in rural communities within their influence but noimprovement, and perhaps a deterioration, in environ-mental health. A recent study carried out for theMekong Committee as part of the Nam Pong Environ-mental Management Research Project (supported bythe Ford Foundation) looked into the state of healthof rural communities in the area of the Nam Pongscheme in north-east Thailand, completed more thanten years before. It was found that the most com-mon complaints of villagers in resettlement, irrigation,lake-side and traditional communities were gastro-intestinal disturbances, fever and respiratory tract infec-tions. Parasitic infections were high, with Giardialamblia and Entamoeba coli predominating amongprotozoal infections and hookworm and Opisthorchisviverrini (liver fluke) being common helminthic infec-tions in all groups of people.

The health implications of water resources deve-lopment are not limited to the spread of gastro-intes-tinal infections; many more communicable diseasesmight be promoted by poor project planning. A 1979World Bank Report6 presented a convenient classifica-tion of water-related diseases, together with usefulinformation on modes of transmission and possible con-trol measures which will be of use to water resource

' • planners^ It is essential that the adverse health im-I Ipacts of water resources projects, of any scale, should' \be assessed and counteracted before implementation.

Effective sanitation is an important barrier to diseasetransmission and should not be seen as of secondaryimportance to water supply; the two are interdepen-

6 World Bank, Appropriate Technology for Water Supply and Sanita-tion — Health Aspects of Excreta and Wastewater Management, 4 vols.(1979).


dent and should be developed together in rural com-munities.

In recent years, international and bilateral agen-cies have insisted on some assessment of environmentalimpact before agreeing to loans for water resourcesschemes. Environmental health has always beenan important component of assessments carried outin the ESCAP region. Such assessments wouldalso include beneficial impacts of a project, butrarely has the provision of rural water supply andsanitation been an essential component of suchbenefits. Even where resettlement of people livingin an area to be inundated has been given importantconsideration, safe water supply and sanitation forthem in their new location have often been neglected,as was the case with the Nam Pong project in Thailand.Water resource planners could give significant impetusto national programmes for meeting Decade targets ifrural water supply and sanitation were made requiredobjectives in all water resources projects whereverfeasible.

C. INTERACTION BETWEEN HEALTH, WATERRESOURCES MANAGEMENT, RURALWATER SUPPLY AND SANITATION

1. Environmental health impact of waterresources development

In its final recommendations, the United NationsWater Conference draws pointed attention to the needto include consideration of diseases associated withwater as an integral part of water assessments andconsideration of the interrelationships of water quali-ty, quantity and related land use (RecommendationA-3(e)).

Water resources development primarily affectsland use patterns, leading to a series of consequencessuch as the following, all of which affect man's health,his socio-economic well-being and the natural ecosys-tem as a whole. Thus, water resources developmentgenerally tends to increase:

(a) Economic activity and the inflow of migrant la-bour;

(b) The density and spread of habitation (and conse-quently poorer sanitation);

(c) Agricultural and industrial pollution of surfaceand ground waters downstream;

(d) Difficulty in meeting drinking water quality stan-dards;

(e) The incidence of water-borne and parasitic di-seases in the region (e.g. malaria, schistosomiasis);

(f) The rate of deterioration of soil drainage and othercharacteristics;

(g) The eutrophic state of receiving water bodies.

It is essential to include a careful assessment ofall the above impacts in a scientific planning proce-dure for water resources development. Consequently,the above mentioned impacts are discussed below withspecial reference to the rural community.

2. Economic activity and inflow of migrant labour

Large-scale irrigation and hydropower projectsusually involve migrant labour during the constructionperiod and might attract people from different regionsfor the employment opportunities arising after imple-mentation. These immigrating populations frequentlybring with them types of disease which are not indi-genous to the area and are themselves exposed to in-fections which they have not previously experienced.If the associated health problems (for example, ma-laria) are not anticipated and provisions made for safewater supplies and sanitation as well as health care,the consequences can be very serious.

3. Density and spread of habitation

Increased employment opportunities and inflow oflabour lead to increased density and spread of habita-tion, which in turn require that new sources of drink-ing water supply be sought and improvements in dis-tribution of these supplies be undertaken. Concomi-tant problems with waste-water disposal and generalrural sanitation invariably arise, demanding properlocation and construction of sanitary facilities. Betterprotection of ground and surface waters is necessary,since poorer sanitation is to be expected in a com-munity whose density and spread have rapidly increas-ed.

Defecation in open fields, in the bush or directly/into streams are common practices throughout theESCAP region where proper sanitary disposal devicesare not available. This causes high pathogen levels insurface waters, particularly just after rainfall when thefirst flush carries the bulk of the contamination. Im-proper construction and poor location of borehole andpit latrines as well as poor protection of wells willresult in ground water being contaminated with patho-genic organisms in spite of the original high qualityof the water in many aquifers. Surface springs mustalso be adequately protected if they are to provide asafe supply for rural communities. Thus, even thesimplest water systems need careful planning if they areto meet the quality requirements of the Decade at low


cost. Local protection of ground-water sources is fre-quently effective but surface waters will generally re-quire some form of treatment, since controlling theircontamination by human, animal, agricultural and in-dustrial wastes is not practicable.

4. Agricultural and industrial pollution

Increasing and poorly-controlled use of herbicides,pesticides and fertilizers are causing the concentrationsof these substances to build up in rivers, ponds and

. reservoirs throughout the ESCAP region. Some of thecompounds used might be persistent, toxic or bio-accumulative and give rise to primary and secondaryeffects which might seriously limit use of the water forpotable purposes. The provision of water to rural com-munities might well aggravate the situation if increasedagricultural output is achieved through increased useof chemicals. Unless the farmer is instructed in theproper application o fthese materials and adopts pro-per management practices, excess amounts will showup in surface waters and, inevitably, in his drinkingwater.

Industrial development is often considered to bean urban phenomenon but, with increasing growth ofagro-industry in Asia and the Pacific, the tendency isto locate processing plants where the produce is grown.Uncontrolled growth of agro-industry in rural areasand free discharge of highly-polluting wastes have re-sulted in serious deterioration of the quality of manysurface waters, making them unsuitable as a source ofdrinking water. Rural communities have lost theirtraditional water supplies through the development ofsugar cane processing, tapioca flour manufacture andpalm oil refining on rivers whose water is necessary asprocess water, for cooling and for the reception ofwastes. In some cases, where profit margins are low,the imposition of stringent pollution control on agro-industry would force plants to close down, with conse-quent loss of employment and social upset in ruralareas.

5. Drinking water quality requirements

Once a reliable source or combination of sourceshas been identified to provide the quantity of waterrequired for the needs of a rural community, thequality of the supply for domestic use must be con-sidered. Even though the provision of sufficient waterfor household needs is known to improve environmen-tal health conditions, but its quality also has a pro-found effect on the well-being of people. The WorldHealth Organization, the World Bank and other agen-cies are at present supporting studies on the healthimpact of water supplies, but even without such con-firmatory data, the objectives of the Decade clearlydemand a safe supply. In rural areas where water

sources might be limited, "safe" will normally meanbacteriologically and parasitologically safe and freefrom toxic materials.7 It will not imply achievementof all water quality standards recommended, forexample, in the WHO International Standards forDrinking Water.

The quality of raw water will vary, depending onthe source, and often little choice will be possible inrural areas. Ground water will usually provide thebest quality of raw water when it is available, but poorsanitation will be a hazard wherever dug (or shallow)wells are common. Ground water is, however, likelyto contain dissolved impurities and chemicals leachedfrom the soil (for example, fluorides, iron, manganese,etc.). Bangladesh is a case in point, where in certainareas ground water is readily available but is of un-acceptable quality owing to these chemicals. The in-tensive use of fertilizers may also increase the nitrateconcentration of ground waters and make them un-

-~ desirable for drinking purposes. Rainwater is gener-ally the only source of drinking water in the absenceof other sources in rural areas of developing countries(for example, in Maldives and south Thailand), but its

-storage often causes problems and results in contami-nation. Surface water sources, such as rivers andponds, are likely to be highly contaminated whereverrural population densities are high, agricultural run-off occurs and industries release wastes but it is im-possible and uneconomical to attempt to maintaindrinking water quality in such water resources. Thesystem required to produce safe water will generallyincrease in technical complexity and cost as the quali-ty of the source decreases.

The surveillance of water quality is one of theobjectives of the International Drinking Water Supplyand Sanitation Decade and increasing importance isexpected to be placed on the maintenance of a safesupply. It is no longer considered acceptable to in-stall systems which merely have the capability of pro-ducing safe water; they must be monitored regularlyto be proved effective.

6. Possibility of water-related parasitic diseases

Large-scale water resources projects can disturbthe natural balance of the ecosystem and have beenknown to lead to unexpected problems with water-related parasitic diseases arising from, for example,mosquito breeding in poorly drained areas and shallow

7 UDder the minimum requirements for water quality, one should in-clude aesthetic acceptability to the people (consumers). This is import-ant because even if a water supply provided is bacteriologically andchemically safe, but is aesthetically unacceptable (for example, it it is toohard, foul smelling, highly coloured, too hot, etc.) the people will notuse the water and revert to water sources which are more acceptable butpolluted.


water fringes around impoundments, leading to ma-laria, filariasis, and even yellow fever and dengue incertain regions.

The present resurgence of malaria in south Turkeyis a case in point, where large-scale agricultural acti-vity in irrigated but poorly drained soils has aggravat-ed the situation and the ultimate solution is not theuse of more insecticides (the mosquitoes are alreadyresistant to most types of insecticides) but properdrainage to remove breeding grounds. Similar condi-tions exist in other countries.

Other water-related parasitic diseases which havespread rapidly on introduction of large-scale waterresources development are schistosomiasis and oncho-cerciasis. Considerable precautions in planning andimplementation are required to prevent such diseasesfrom occurring.

7. Deterioration of soil characteristics

The water resources developer interested in irriga-tion projects is generally all too familiar with the illeffects of water-logged soils and alkaline conditions oncrop yields and soil characteristics, and it is, therefore,not necessary to discuss this question further. Oneneed only remember that any harm to the rural com-munity's means of livelihood will have a direct effecton its health and well-being, and on future land-usepatterns.

8. The trophic status of receiving water bodies

Rivers and canals often carry considerableamounts of nutrients (carbon, nitrogen and phosphor-us) which drain into them from the natural surfacerun-off over their catchments. The nutrients washedinto the rivers and canals depend upon the nature ofthe catchment area, and on urban and industrial deve-lopments within it, namely_!_..on<- the land-use pattern.

The greater^the'concentration of the nutrients, thehigher is the algal productivity and the "trophic state"of the receiving~~water and, as is well known, eutrophic

J:*: 1__! t_i_ i -I u i__ : J~J *~CU11UH1UU3 aii; unucaiiauic anu diiwuiu uc avuiucu IU

allow use of the water for community drinking watersupplies without excessive treatment and to preservethe water resource itself for future generations.

Thus, water resources development is likely tohave many environmental effects including health,social, ecological, cultural and aesthetic impacts. Mostof these impacts again have an indirect effect on hu-man health.

D. RURAL WATER SUPPLY AND SANITATIONPROGRAMME PLANNING AND FUNDING

1. Basic policy

Developing countries in Asia and the Pacific re-gion will meet the Decade targets for rural watersupply and sanitation only if national policy decisionsare taken to divert additional resources to the sectorthrough a reordering of priorities. The political willto achieve such a restructuring of national policy cancome only from the top.

Once the political backing for a national policyhas been provided, a strategy for planning and imple-mentation of rural programmes must be developed.The most that can be attempted, assuming a fairamount of self-help, is the provision of very simplesanitary services to all rural communities over the De-cade. The possibility of including rural water supplyand sanitation in programmes of water resources de-velopment or integrated rural development as discuss-ed earlier should certainly be considered in formulat-ing a national strategy. Each country will have itsown approach to rural development, depending onlocal geographical, climatic and socio-economic condi-tions, and it is essential that suitable criteria for theidentification of new projects be evolved carefully sothat the programme most acceptable to the rural popu-lation is implemented in a manner consistent withlocal expectations and resources.

Integrated rural development and water resourcesdevelopment both provide sensible approaches throughwhich self-help might easily be organized. The districtdevelopment worker, if properly trained and technical-ly supported, can be the focus of plan implementation.The health worker should also be included in plansto provide water supply and sanitation as part of pri-mary health care. Health education, both for theworker as well as the general public, will usually be avery important input into rural sanitation programmes.

Planning "from the top" has rarely succeeded andit is essential that the recipient communities and localadministrations be involved in projects from the earlystages of planning, since they are the ones most likelyto perceive their real needs in an integrated ruraldevelopment programme. To a certain exrenr a rever-sal of the planning process is called for so as to leavethe basic decision-making process in the hands of therural communities, once the development strategy hasbeen tentatively formulated.

2. Past funding

Rural water supply has been accepted as a socialinvestment without financial returns in most countries


of the ESCAP region. In a few countries, a measureof consumer participation has been realized. Forexample, in Thailand contributions ranging from 20 to44 per cent of the capital costs were made (mostly incash) and in India more costly piped systems werebased on consumer cost-sharing in cash, materials and/or labour, depending on ability and local conditions.Rural sanitation has yet to be accepted as a highpriority in most developing countries of Asia and thePacific, except for Sri Lanka and Thailand where com-munity involvement has demonstrated an encouragingresult. Economic criteria previously applied to loansby external funding agencies hindered the flow of ex-ternal aid to rural water supply and sanitation, andinternal funding was not adequate for the massiveprogramme of work facing most developing countriesof the region as a result of past neglect.

3. Economic appraisal

Conventional economic evaluation terms such asbenefit-cost and credit-worthiness are irrelevant in thecontext of providing basic rural sanitary services whenhuman dignity and quality of life are at stake. It isencouraging that the earlier rigidity of national plan-ning and international lending has given way to muchgreater flexibility in approaching rural communitywater supply and sanitation and the commitment ofcountries in the region to the objectives of the Decadeshould allow the acceleration of rural programmes.

4. Ability and willingness to pay

Any serious attempt to provide safe water andsanitation to all rural people in any developing coun-try in Asia and the Pacific over the next decade mustdepend, in part, on the willingness of consumers topay. Their ability to pay will vary, however, fromcountry to country and from community to commu-nity. In some countries of the region this willingnessto pay has been demonstrated, in others the approachhas had only marginal success, or there has been noattempt to introduce it. The self-help approach isessential to success and countries must accept it andplan for its incorporation in programmes of rural watersupply and sanitation.

5. Internal resources

The increased rate of investments required to meetthe Decade targets for rural water supply and sanita-tion on a global scale has been mentioned. Even withincreased external funding and consumer contribu-tions, national commitments to the sector will have toincrease dramatically over current levels in all coun-tries of the ESCAP region. A high sectoral priorityin national plans signifies a country's recognition ofits importance and is the first step towards augmentingfunds for the programme.

India may be taken as an example of increasingcommitment to the sector in successive national plans,as indicated in table 11. With the earlier low per-centage allocations in a country with such a large po-pulation, it is not surprising that a huge backlog ofrural water supply and sanitation service has accumu-lated. In fact, most of the sector allocations havebeen invested in water supply on a "worst-first" ap-proach, almost to the exclusion of rural sanitation.Bangladesh has achieved remarkable progress in ruralwater supply with a rural sector allocation of about0.5 per cent of the total public sector outlay in thefirst five-year plan (July 1973-June 1978), but alsowith massive UNICEF assistance. Again no progresshas been made with rural sanitation. In Thailand,rural water supply schemes have qualified for an 80per cent grant in aid from the Government and a 20per cent loan for villages with populations of less than500 and about a 56 per cent grant and an 44 per centloan for villages with populations of 500 to 5,000. Theloan part of the funding is advanced by the Govern-ment, usually on a ten-year term, or met by the bene-ficiaries themseleves or by contributions from inter-national and bilateral agencies. By comparison, thesuccessful rural sanitation programme in Thailand hasbeen essentially self-financed.

The form of government funding of rural projectswill naturally vary from country to country but it willalways be necessary to mobilize the reserve of internalfunding capacity in the consumer's willingness andability to pay for services. Programme planning mustaim at maximizing all indigenous resources to reducethe unit cost of basic sanitary services for rural com-munities.

Table 11. India's national plan outlays and ruralwater supply and sanitation allocations

First

Second

ThirdAnnualFourthFifth

"$US 1.

[tonal plan

(1951-1956)

(1956-1961)(1961-1966)

(1966-1968)(1969-1974)(1974-1979)

00 = Rs. 7.80.

6.

flan outlay(million Rs)&

19 60046 000

85 765

67 565159 022392 875

External

Allocation to rural water supplyand sanitation

{million Rt)

60

280670

3131 6453 780

aid

Percentage ofplan outlay

0.30.6

0.70.5

1.02.3

In recent years, there has been a significant changeof direction in the application of external aid. Deve-loped countries and international agencies have nowgiven priority to the poorest (least developed) countriesand the most deprived (low-income) groups of people,


although countries of the WHO south-east Asia regionin which live 41 per cent of the total global targetpopulation to be served received only 2 per cent ofthe total global external aid to the sector. Ruralareas of developing countries in Asia and the Pacificare in a strong position to make out a case for in-creased aid. Provided programmes are well planned,with maximum mobilization of available internalresources, bilateral and international agencies are keento provide external funds for critical phases of pro-gramme implementation. The co-operative actionamong the United Nations agencies to promote activi-ties for the International Drinking Water Supply andSanitation Decade should provide impetus to the iden-tification and formulation of suitable projects andshould result in better co-ordination of bilateral aid.

7. Water resources budget allocations

The national budget allocations for irrigation andhydropower development far exceed those for ruralwater supply and sanitation. The fact that thesewater resource developments arise in rural areas sug-gests the possibility of incorporating community watersupply and sanitation into these programmes anddiverting a proportion of the major funds to the sector.Particularly if small-scale projects are being plannedto provide basic water needs to all rural communities,it is a small step taken at minimum marginal cost toensure that the supply for domestic use is safe. Itwould not be inappropriate to include the promotionof rural sanitation as part of rural development and toallocate some part of the water resources budget forthis purpose.

E. MANAGEMENT OF RURAL WATER SUPPLYAND SANITATION PROGRAMMES

1. Manpower planning and development

In most developing countries of the Asia and thePacific region, there has been no commitment on thepart of governments to training for rural service, andshortages of manpower exist at every level. In somecountries (such as Indonesia), professional engineer:) aiein short supply, while in some others there is a lackof trained technicians. All countries seem to have thenrnV>1f>m nf limitpH manaeprini nhiiitifv: amnne thft nra-

fessionals employed in water supply and sanitationagencies. This is crucial since on account of theirrelative simplicity, rural water supply and sanitationschemes do not require superior engineering skills, butrather management capabilities resulting from theirscattered nature.

In an intersectoral approach, the training of ruraldevelopment and primary health care workers with anunderstanding of environmental sanitation needs should

not be overlooked. Similarly, water supply and sani-tation personnel should have a broader understandingof health in relation to agricultural and other ruralactivities if they are to work as members of an inter-sectoral team at the rural level.

2. Organizational requirements

Implementation of national programmes for ruralwater supply and sanitation in most countries of theregion is assigned to many government departments,sometimes in different ministries, and this causes se-rious puroblems, particularly when they are operatingwithout the framework of a national plan. The acti-vities of those concerned should be properly co-ordinated, and there should be adequate vertical link-ages between central planners, regional and local ad-ministrations and villagers during the planning andimplementation of rural programmes.

The importance of a local support structure in-volved in project management must be stressed. Manyrural water supply and sanitation projects in the regionhave failed shortly after completion in the absence ofany planning for operation and maintenance. Techni-cal advice, operator training, water quality monitoring,maintenance servicing and financial administrationmust be provided at the local level if the original in-vestment is not to be wasted.

3. Legislation

There are few laws governing the use and abuseof water resources in many developing countries of theregion. Abstractions of water for private use are gen-erally made without permission and waste dischargesreleased with impunity. Some countries are revisinglegislation related to water resources as national policyis being formulated. Nevertheless, legislation is no im-pediment to rural water supply and sanitation pro-grammes but could be beneficial in establishing re-gional agencies to administer them or co-ordinate exist-ing agencies.

4. Public participation and health education

The case for public participation in programmesis clear, both in terms of financial viability and socialacceptability. Villagers must be involved in projectsfrom their inception, through the planning and designstages, to their operation and maintenance. It is es-sential, however, to select the right type of rural com-munity representation. Since trust is an essential factorin collaboration, the local committees representingcommunities must have the full support of the people.

Health education is very important in generatinglocal interest in water supply and sanitation. Villagelevel workers should play a leading role in motivating


villagers and educating them with regard to the bene-fits of a safe water supply, sanitation and home hy-giene. To do this they must be properly trained.

Overcoming the farmer's objection to paying forwhat he considers a natural right is likely to be aproblem in many developing countries of the region,particularly against a background of complete govern-ment support for past schemes. It is, nevertheless,essential for the aims of the Decade to have ruraldwellers contribute increasing amounts to support theirown projects.

Where cash earnings are very low, the only pos-sible inputs will be in the form of labour and mate-rials, but it is surprising how even people near theabsolute poverty level can be encouraged to financeprojects which they are convinced will improve theirquality of life.

In general, self-help schemes relating to ruralsanitation have been more successful than those con-cerned with water supply in many countries. Thailandhas had remarkable success with rural sanitation pro-jects in recent years and they have been almost ex-clusively self-financed by villagers. Programmes rely-ing on a significant component of public participationare being introduced in some countries and the ap-proach is generally accepted.

5. Finance management

Wherever the funds originate, whether they beexternal or internal, they must be channelled to thepoint of implementation of projects. This will nor-mally be through the provincial or state administrationand they should be equipped to manage both govern-ment subsidies and villager contributions in construc-ting, operating and maintaining projects. The techni-cal and managerial skills necessary to ensure the effi-cient utilization of all resources must be present atthis level of administration, not only in central govern-ment departments.

F. APPROPRIATE TECHNOLOGY

Developing countries of the region generally havea good idea of their total water resources but havedifficulty in determining how much is available fordevelopment because of lack of hydrogeological data.Even simple flow measurements may be lacking andsometimes the amounts consumed are not known.Water-use data covering both quantity and quality arenecessary for sound planning. There is little informa-tion on rural water use, particularly private use, andwhat is available is spread among the many regionaland central Government agencies responsible for differ-ent uses. Lack of licensing legislation contributes to

the poor control, and therefore to the slim data base,of wacer use. Before proceeding with a large-scaleprogramme of rural water supply and sanitation, aregional survey of water resources and water use wiUalways be necessary. In some countries there is specialneed for funding of water resource studies, especiallyground-water studies, in order to be able to plan bet-ter rural water supply projects.

1. Design, criteria and standards

Design criteria have a great effect on the per capitacosts of water supply and sanitation and it is essentialfor all components of a system to be examined forpossible savings if budget allocations are to cover thelargest number of people possible. Inappropriatecriteria and standards have frequently been adopted indesign and systems have not always matched the needsof rural communities, the realities of rural duty or theskills of village people.

A basic variable influencing design is the quan-tity of water which should be supplied to rural com-munities. World Health Statistics8 in 1973 gave ruralwater consumption in developing countries of the re-gion and this varied from a minimum of 10 litres/dayin Bangladesh to a maximum of 110 litres/day in thePhilippines. At that time, all countries expected levelsof consumption to increase in the future, even thoughfull coverage of the population had not been achieved.The water resources development report for north-eastThailand9 suggested a minimum of 1000 m3 of waterstorage per farming family of six to provide for supple-mentary irrigation of crops, dry-season garden water-ing, animal and domestic needs for a six-month dryseason. Only part of this, between 27 and 216 m3/family, was considered to be for domestic use andwould therefore require special handling to ensure asafe supply.

Some countries of Asia and the Pacific have pre-pared or are preparing design criteria and guidelinesto assist technical personnel in making suitable designsfor rural water supply and sanitation projects. Thisis important because a rural project has its specialaspects and is not just an urban project on a smallerscale.

Appropriate technological approaches must betaken to optimize the functional and structural designof rural systems. Unfortunately, Asian and Pacificdesigners have had little guidance on the effectivenessof simple systems, either in the literature or from theirtypically high-technology study programmes. Conse-quently, they have been unwilling to accept the respon-

8 World Health Organization, World Health Statistics, vol. 26, No. 11(1973), pp. 720-783.

8 Asian Institute o£ Technology, op. cit.


sibility for introducing innovative designs which hadnot been proved, particularly when international loanagencies wwere not encouraging such approaches.There is evident that these attitudes are changing inthe region as pilot schemes involving low-cost ap-proaches are being introduced.

2. Operation and maintenance

Design and construction costs of rural water sup-ply schemes have usually been provided by centralgovernments in the region but operation and main-tenance costs have frequently been left to local au-thorities. They have had inadequate resources to coverthese costs, often imposed without much prior involve-ment, and water rates have seldom been set to covercharges and loan obligations. Between design andoperation there have been wide gaps in knowledge,expertise and communication resulting in loss of func-tional efficiency of system elements, neglect of preven-tive maintenance and general loss of benefits to ruralcommunities.

A survey carried out in north-east Thailand10 in1971 showed that in their early stages of implementa-tion, 69 out of 79 rural water supply systems inves-tigated had had operating difficulties. Among the morefrequent problems were: (a) continuing difficulty incollecting money from consumers because of brokentaps, great distance to public standpipes and low in-comes; (b) operator salaries too low to support family;(c) pumps or public standpipes broken and fuel notavailable; (d) inadequate tanks or water sources;(e) insufficient pipe to extend the distribution system;(f) lack of knowledge about system operation andchemical use; and (g) lack of assistance from the centralwater supply authority. This case study typifies con-ditions elsewhere in the region, which generally suffersfrom the failure of rural water supply and sanitationinvestments to provide the full measure of financial,economic and social benefits.

Simple rural excreta disposal systems should causeno problems in operation but will frequently be aban-doned through lack of maintenance. Being individualon-site systems, there is no need for local authorityinvolvement in maintenance but rural people must beeducated on their use and maintenance.

The local support system necessary for a success-ful rural programme of water supply and sanitationshould include a technical advisory service, a main-tenance training scheme, a spare-parts inventory andan administrative structure allowing collection of pay-ments, regular supply of materials, etc. Maximum use

10 R. J. Frankcl, "An evaluation of the effectiveness of the communitypotable water project in north-east Thailand", Research Report, AsianInstitute of Technology, Bangkok (1973).

should always be made of village labour but the localauthority must accept responsibility for its manage-ment. To do this satisfactorily, local authorities andvillagers must be involved in planning and construc-ting acceptable systems for rural communities and amanpower training programme should include specialemphasis on operation and maintenance of completedschemes.

3. Materials and equipment

Many countries in the region face shortages ofmaterials and have little local manufacturing capabi-lity. Rural water supply and sanitation systems areprone to breakdown of equipment and appurtenancesand there is a great need for the development of sturdy,reliable and cheap items (for example, hand pumps)which can be manufactured locally. Import substitu-tion is an essential aspect of developing country pro-grammes and local materials readily handled by ruralpeople should be incorporated into designs wheneverpossible. The adoption of a limited number of stan-dard items for use in standard designs should be anobjective in programme planning to reduce the diver-sity of spare-parts inventories and minimize the pos-sibility of long periods of breakdown. Mass produc-tion of essential parts of standard equipment should beencouraged as national policy.

4. Research and development

An important part of research and development isexchange of information among developing countries.Support of the United Nations system for technicalco-operation among developing countries will providea strong incentive for the exchange of experience andproduct designs in the Asia and Pacific region. Manydevelopments in the region are worth trying in othercountries and this can be realized if information trans-fer is effective and professionals are receptive.

G. STRATEGY FOR THE ESCAP REGION

1. Constraints on progress

An increasing awareness of the need for economicgrowth and improved quality of life in rural commu-nities has not yet been translated into policy decisionsrelated to implementation of water supply and sani-tation programmes in most countries of the ESCAPregion. Furthermore, planning has often been imposed"from the top" without sufficiently involving the reci-pient communities and local administrations in thedecision-making process and giving due cognizance tothe need for integrated rural development, since afterall it is the local community that can best perceiveits needs. Even where rural water supply or sanitationprogrammes have been planned, implementation has


suffered from vagaries in funding. Shortage of in-ternal financing has generally been considered the ma-jor constraint on progress in rural water supply andsanitation but the ability of existing agencies to handleincreased budgets to meet an accelerated programme isseriously questioned. The flow of external aid hasbeen restricted somewhat in the past by financing pat-terns and funding methods, but more often than not,it has been restricted by the lack of well planned pro-jects to support.

Institutional problems and administrative short-comings are considered to be extremely important inlimiting the expansion of national programmes and thesuccessful continuation of completed projects. Tech-nological constraints do not appear to be retardingprogress but appropriate technological improvementscould be expected to have a considerable impact onthe economics of rural schemes.

Manpower shortages are another major impedi-ment in many developing countries of the region. Atthe professional level, study programmes in nationalinstitutions do not respond to the needs of rural deve-lopment and qualified staff have a strong urban orien-tation, which makes them unwilling to serve in ruralareas as well as unsuitable for such duty. There isa noticeable lack of training programmes for sub-professional personnel in all countries, and local sup-port systems are consequently inadequate.

Most programmes have failed to respond to thesocial and economic needs of rural communities, andlack of health education has limited the benefits ofcompleted projects. The consumer's willingness andability to pay have rarely been assessed, and villagershave had little involvement in the planning or imple-mentation of projects, denying programmes a degree ofconsumer participation and cost-sharing.

in many countries but poor performance areas shouldhave been identified and plans made to overcome ob-structions to progress. Most important in this respect,consumer participation will have to be incorporatedinto both planning and implementation of projects andnational strategies to achieve this should have evolved.

The delivery of an adequate supply of water toall rural communities is, no doubt, the responsibility ofwater resource planners at the macro-level. But, theplanners will have to concern themselves equally withthe micro-level if their schemes are to be satisfactoryon all counts. Past schemes have rarely achieved asizable coverage of rural populations and new pro-gramme planning should attempt to reach all ruralpeople at a basic level. In many countries of theESCAP region it will be desirable to undertaken afresh review of the criteria for the identification of newprojects and fixing priorities. Tn some cases the tech-nical planners and designers themselves will need to beretrained to gain some expertise in the preparationand evaluation of projects with special reference torural water supply and sanitation.

In formulating national strategies for acceleratingthe pace of rural water supply and sanitation pro-grammes, it will be well to keep in mind that only aminimum needs approach and mobilization of localresources with a significant self-help component willmake it possible to provide the basic requirements ofrural communities at minimum cost and time. Addi-tionally, the rural programmes will benefit from beingincluded as an integral part of large-scale water re-sources development and comprehensive rural develop-ment projects, taking into account their over-all en-vironmental impact. The environmental health impactwill have to be given greater consideration in theplanning stages if satisfactory programmes are to de-velop and tragedies are to be avoided.

2. Programme planning and implementation

Planning to meet the targets of the InternationalDrinking Water Supply and Sanitation Decade shouldnow be well developed in all countries of the regionbecause implementation is scheduled to be undertakenin the period 1981-1990. Concerted action might havebeen delayed in some countries until policy has beenformulated in a new national plan but decisions onorganizational patterns, administrative responsibilitiesand financial support will have already been taken. Itis to be hoped that internal programme planning willnot limit the flow of internal and external financingwhich must by now have been allocated to rural watersupply and sanitation. If necessary reforms have notyet been decided upon and supported by the politicalhierarchy, the Decade will start with a "whimper" in-stead of a "bang". Past strengths will be built on

3. Resources mobilization

Although external funding can be only marginal,greater co-ordination among international and bilateralagencies will allow maximum benefits to be realizedin its application. This can be achieved through ac-tual projects, assistance in manpower training, the pro-vision of critical equipment, and the stimulation oflocal capability in manufacture; continued capital andtechnical assistance will also need to be provided tomany countries of the ESCAP region from externalsources. The pace of a country's programme will,however, depend primarily on the extent to whichfunds and services are mobilized from internal re-sources. The generation of additional funds by in-creasing taxation, through loans from banking andcommercial institutions, through income redistributionamong communities, through rational tariff structures,


through cross-subsidies and other feasible measurescontingent upon local conditions, will always be amatter within the exclusive judgement of an individualcountry.

Mobilization of manpower can be defined precise-ly when the physical dimensions and strategy of aprogramme have been decided. Few countries are self-sufficient in the supply of trained manpower at alllevels required for rural water supply and sanitationprogrammes. In particular, local support staff is ofteninadequate and if they are to be trained adequately tobe able to perceive the link between health and waterand its various uses in domestic, agricultural and otherrural activities, and guide the communities in environ-mental sanitation, the demands to meet their trainingrequirements will indeed be great. Training centreswill be necessary, especially for sub-professionals, andshort-term training for mid-level skills will have to beexpanded to accommodate rural development andhealth workers as well as water agency staff. Betteroperation and maintenance of completed schemes willhave to be emphasized in designing new trainingprogrammes.

The requirements for material resources will de-pend on the level of sophistication of programmes andthe planning approach adopted. Foreign exchange willoften be necessary to meet urgent short-term importsand longer-term investment for local manufacture, andthis will call for judicious advance planning. The abi-lity of a country to attract foreign loans will dependon its ability to underwrite those portions of sectoralinvestment which are not self-financing, as a socialpolicy. An improving water resources situation inrural areas will bring about speedier growth of theeconomy and an increasing ability to pay for serviceson the part of rural communities. Collective actionby all agencies involved in water resources and ruralwater supply and sanitation provision will be profitablein terms of the economic mobilization of materialresources.

4. Management reform

No other aspect of rural water supply and sanita-tion in the region has been more influential in limitingthe benefits of past investments in the sector than de-fects in management structure. Operation and main-tenance of completed schemes have rarely received theattention they deserve and failures are traceable to thelack of planning of institutional frameworks, adminis-trative procedures and technical and financial mechan-isms as well as to the neglect of public relations andother social factors.

All countries will have to devote special attentionto the managerial reforms which are necessary to en-

sure the continued viability of all projects duringplanning and after their construction is completed.State, provincial and local authorities will have toprovide the levels of management essential for successand resources will have to be made available to them.Future investments must continue to yield optimumbenefits throughout the design life of projects if thereis to be any hope of serving all people by 1990.

5. International co-operation

A much greater proportion of the global externalaid than in the past needs to be directed towards assis-ting countries in the Asia and Pacific region to formu-late and implement national programmes for watersupply and sanitation to meet Decade targets. Anawareness of the magnitude of the problem and direc-tion on feasible approaches have been provided byinternational organizations acting for multilateral andbilateral aid-providing agencies. Better co-ordinationof external inputs is required.

The United Nations and its specialized agenciesare playing a leading role in extending water supplyand sanitation systems throughout the region. The co-ordinating role for such activity has been assigned toUNDP, with the Resident Representative acting as thefocus for international co-operation at the nationallevel. WHO continues to provide the technical servicefor all programmes of environmental health and oftenthrough it external aid is channelled to rural watersupply and sanitation. With its declared objective of"Health for all by the year 2000", WHO is committedto supporting primary health care programmes inwhich rural water supply and sanitation form an inte-gral part. UNICEF is increasing its traditional in-volvement in rural water supply and sanitation. Inthe ESCAP region there is also an inter-agency taskforce for water for Asia and the Pacific, which is aco-ordinating body among United Nations agencies,used to exchange information and follow up on theUnited Nations Water Conference.

The ESCAP Committee on Natural Resourcescould assist in achieving the regional objectives of theDrinking Water Supply and Sanitation Decade by en-dorsin™ the r>rincin!e of including "revisions for ruralwater supply and sanitation wherever feasible in waterresources development projects and integrated ruraldevelopment projects. Acceptance of the small-scalewater project approach for rural areas would be animportant step towards this objective. Resolutions de-tailing positive recommendations on how best to sup-port these broad proposals would embody many of theessential themes of the United Nations Water Confer-ence on the use of water resources.


ffl. INTEGRATED OPTIMUM DEVELOPMENT OFDELTAIC AND UPLAND PORTIONS OF

A RIVER BASIN(E/ESCAP/NR. 7/3)

THE

Note by the secretariat

The first Regional Technical Conference on FloodControl held in 1951 emphasized that flood controlwas fundamentally a part of unified river basin deve-lopment, from which it could not be divorced. Atsubsequent regional conferences on water resources,full consideration was given to the various aspects ofplanning for water resources development in riverbasins, such as flood control, irrigation, power genera-tion and soil conservation. In the relevant studies, theriver basin was considered in general and emphasiswas laid on the methodology of planning and on con-crete questions of technical engineering.

It was soon realized that special attention had tobe paid to the downstream parts of a river basin, inparticular to the deltaic areas, because of the specialhydrological problems encountered there and becauseof the high economic significance of the large deltasin the ESCAP region. As early as 1960, at the FourthRegional Conference on Water Resources, the problemof floods in deltaic areas was discussed in depth andit was decided to hold a symposium on flood controland reclamation, including utilization and developmentof deltaic areas.

The first symposium on deltas, held in 1963, con-sidered the natural framework, the stage of develop-ment and the possibilities and problems of furtherdevelopment with respect to flood control, watermanagement, soil improvement, agricultural practicesand rural structure in deltaic areas of the ESCAPregion. This was followed by a second delta sympo-sium in 1969 which examined in greater detail: (a)water management with emphasis on salinity controland drainage, including flood control; (b) planning anddesign of tidal embankments; and (c) reclamation ofmarshes, lagoons and tidal land. Finally, a third deltasymposium was organized in 1977 which concentratedon the development of deltaic areas in semi-arid andarid regions and on the development of marshes, la-goons and tidal land in humid tropical areas.

Discussions at these symposia indicated that del-tas possess a high potential for intensive economicdevelopment, in many cases exceeding that of the up-stream portions of the river basin. However, certainproblems must be solved in order to realize the full

•This paper was prepared by Professor A. Volker, Rijkswatcrstaat(State Public Works), The Hague, Netherlands, at the request of theESCAP secretariat.

benefits from such potential. Some of these problemsconcern supply of water and possible regulation fromupstream, the size of the river floods and possible floodcontrol upstream, the quality of the water and soil con-servation upstream. Indeed, there exists an intimaterelationship between the interests of the delta occu-pants and those in the upstream parts of the river basinin the sense that it is the delta which is the dependentparty. In some respects, those interests are conflicting;the major problem, therefore, is to resolve such con-flicting interests in a manner which would yield theoptimum benefits from the development of the wholeriver basin.

The following paper provides a good summary ofthe main problems usually encountered in the develop-ment of the deltaic and upland portions of a river basinto achieve optimum benefits. It correctly points outthat piecemeal and independent development of partsof a river basin will lead not only to difficult problemsbut to a reduction of the potential optimum benefitswhich can be obtained from the basin. What is calledfor, therefore, is an integrated approach to the develop-ment of the water resources of a river basin by meansof which alternative schemes of development wouldbe formulated and their corresponding economic, socialand environmental impacts evaluated. Possibly, withthe use of systems analysis, the appropriate develop-ment scheme can be selected on the basis of certainobjective criteria.

INTRODUCTION

1. Natural characteristics of the deltaic andupland portions of a river basin

When going down from the highest points of ariver basin to the place where the river debouches intothe receiving basin, a more or less gradual change ofthe natural features is encountered in such matters astopography, the pattern and configuration of the riverchannels, the river flow and the nature of the soils ofthe hills and the river valleys. In this respect, thedominant feature is a decrease in the downstreamdirection of the relief of the lands and also of theslope of the river channel.

An essential feature from the point of view ofhydraulics which is closely associated with the gradualchange in channel slope is the pattern of the riverchannels (fig. 1). While in the upper and middle


middle reaches tributary-head reaches

general landelevation

M.S.L.

d e l t al o n g i t u d i n a l s e c t i o n

Figure 1. Pattern of channels in a river basin

reaches the main stem is augmented by tributaries, theriver, approaching the flat coastal strip, splits up intoa number of branches or distributaries. The pointwhere this occurs is called the apex and the delta hasbeen defined as that part of the downstream reach ofa river with the adjacent land areas deposited by theriver which is situated downstream from the apex. Thisdefinition will also be used in this report.

The ability to form a channel and to split up intobranches has not yet been explained on physicalgrounds. It must be related in some way to the fun-damental law of the conveyance of water and sedi-ments with a minimum amount of energy but a quan-tification cannot be made. The fact remains, however,and has dictated to a large extent the developmentpattern of human society.

In the deltaic portion of a river, land and channelslopes are extremely small. For the gross slope, de-fined as the ratio between the land elevation at theapex above mean sea level (MSL) and the distance

from this point to the coastline, figures are found ran-ging between 5 x 10"4 (0.5 m per km) and 1 x 10-5 (0.01m per km). Figures for some of the large deltas inthe ESCAP region are given below.

Indus 1 x 10-4

Irrawaddy 5 x 10~5

Mekong 3 x 1O5

Pearl River 3 x 10"5

Red River 9xl0"5

Natural levees and backswamps are features com-mon to the river valleys and deltas. They developduring flood periods when the river water overtops thebanks and sediments are deposited on the land. Indeltas, in general, the height of the crest of the naturallevees decreases from the apex in the downstreamdirection and the texture of the soil changes fromsandy to finer material. In the river valleys whichborder on hills, there may also be former river ter-races and the soils are generally lighter than in thedeltas (fig. 2).


river terrace

foot ofhills

flood plain

natural levee

<— backswamp =*"

Figure 2. Topography of the river valley and the deltaic portion of a river basin

The hydrologic regime of deltaic areas differs inmany respects from that of the upstream portions ofa river basin. In the latter case the river level andthe discharge in a given gauging station are governedby the rainfall on the watershed upstream of that sta-tion and the central problem in "general hydrology"is to estimate the runoff from the rainfall. In a deltathe water levels and the discharges are governed bythe boundary conditions at the two ends: the waterlevel and the discharge (the "upland discharge") atthe apex and the water levels of the recipient basin.

c o a s t l i n e

The rainfall on the delta plays a minor role. Figure 3illustrates the propagation of the astronomical tides ina delta for low and high upland discharges.

In many deltas embankments have been built toprotect the land areas against flooding by rivers andthe sea. In this way, the hydrologic regime of theland areas can be made to a large extent independentof the regime in the delta channels. "Polders" areembanked areas in which the surface- and ground-water levels are controlled to an economically feasibleextent.

flood flow

H.T.

M«S (Li

L.T.loci low tide levels

tidal reachhigh upland flow

' tidal reach ^low upland flow

Figure 3. Water levels in a delta as governed by the upland discharge and the tidal levels


actual sea level

M.S.L. M.S.L.

predictableastronomical tide

set-up

Figure 4. Storm surge: superposition of the set-up caused by the wind on the astronomical tide

The deltas along the northern coasts of the Bayof Bengal and the Pacific coasts of Japan are exposedto storm surges caused by cyclones or typhoons. Owingto landward winds, a high water level is generatedwhich is superimposed on the astronomical tides (fig.4). In this way, abnormally high sea levels are gen-erated which form a threat to the low-lying coastalareas, especially when there is simultaneous occur-rence of river floods.

Delta channels debouching into seas and oceansare exposed to intrusion of sea water. Depending onthe upland discharge, the water in the river channelsmay be saline or brackish many tens of kilometres up-stream of the coastline. This feature, which is veryimportant for the environmental conditions in the delta,will be considered in greater detail in section B inrelation to the hydrology of the river basin.

2. Characteristics of deltas in the ESCAP regionin relation to the river basin

Some of the largest river basins and deltas in theworld are found in the ESCAP region. One such deltain India and Bangladesh is commanded jointly by theGanges, the Brahmaputra and the Meghna rivers. Thetotal catchment area of these rivers is around 1.5million km2 and the average annual flow 34,500 m3/sec. If the area south of the Ganges, Padma, Meghnaand east of the Bagharhati Hooghly is considered asthe present delta, the area is around 50,000 km2. In-cluding the upstream areas presenting characteristicsas "former deltas", the figure would be more than100,000 km2.

Other large deltas in the ESCAP region are form-ed by the Indus River in Pakistan, the Godavari, Krish-na and Cauvery rivers in India, the Irrawaddy Riverin Burma, the Chao Phya River in Thailand, theMekong River and the Red River in Viet Nam andthe Huang Ho (Yellow), the Yangtsekiang and Pearl

rivers in China. In addition, there are numeroussmaller rivers and deltas.

Practically all deltas in the ESCAP region aredensely populated, with demographic densities rangingfrom 250 to 500 per km2. They are highly productiveand are often designated as the "rice bowls" of thecountries in which they are situated. In many deltas,especially the small deltas of Japan, industrial develop-ment has taken place.

The deltas in the ESCAP region exhibit a greatdiversity with respect to the hydrometeorologic condi-tions and the degree of hydraulic and economic deve-lopment. Table 12 shows the typical features of del-taic areas.

While the delta of the Indus River is situated inan arid zone, the other large deltas mentioned aboveare situated in the humid tropical zone or in the sub-tropical zone. As stated earlier, some of the deltas areexposed to storm surges.

With respect to the water resources developmentof the deltas in the ESCAP region (degree of protec-tion against river and sea floods, drainage and irriga-tion of the land areas, supply of fresh water etc.), con-siderable variations exist among the various deltas.This is partly due to the differences in hydro-meteoro-logical conditions and partly to the economic develop-ment of the river basin and the country of which theyform a part. Whereas in all deltas coastal embank-ments have been built to protect the coastal zoneagainst flooding with sea water at high tide, the pro-tection against river floods differs from one delta toanother.

Most of the deltas of the ESCAP region possessmany possibilities for further exploitation of theirgreat natural potential. In this respect, the hydrologicdevelopment of the upper portions of the river basinplays an important role. It is the object of this paperto highlight the salient aspects of this relation.

Part two: •JVorking papers 49

Table 12. Typical features of deltaic areas

Specific natural feature advantage Inherent drawback Remedy

1. Dcltais areas arc level areas(flat, horizontal)

2. Since they are at the down-stream end, water is suppliedfrom the entire catchment

3. Soils are generally fine-grained(heavy)

4. Ground-water table is high atshallow depth below surface

5. Network of water courses isalways filled with water

6. Deltas arc the outfalls of thehinterland to the sea

Depth of surface and groundwater can be controlled

Relative abundance of water

Good water retention capacity;water storage in the soil

Water supply to the root zone bycapillarity

Easy communications in earlystages of development

Large ports and cities: Rotterdam,Tokyo, Calcutta, Cairo etc.

Exposed to flooding by the riversand the sea

Effect of water abstraction andwater pollution upstream

Soils may be difficult to till andto drain

Depth may be too shallow; water-logging and possible soil saliniza-tion

In later stages the river channelsform obstructions in the roadsystems

Silting up of harbours; badfoundation conditions

Flood control upstream and floodprotection on location

Storage in the delta

Subsurface field drains withshallow spacing

Horizontal and vertical drainage

Infrastructure of integratedsystems of road and watertransport

Periodical dredging necessary;pile foundations

3. Nature of die development problems of me deltaicand upland portions of a river basin

Historically, man did not wait until full hydrau-lic and economic development of the upstream por-tions of the river basin had taken place before occupy-ing the deltaic areas. There is archeological evidencethat in the third to sixth centuries the north-westernpart of the present Mekong delta (between Rach GiaLong Xuyen) was occupied and provided with canalsforming a part of the Funan Empire. The reclama-tion of other parts of this delta, however, was post-poned until the end of the nineteenth century aid tookplace from the east. The older deltaic areas of theGanges-Brahmaputra-Meghna system were already cul-tivated in the fourteenth century and reclamation ofthe recent delta started towards the end of the eigh-teenth century, following the natural extension of thedelta. It seems that the natural advantages of deltaswere recognized in a rather early stage of history anda concentration of the population in these areas oc-curred to an even greater extent than upstream.

In the early stages of occupancy, man settled onthe natural levees of the present and former river chan-nels, where the depth of flooding is small and cropsother than paddy can be grown. If higher producti-vity, higher cropping intensity and crop diversificationare to be achieved, the need for better water control,better accessibility and settlement in the backswampswill arise.

The hydrologic aspect of the development prob-lems of the deltaic and upland portions of a riverbasin is related to the effect of changes in the hydro-logic regime of the river basin on the conditions inthe delta. These changes may be in the field of ero-sion control (terracing, silt arresters, reforestation),reservoirs for various purposes (flood control, power,

irrigation, water supply etc.), diking of flood plains,withdrawal of water, disposal of polluted effluents etc.As will be shown in sections B and C, these changesdirectly affect the conditions downstream, such as thesize of the floods, the saline water intrusion, the mini-mum flow and water quality and other environmentalfeatures.

Changes in the hydrologic regime of the upstreamportion of a river basin may be beneficial or detrimen-tal for the conditions in the delta. In the latter case, asexperience has shown, there have been many attempts tofind legal grounds for prohibitive regulations or claimsfor indemnification. In this respect, the legislation inmost countries is very sketchy and virtually non-exis-tent in the international community.

Master plans aiming at a balanced developmentof the upper portions of river basins are becoming acommon practice in many ESCAP countries. Thereare fewer plans for a balanced development of thedeltaic areas, although for deltaic areas where hydrau-lic works in one part of the delta may have repercus-sions on the hydrologic conditions in other parts, theneed is even greater. In all deltas actual developmenthas so far been piecemeal.

An example of an attempt to arrive at an inte-grated optimum development of the upper portionsand the deltaic portion of a river basin is illustratedby the studies of the Mekong Committee. Althougha final master plan has not yet been agreed upon, thestudies carried out so far on the general developmentof the river basin and on the agricultural potentialand requirements with respect to the hydrologicalconditions upstream of the delta have provided thebasic data to formulate a plan which from a generaleconomic point of view could be considered as theoptimum one.


A. ECONOMIC FRAMEWORK

1. Economic significance of deltas compared withthe other parts of a river basin

Deltaic areas possess a number of natural advan-tages for economic development which are not foundor do not occur to the same extent in the other por-tions of the river basin. These advantages, however,art partly offset by inherent drawbacks (table 12).

The generally heavy soils in deltaic areas have ahigh water retention capacity and also in many casesa high natural fertility. They may, however, be dif-ficult to till and to drain.

The lands in deltaic areas are virtually level lands.This makes it possible, in principle, to control thedepth of the surface water above the surface in thecase of rice production and the depth of the groundwater below the surface in case of a dry root crop.In the latter case, the ground-water table may be toohigh and a subsurface drainage system is required toadjust the depth. The absence of natural gradientsmakes it difficult to install an adequate drainage systemand the same applies to irrigation facilities.

Since deltaic areas are situated at the downstreamends of the river basin, they receive in the naturalstate a maximum supply of water. However, deltaicareas also receive flood waters because of their lowelevation and in the absence of appropriate measures,extensive flooding occurs.

Deltas are the outfalls of the hinterland and it isthrough the ports located on the estuaries of a mainriver branch that the river basin is in communicationwith other countries. Large cities such as Tokyo, Cal-cutta, Rangoon, Bangkok and Karachi are locatedeither in or near deltas of major rivers. Many har-bours in these locations tend to silt up and, because ofthe presence of thick layers with a small bearing capa-city in the subsoil, considerable problems of founda-tions for structures are encountered.

In conclusion, it can be stated that deltaic areaspossess a great potential for intensive economic deve-lopment but certain problems have to be solved in orderto realize the full benefits of such potential. This fea-ture is more pronounced in the economic developmentof deltaic areas than in the development of the otherparts of the river basin.

2. Relation between the economies of the deltasand the other parts of a river basin

Deltaic and upland portions of a river basin havedifferent possibilities and limitations for developmentof agriculture and development of industries, accordingto the distribution of the natural resources.

The deltas in the humid tropical zone of theESCAP region by virtue of soils and topography aremost suitable for growing a crop of rice during the wetseason; with the increasing need for more production,better water control is required, as well as irrigationfacilities for growing a second crop during the dryseason. In the upland portions of a river basin, withlighter soils and often better drainage possibilities, dryroot crops can be raised next to rice. In a certainstage of development both parts require water duringthe dry season and a conflict of interests may arise.

The optimum location of industries in a river basindepends, besides the type of industry, on many factors,such as: the availability of skilled manpower; theavailability of raw materials, energy and water; theavailability of communication facilities; and the mag-nitude of the measures that may be required for popu-lation control. Thus, in general, industries are founddistributed throughout the river basin. There is, how-ever, at present a tendency for industries processingbulk goods with imported raw materials to establishthemselves close to the harbours on the coast to avoidcosts of transshipment and to dispose of waste pro-ducts cheaply.

In many developed deltas, the distribution of theeconomies of the river basin has led to a concentra-tion of the population in the delta. A striking examplein this respect is the basin of the Rhine in north-west-ern Europe, where one of the most important industrialareas in the world, the Ruhr area, is to be found. Thelocation in the middle portion of the basin was dicta-ted by the presence of a suitable labour force, energy(coal) and the river, which is quite suitable for naviga-tion. The total river basin covers 180,000 km2, ofwhich one ninth (20,000 km2) can be considered as thedeltaic reach. However, a total of 40 million live inthis area. The port of Rotterdam, the largest in theworld, is also located in this delta. Its harbour, ori-ginally at some 30 km from the coastline, is now gra-dually expanding into the North Sea.

B. WATER CONSERVATION

1. Water uses in the deltaic and upstreamportions of a river basin

Deltas and other parts of a river basin share theneed for large amounts of water of good quality for agreat number of purposes. Sections 1 and 2 will dealwith certain particular uses, i.e., water required fornavigation, water required for repulsion of sea-waterintrusion into open estuaries and water required forquality control in general.

One of the natural advantages of deltaic areas liesin the fact that the water levels in the river channelsare governed by the upland discharge as well as by the


Coastline

M. S. L

M"urbulent mixing

Figure 5. Sea-water intrusion into an open estuary

Uplanddischarge(Q)

tidal levels at sea. In the coastal zone (fig. 3), thetidal effects are predominant and the water levels andthe depths available for navigation are hardly affectedby the upland discharge. Therefore there is no needto maintain a certain minimum flow in the down-stream channels of a delta in the interest of navigation.

A very special need in a deltaic area to maintaina certain minimum outflow to the sea is related to thephenomenon of intrusion of sea water into open es-tuaries. This phenomenon is caused by the differencein density of the sea water and the fresh water of theriver (around 2.5 per cent). The heavier sea waterslides along the bed of the estuary in an upstreamdirection under the fresh river water (fig. 5). Tf thereare no tides and if the estuary has regular cross-sec-tions, the intrusion assumes the shape of a wedge witha more or less distinct interface between the fresh andthe saline water. If the upland discharge remains con-stant, the saline water will be at rest, with the freshwater flowing in a seaward direction.

The length L (fig. 5) over which saline intrusionoccurs in a given estuary depends on the magnitudeof the upland discharge Q, L being inversely propor-tional to the square of Q. Thus, saline intrusion canbe pushed back by increasing the upland discharge.The intrusion length L is also highly affected by thedepth of the channel; other conditions being equal, the

length increases proportionally to the fourth power ofthe depth and thus dredging operations in estuarychannels increase the saline intrusion.

In the more general case of a sea with tides, ir-regular river profiles and tidal basins (such as harboursand creeks), the mixing at the interface becomes sointense that the stratification of the water disappears.Although the salinity near the bottom of the channelwill always be higher than near the surface, a meansalinity C (figure 6) can be defined as the averagesalinity over the profile in each station along the river("mixed estuary").

As yet there is no generally applicable method ofanalysing the sea-water intrusion into an open estuary.It is not possible to predict the horizontal salinity dis-tribution in an estuary for a given estuary geometry,a given tidal variation and a given upland discharge.Various methods and approaches have been proposed(Rijkswaterstaat Communications 1976), but all theformulae contain parameters to be determined empiri-cally from actual observations in the field under a widerange of upland discharges and tidal amplitudes. If agood simulation of the salinity distribution is obtained,the formulae can be used for interpolation and to thesome extent for extrapolation, but the parameter valuescannot be applied in other situations.

-»• x

m Q

Figure 6. Salinity distribution in an open estuary


The damage caused by sea-water intrusion intoopen estuaries is of a different nature. The salinity ata given station along the river may be so high, es-pecially during low-flow periods, that direct use of theriver water at the banks is unacceptable and that in-takes for irrigation, domestic and industrial water haveto be shifted upstream beyond the saline reach (fig. 7).By seepage through to the subsoil to embanked areas,the ground water and hence the surface water maybecome brackish. The salinity of the water also affectsthe ecological systems in the estuaries and the landareas.

Sea-water intrusion occurs in all open estuaries ofthe deltas of the ESCAP region and has been studiedin many cases, such as the Mekong River, the ChaoPhya River, the Irrawaddy River, the Ganges and itsdistributaries and the estuary of the Euphrates andTigris rivers. During low-flow periods, the saline effectis felt in all cases many tens of kilometres upstreamof the coastline. There is no case so extreme as theone of the Gambia River in West Africa (Sanmugana-than and Abernethy), where during periods of mini-mum flow (5 m3/sec) the saline effect (1.5 g/litre) wasfelt as far as 235 km upstream of the mouth.

would shift as follows (United Nations, Mekong Com-mittee 1974):

Increase: 500 mE

1,000

2,500 ,

'/sec

,,

Shift 0.85

2.25

5.00

km

km

km

The figures for the shifts refer to the average of thefigures for the six branches through which the freshwater flows to the sea.

The most drastic measure to prevent saline intru-sion in an open estuary consists of constructing a damat the mouth of the estuary. This measure, which hasbeen applied on a large scale in Japan and the Re-public of Korea, will be discussed in section B.5 inconnexion with estuarine storage.

Corrective measures of salinity control consist offlushing or rinsing of canals and other water coursesin embanked areas that are exposed to salt-water in-trusion. Fresh water is admitted at upstream pointson the river beyond the saline reach and the brackisheffluent is discharged in downstream points on thesaline reach of the estuary.

sea

limit saline intrusion Anewintake

additionalcanal length

new l i m i t

Figure 7. Shifting of intakes of fresh water in an upstream direction due to saline intrusion

2. Preventive and corrective measures for waterquality control in deltaic areas

By increasing the upland discharge in an estuary,the saline-water intrusion is pushed back. This canbe carried out by release of water from upstream reser-voirs or by diversion of water from another branch inthe delta during the low-flow season. Compared withmany other water uses, a much larger amount of wateris required to push the saline limit in a downstreamdirection. This is illustrated by figure 8, where for theBassac River, one of the branches of the Mekong River,the relation is indicated between the salinity along theriver and the up-land discharge. On the basis of ananalysis of recorded salinity, it has been estimated thatwith an increase of the total flow to the delta (dis-charge at Phnom Penh) the salinity distribution curves

The surface waters in the canals of embankedareas in deltas are normally stagnant and all sorts ofwastes accumulate there. Flushing and rinsing of thesecanals is also necessary for quality parameters otherthan salinity.

3. Coastal and upstream storage

In the context of this report, coastal storage willbe defined as the storage of water in tidal embay-ments such as estuaries, sea gulfs and lagoons. Stor-age of water in coastal lakes, depressions and otherlow-lying coastal land areas will also be includedunder this heading.

In all these cases, the reservoir area is separatedfrom the sea by a barrier or an enclosing dam equip-


50K NaCll i t r e 2 Q

i

10

5

2

1

0.50.3

^r—\ \

\

•

—

— • — « ,

• ^

•

•

— - —

— km 10

_ km 19.5

. km hj,

1,000 2,000 3,000 U.000 5,000 6,000 7,000

Figure 8. Relation between saline intrusion into the Bassac River and the uplanddischarge at Phnom Penh

PP

ped with sluice gates. There is an inflow of freshwater of a river branch and excess water is dischargedto the sea (fig. 9). By this means, the water in thereservoir which is still brackish at the moment ofclosure of the barrier gradually becomes fresh. Thefeasibility of coastal reservoirs was considered duringthe fourth session of the Committee on Natural Re-sources of ESCAP in 1977 (United Nations, ESCAP,1978).

a relatively large surface area which is often availableas an area of the tidal embayment. The large surfacearea of coastal and estuarine reservoirs, however, re-sults in a relatively large volume of evaporation lossfrom the lake surface.

For the water supply to the delta, coastal and up-stream storage can, in certain respects, be consideredas alternative solutions. One of the factors governing

seasluices

inflow of freshriver water

Figure 9. Principle of a coastal reservoir

Storage of water can also be arrived at by theconstruction of dams in the upstream portions of theriver basin either on the main stem or on tributaries.This form of storage may also serve the deltaic portionof the river basin.

The two forms of storage have their specific char-acteristics. Coastal reservoirs are usually located inlevel areas. This implies that except in special cases,1

the water level can fluctuate only within a narrowrange, compared with the usually large variation ofwater levels in upstream reservoirs. To store a givenvolume of water, coastal reservoirs must therefore have

the choice between the two is the cost of storing onecubic metre of water. Of the very few studies thathave been made on this question, mention can be madeof the results of a study in the United Kingdom onthe costs of various forms of storage in pennies perm3 at 1977 price levels (ibid.).

Method Location Pennies per m3

1 The Plover Cover scheme in Hong Kong.

Estuarine storage

Upstream storage

Distillation

Reversed osmosis

Morecambe BayDec EstuaryWash Bay (phase 1)North-west EnglandSouth-east England

—

—

6.04.8

16.73.89.2

60.020.0


Both coastal and upstream reservoirs can servemultiple purposes. As to the former, additional bene-fits consist of:

(a) Improvement of the protection against stormsurges by creating a shorter length of coastline;

(b) Elimination of the intrusion of saline waterinto the areas adjacent to the reservoir;

(c) Possible improvement of the drainage condi-tions of the areas.

In addition to water storage, upstream reservoirsoffer other well-known possibilities, such as generationof power, flood control and navigation.

Indirect additional benefits are more difficult toaccount for in the comparison between coastal and up-stream storage. One of these is the benefit for thesupply of water to the delta of having a reservoir onlocation. If the water has to come from upstreamreservoirs, the time of travel of the water through theopen channel must be taken into consideration andreleases from the upstream reservoir must be based onforecasts of precipitation and demand. This may leadto an imbalance between supply and demand andhence to a less efficient use of water than in the caseof coastal storage.

4. Water pollution aspects and requirements ofminimum flow in the various river reaches

Upstream pollution of the river water affects thequality of the water reaching the delta. As long astraditional agriculture was the prevailing economic ac-tivity in the river basins of the ESCAP region, waterpollution was no problem. The assimilative capacityof the river was sufficient to absorb the biologicallydegradable waste products. In the delta itself, withthe great surface of water courses exposed to the air,a further purification took place (United Nations,ECAFE, 1973).

A different situation is found in river basins withother economic activities, such as chemical industries,paper and pulp factories and bio-industries. Pollu-tants are then produced, consisting of compounds ofsubstances or of elements such as ammonia, iron,chromium, lead, copper and cadmium. Many of thesepollutants are toxic and not or hardly oxidizable ordegradable. The same applies to substances like pes-ticides and mineral oils and to trace pollutants likephenols and heavy metals (e.g., mercury).

Various international organizations have establish-ed standards for surface water in relation to the useof the water. Application of such standards to thewater reaching the delta implies that in the delta itself

no further disposal of non-degradable waste productscan be allowed, the water from upstream being alreadyloaded with pollutants to the maximum permissibledegree. The delta on the other hand has the advan-tage of being close to the sea, if disposal of pollutantsin the sea is acceptable at all.

Coastal reservoirs in deltas possess a great assimi-lative capacity for oxidizable pollutants because of thelong residence time of the water. This capacity, how-ever, is greatly reduced if the water supplied to thereservoir from upstream contains a high percentage ofnitrogen and phosphorus. These substances may notbe harmful for many water uses but promote an abun-dant growth of algae (eutrophication). The degrada-tion of the remnants of the algae, which consist of or-ganic matter, requires so much oxygen that the watercannot assimilate any more pollution and that biolo-gical life (fishes etc.) disappears.

For a given pollution load, the concentration ofthe pollutants decreases with increasing river discharge.To achieve this dilution effect, however, requires themaintenance of a minimum flow in a river channel sothat the permissible concentrations are not exceeded.This applies to all river reaches. Maintenance of aminimum flow is also necessary in view of other in-terests, such as the environment, river morphology andwater supply. Determination of this minimum flow isa delicate problem, the solution of which is highlydependent on the local situation. In any case, allow-ance has to be made for the special conditions andinterests of the deltaic portion of the river basin, wherebesides the factors mentioned in this section a mini-mum outflow of river water to the sea is required inorder to control the saline-water intrusion (section B.I).

With respect to water quality and minimum flow,the deltas and the other parts of a river basin havedivergent interests and conflicts are likely to occur. Ifboth parts are situated within the frontiers of thesame country, an agreement can be arrived at throughthe river basin authority or the provincial or centralgovernment.

In the case of "international" river basins, it maybe much more difficult to find a solution since pertin-ent "regulations" in international law do not exist (seesection D.2).

A striking example is that of the basin of theRhine River. The river is the navigable waterway ofa number of important industrial areas and is perhapsthe most polluted of the larger rivers of the world,especially with toxic substances. Five countries sharethe upstream portion of the basin with the deltaic areasituated in a sixth one. It took some 20 years toarrive at an agreement on a limitation of the toxic


substances but it was found much more difficult toagree on a limitation of the salt load. This load con-sists mainly of sodium chloride (NaCl) as a waste pro-duct of potassium mining upstream. This load as anexternal supply adds to the other "internal" sources ofsalt in the delta. The concentrations caused by theexternal load only are around the tolerance limits sothat any further addition leads to concentrations thatmake the surface water in the delta less suitable forcertain purposes, such as production water in certainindustries, irrigation water in hothouses and domesticuse. An agreement could only be concluded if theprinciple of "the polluter pays" were discarded. Thepresent treaty foresees that the two countries whichdischarge salt in the river upstream each pay one thirdof the extra costs of production resulting from a reten-tion of the salt upstream and that the interested deltaiccountry pays the remaining one third.

5. Integrated water conservation policy in theupstream and downstream portions of a river basin

It can be concluded from the previous section thatan intimate relation exists between water conservation,including water quality control in the deltaic and up-stream portions of a river basin. An integrated policytakes this relation into account and aims at making"the best use" of the water available in the riverbasin and the possibilities for water conservation inthe various parts of the river basin. The question isthen, what is the criterion for this "best use" or "op-timum development"? This will be considered in sec-tion D.I; here only some technical and economic fac-tors will be identified.

Storage of water destined for the entire river basincan be achieved by either storage in the head reachesof the river or by a combination of storage upstreamand storage in the coastal zone. There are manyexamples of the former: Euphrates-Karun River, IndusRiver, Krishna River, Chao Phya River and the en-visaged Mekong River basin development. In mostcases these are multiple-purpose projects aiming at,besides water conservation, power generation and floodcontrol. An important element as far as storage isconcerned, is the allocation of water between the up-stream and the deltaic areas. Such an allocation maybe based on purely economic grounds, considering thereturns of a unit volume of water in the two parts ofthe river basin. As mentioned earlier, a special re-quirement for water in deltaic areas is salinity control,which demands high flows of water; the economic jus-tification for that use lies primarily in the eliminationof the damage that would otherwise occur in agricul-tural, industrial and domestic uses of water. Next tothe economic factors, considerations of regional deve-lopment, nature conservation and political factors mayalso have a bearing on the water allocation.

The allocation problem is particularly delicate inthe case of "international" river basins, where it isrelated to the pollution problem.

There are only a few cases in the ESCAP regionwhere storage reservoirs exist in the head reaches of theriver basin together with a significant storage in thecoastal zone of the river basin (Japan and the Re-public of Korea). In principle, conjunctive use ofboth types of reservoirs is then possible. The idealmeteorological conditions, where periods of abundanceof water and periods with a deficit differ for the del-taic and upland portions of a river basin, will neverbe found. Since, in general, both reservoirs also havea flood control function, the regulation curves forreservoir operation should be carefully harmonized tothe extent possible in order to avoid a clash of in-terests. In one case, in the ESCAP region, the initialfilling of a reservoir after completion and the atten-dant reduction of the discharge to the delta caused anincrease o fthe sea-water intrusion so that the waterin the estuary which was used for irrigation becamebrackish. The result was considerable damage to or-chards in that area.

C. FLOOD CONTROL

1. Floods in the deltaic and upstream reaches ofa river and methods of flood control

As stated already in the introduction, deltaic areasare exposed to floods from two sides: the river andthe sea. Obviously, the nature of the river floods isof significance for both the deltaic and the upstreamreaches of the river while the nature of the sea floodsis of importance only for the most downstream reaches.Measures upstream affect the flood conditions of thedeltaic river reaches.

River floods may be flash or gentle. Flash floodsare characterized by rapid rises of the river level (morethan 0.3 to 0.5 m per day), sharp peaks and a quickrecession (fig. 10). Gentle floods present a gradualincrease of the river stage, a flat flood peak, some-times with a duration of a few weeks, and a verygradual depletion during the whole dry season. Flashfloods are typical for small river basins with steepslopes and many impervious watersheds. Gentle floodsoccur in large river basins with gentle slopes and con-tribute considerably to the river discharge by outflowfrom ground water. The large river basins like theGanges-Brahmaputra-Meghna, Irrawaddy, Chao Phyaand Mekong all present gentle floods. However, thefloods of the Red River in the northern part of VietNam are of a flashy nature.

From the point of view of land utilization andflood conditions, flash floods present more problems


Figure 10. Flash and gentle floods

than gentle floods. In the ESCAP region, local vari-eties of rice have been developed that can grow inareas which are inundated by the water from the riversprovided that the water does not rise too quickly. Inthe zones of deep flooding (2 to 4 m) in the upperportion of a delta and in the river valley, a specialvariety of rice is used, the so-called floating rice. Thisspecies can grow in depths of water up of 4 m, pro-vided that the water rises not faster than 5-10 cm perday. If there are flash floods, cultivation is only pos-sible if flood protection has been provided.

A river with flash floods is more difficult to con-trol than a river with gentle floods. This applies tobank protection, channel morphology and also to theeffects of embanking such a river (section C.3).

In deltaic areas which are still expanding furtherinto the sea, the bottom of the river channels showsa tendency to rise, causing a progressive rise of theflood levels. This is due to the lengthening of the rivercourse and the subsequent decrease of the hydraulicgradient and the sediment transporting capacity. Anexample is found in the flood records at Bangkok inthe period 1915-1953, which show a significant riseof 1.1 cm/year on the average (Kanchanalak, 1969).

The rise of the river bed starts in the lowest riverreaches and extends in an upstream direction.

Flood control measures in the upper portions ofa river basin may consist of erosion control (terrac-ing, silt arresting, afforestation), flood detention withreservoirs, embanking and channel improvement (cut-offs, diversions, widening). They all may affect theflood conditions in the areas downstream of the floodcontrol works, including, of course, the deltaic area.

Flood control in the deltaic area can also beachieved by structural measures on location, such asembanking, channel improvement and estuary control,as well as by non-structural measures such as floodplain management.

2. Effect of upstream flood control works onthe hydrologic regime in the delta

Flood control works in the upstream portions ofa river basin may have both adverse and beneficial sideeffects on the hydrologic conditions in the delta. Theeffect of a certain measure may be positive for onecondition and negative for another.

Flood detention reservoirs may effectively reducethe flood flows reaching the deltaic area by tempor-ary retention of the flood water. However, they alsoretain most of the silt so that downstream channel ero-sion may occur. The reduction of the amount of siltreaching the deltaic area may upset the delicate ba-lance between the constructional forces of the river inthe building-up of the delta and the destructional forcesof the sea. The result may be a smaller growth ofthe delta or even the onset of erosion. The positiveaspect is then a halting of the rise of flood levels result-ing from delta growth. Upstream storage reservoirswhich can augment the low flows to the downstreamareas have, of course, a similar effect.

Erosion control measures in the upstream reachesof a river basin may affect the hydrologic conditions ofthe deltaic areas in a similar way as flood detentionreservoirs.

Large-scale changes in land use of a river basinmay have various repercussions on the runoff from


There still remains the effect of flow constriction. Theoccurrence of flash floods in the Red River in thenorthern part of Viet Nam is one of the reasons whythe delta was embanked at a very early stage of history,perhaps 2000 years ago. On the other hand, the oc-currence of gentle floods in the deltaic and flood plainareas of the Chao Phya River (Thailand) and theMekong River allowed wet rice to be grown in theabsence of flood protection.

The total effect of embanking may be consider-able. In the case of complete embanking of thePampanga flood plains, the maximum level of thehighest recorded flood would rise in the upstreamreaches by 2.5 to 3.5 m, making this type of floodprotection unacceptable. A complete diking of theflood areas in the Mekong delta would increase thelevel of the 100-years' flood by 2.6 m at Phnom Penhand 0.6 m at Sadec some 100 km from the sea. Thefear of a substantial hydraulic side effect of embank-ing has led to the system of open or horse-shoe shapedembankments in the deltaic area of the IrrawaddyRiver in Burma (fig. 13).

4. Integrated flood control policy of upstream anddownstream portions of a river basin

As stated earlier, in occupying the deltaic areas ofthe rivers, man did not wait until flood control mea-sures upstream had been taken which would be bene-ficial for the conditions in the area. In the largerdeltas of south-east Asia, land was used without floodprotection. Embankments were built only in thecoastal strip and in some areas with flash floods.

There were good reasons to postpone further em-banking in deltaic areas until some form of upstreamflood control had been achieved. Apart from the sideeffects mentioned in the previous section, embankingmay completely upset the water management in theareas that were previously exposed to flooding. Inmany deltas the floods supply the necessary supplemen-tal irrigation water during the wet season and therehave been cases where the farmers have cut the em-bankments which were destined to protect the landareas in order to admit the water. Embankments ob-

end openembankment

M.S.L.

extreme floodlevels

landelevation

— M.S.Lc

Figure 13. Principle of open embankments

Embanking may also have an effect on the chan-nel morphology. Before embanking, a part of thesediments carried by the river was entrained to theflood plains, thus contributing to the natural build-upof the land areas. After embanking, the river has tocarry all the sediments. The capacity of the river todo so has also increased because of the increase invelocity and slope. Depending on which factor pre-vails, scouring or silting-up may take place. In mostcases, however, a rise of the river bed has been observ-ed (ICID, 1960c). Even when deepening takes place orwhen by river training silting-up of the river bed tem-porarily is prevented, in the long term the bed willstill rise owing to the natural delta expansion.

struct the drainage of excess water from rainfall afterthe recession of the floods and it is necessary to makea drainage system. This in turn leads to a quickerdisposal of the excess water so that less water is avail-able in the area during the ensuing dry period. Sinceembankments also halt the beneficial flushing of theland areas after the dry season, provisions have to bemade for the removal of accumulated dirt and pollut-ed or brackish water and supply of water from out-side becomes necessary. The adaptation of the tradi-tional farming and water management to new methodsmade possible by the embanking is a time- and fund-absorbing process.

Part two: Working papers SI

< r\

alignmentembankment

Figure 11. Effect of the elimination of the overland flow

that basin. Urbanization is the change that has themost drastic impact on the hydrologic regime. Theeffect on the hydrologic conditions of the deltaic area,however, is small because of the small percentage ofthe river basin that is occupied by urbanized areas.

Flood control works upstream, such as channelimprovement, cut-offs, diversions and embanking, alsoinfluence the floods reaching the deltaic area. Theeffect of large-scale embanking upstream is, in manycases, the most complex and most important one.

3. Effects of embanking

Embanking is considered an economic and simplemeans of flood protection. In most cases, embank-ments can be erected with material available on loca-tion, using manual labour or simple equipment. Em-banking may have several effects on the hydraulic andmorphologic conditions of the river channels and theland areas. Only those effects will be considered here

which are significant for the relation between the worksupstream of a deltaic area and the magnitude of thefloods in that area.

The hydraulic effects of embanking may consistof a rise of the flood level and an increase of thepeak discharge. This is due to the elimination of theoverland flow that occurred before embanking (fig. 11)and the elimination of the storage on the areas thatwere formerly flooded (fig. 12). The increase of thepeak discharge occurs on location and downstream,while the higher flood levels produce a backwatereffect in the upstream direction.

The effect of the elimination of overbank storageis most pronounced in the case of flash floods whereat the time of occurrence of the peak discharge thereis still a considerable lateral inflow. In the case ofgentle floods with peak flows varying little over severalweeks, the lateral inflow finally becomes very smalland the effect of embanking will accordingly be small.

B after embanking

B beforeembanking

Figure 12. Effect of the elimination of the overbank storage


If embanking can be combined with upstreamflood control, a gradual development of the areas tobe protected become possible. In a first stage, onlyextreme floods which are damaging can be reduced byflood detention reservoirs and the normal floods cancontinue their course. With improved facilities fordrainage and irrigation, embankments can be raisedwherever desirable and feasible. These embankmentscan be lower than at places without upstream reten-tion and have fewer side effects. With further gradualdevelopment of the areas, the original system of irriga-tion by flooding can be replaced by controlled irriga-tion and further flooding will be prevented either byproviding more upstream storage or by extending thesystem of low embankments.

In Thailand the deltaic area of the Chao PhyaRiver (the "central plain") offers an example of agradual change from an uncontrolled system to a sys-tem where large parts have already been provided withcontrol of the water management. A first step wasthe construction of a "headwork" at Chainat near theapex of the delta, whereby control of the distributionof the flood waters over the various basins in the deltabecame possible (1957). This was followed by theconstruction of the first multiple-purpose reservoir, theBhumiphol dam, in 1964, and still later by a secondone, the Sirikit dam, in 1973. The development of thedelta has been keeping pace with the gradual improve-ment of upstream flood control and water conserva-tion.

In the studies on the agricultural development withimproved water control in the Mekong river delta(United Nations, Mekong Committee, 1974), the pos-sibilities of reducing the floods arriving in the deltahave played an important role. Thus, the reservoirof Pa Mong can compensate the effects of diking theTrans-Bassac. Pa Mong and Stung Treng together canachieve the same effect in the case of complete diking.

D. POSSIBILITIES FOR INTEGRATEDOPTIMUM DEVELOPMENT OF THE DELTAICAND UPLAND PORTIONS OF A RIVER BASES

1. Criteria and general methodology

As mentioned in sections B.5 and C.4, the down-stream and upstream portions of a river basin shouldbe considered jointly in the development of water con-servation and flood control. The interests of bothportions are compatible in some respects and conflict-ing in others. The problem is that many alternativeschemes can be drawn up which include combinationsof the following elements:

Coastal or upstream reservoirs or a combinationthereof;

Allocation of water in upstream reservoirs betweenthe deltaic and upstream portions of a river basin;

Allocation of empty storage space in upstreamreservoirs for flood control in the delta accordingto specific requirements;

Flood protection in the delta by embanking andother means;

Operation of the coastal and upstream reservoirs;

Water quality standards upstream and in thedelta;

Allocation of water for salinity control;

Diversions of water, especially in the delta;

Choice of areas to be irrigated in the entire riverbasin.

The options are numerous and the various alterna-tive schemes have different impacts on the private andnational economies and on the environmental andsocial conditions. Decision makers have to considerthese impacts and, in addition, to account for politicalfactors, regardless of whether a "national" or an "in-ternational" river basin is concerned. The latter fac-tors may entirely govern the ultimate decision. Yetan objective assessment of the economic impacts ofvarious schemes and a quality ranking of their environ-mental merits is an indispensable tool in the decision-making process.

During the past two decades or so, methods havebeen developed based on systems analysis and com-puter application to select an "optimum" solutionbased on economic criterioa such as cost-benefit ratio,financial feasibility (possibility of repayment) andeconomic feasibility (impact on the gross national pro-duct). Generalized equations have been derived foroptimizing rather simple systems, such as optimumwater allocation for a multiple-purpose reservoir, op-timum area to be irrigated and single reservoir orcombinations of reservoirs.

For large-scale, complex, multiple-purpose waterresources systems like the ones under considerationhere, such a direct approach is not feasible. A divi-sion of the total system into subsystems is necessary,either according to geographical subregions or toeconomic sectors. Next to these submodels, over-allmodels integrating the results of the submodels(management strategy models) or referring to a singleor a few variables (such as water distribution models)are considered. How this is done depends on the par-ticular situation and the views of the model makers.

In the Netherlands, the first results have becomeavailable of a model, Policy Analysis of the WaterManagement of the Netherlands (PAWN), dealing with


the policy analysis of the water management of thatcountry (fig. 14). The model covers the deltaic areaof the Rhine River and those parts of the Netherlandswhere water management is related to that of thedeltaic area. It does not include the river basin properand the amount and quality of the water supplied bythe river are introduced as given quantities varyingwith time ("scenario-assumption")- The chief objec-tive of the model was to design a number of over-allpolicies, assess their impacts on the various sectors ofthe economy and the environment and present theseimpacts in such a way that they become visible andcomparable, helping decision makers in their choicebetween policies.

2. The main problems

In the foregoing sections, the technical problemsencountered in the integrated development of the del-taic and upstream portions of a river basin have beenset forth, as well as the general methodology for iden-tifying optimum development possibilities according toobjective criteria. The problems which, when it comesto decisions, principally involve considerations beyondthe technical and economic sphere, are those of waterallocation from upstream reservoirs in the basin in theinterest of salinity control in the delta, the reservationof upstream storage space in the interest of flood pro-

tection in the delta, the phased development of the twoportions and the organizational and legal aspects ofintegrated development. In addition to this, in indus-trialized river basins there is the problem of the effectof upstream pollution on conditions in the delta.

The problem of phased development has alreadybeen touched upon in relation to flood protection inthe delta (section C.4). The problem presents itself inall sectors of integrated development. The economicimpacts of different timings of the implementation oftechnical works can be evaluated and introduced intothe optimization models. Phased development may bedesirable from the technical and economic point ofview; it may also be imposed in a quite different direc-tion by requirements of regional development and re-lated priorities.

For integrated development to be achieved, theremust be an organizational framework and almost al-ways a legal framework. The organizational frame-work may take different forms; a national water au-thority, a river basin authority or a joint commissionwith representatives from the deltaic and the upstreamsportion of the river basin. A legal framework is re-quired to endorse the competence of the organizationand to ensure the implementation of an agreed or im-posed integrated scheme.

SCENARIO

ASSUMPTIONS

SYSTEMASSUMPTIONS

POLICY

DESIGN

ITERATIONSENSITIVITY ANALYSIS

A PROMISING

POLICY

ASSESSMENT

OF IMPACTS

COMPARISON

OF POLICIES

DECISION-

MAKING

PREFERRED

POLICY

Figure 14. Stages of policy analysis (PAWN)


In many countries inside and outside the ESCAPregion, solutions are being sought for the problems ofsetting up such organizations and one is confrontedwith great difficulties in integrating new organizationswith the existing organizational and legal structures.For this reason, one cannot expect that for the manage-ment of "international" river basins generally accepteddirectives are available.

It is now generally accepted that in the manage-ment of "international" river basins, the interests of allriparian countries should be taken into due account.However, it has become more and more apparent thatin view of the conflicting interests, agreements can onlybe concluded for each case separately, whereby fullconsideration must be given to the sovereign rights ofeach country concerned to develop its own resources.A review of existing agreements, conventions and trea-ties (Colorado, Rhine, Ganges, Niger, Indus etc.) showsindeed that they differ so much with respect to waterallocation, sharing of costs, quality stanndards etc. thatone is still far from discerning directives or commonrules that could be applied to all cases.

E. CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS

Conclusions

The optimum development of a river basin requiresa comprehensive and integrated approach in which dueconsideration should be given to the interrelated in-terests of both the deltaic and the upland portions ofthe basin.

Many deltas in the ESCAP region are still at anearly stage of hydraulic and agricultural development;the further exploitation of their great natural poten-tialities depends a great deal on the proper manage-ment of the water resources of the upland portions ofthe basin. Important considerations include the regu-lation of the river flow for flood control, provision ofminimum flow for salinity control in the delta and theprotection of the quality of the river water in general.

Development of the water resources in the uplandportions of a river basin can have both beneficial andadverse effects on the hydrologic conditions of thedelta. Thus, reservoirs upstream may reduce the floodsreaching the delta and increase the liw flow during dryperiods. However, they also retain the silt which maycause channel erosion downstream and reduce the rateof growth of the delta. Use of river water upstreammay also decrease the amount of water available forthe delta and result in deterioration of the water qua-lity.

Critical problems in the joint development of thetwo portions of the river basin are those of allocationof space in upstream reservoirs for salinity control andalso for flood protection in the delta, the proper phas-

ing in the development of the two portions, and theorganizational and legal aspects of integrated develop-ment. In industrialized river basins, there is also theproblem of the effect of upstream pollution on theconditions in the delta.

Since a great number of alternative schemes anddevelopment options are possible in the joint develop-ment of the deltaic and the upland portions of a riverbasin, the beneficial impacts of which have to be op-timized, the application of methods based on systemsanalysis can be of great help.

However useful, optimization models are no sub-stitute for vision and statesmanship; however, they doshow clearly the hierarchy of tactics, strategy andpolicy in the decision-making process and the objec-tive indicators that can be applied in that process.

Recommendations

The development of river basins should be basedon comprehensive master plans which include thedevelopment of the deltaic portions of the basin.

In the formulation of master plans for integratedriver basin development, various alternatives should beconsidered for the allocation of water between the del-taic area and the upland portion of the river basinwith respect to their economic, environmental and so-cial merits.

When deciding on a high degree of flood protectionin deltas which formerly were exposed to floods, it isnecessary to examine the possibilities of a gradual tran-sition from uncontrolled to controlled conditions byusing a combination of upstream flood retention andthe construction of low embankments in the delta.

Considering the serious problem of sea-water in-trusion in the estuaries of a delta and the overridingimportance of minimizing outflow of river water to thesea to control such intrusion, it is recommended thatESCAP, in co-operation with other appropriate agen-cies, should organize a symposium on the effects of salt-water intrusion on surface- and ground-water suppliesand measures to control such intrusion.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

International Commission on Irrigation and Drainage.Development of deltaic areas (Question 21; 1 vo-lume + general report). New Delhi, ICID 6thCongress, 1966.

. Interrelation between irrigation and drain-age (Question 10; 1 volume + general report).San Francisco, ICID 3rd Congress, 1957.

. Reclamation of saline land under irrigation(Question 19; 1 volume + general report). NewDelhi, ICID 6th Congress, 1966.


. Reclamation of waterlogged and marshylands (Question 11; 2 volumes + general report).Madrid, ICID 4th Congress, 1960a.

. Tolerance of plants to minerals in solutionin irrigation water and in soil (Question 13; 1volume 4- general report). Madrid, ICID 4thCongress, 1960b.

. Use of longitudinal embankments or leveesas flood protection measures (Question 14; 1 vo-lume + general report). Madrid, ICID 4th Con-gress, 1960c.

Jansen, P.Ph., ed. Principles of river engineering. Lon-don, Pitman, 1979.

Kanchanalak, Boonchob. Significant changes of riverregime due to delta growth. In Proceedings ofthe Dacca Symposium, UNESCO, 1969.

Kienitz, G. Hydrological regime as influenced by drain-age of wetlands. Paris, International HydrologicalProgramme, UNESCO, 1979.

Rijkswaterstaat Communications. Salt distribution inestuaries. The Hague, Government PublishingOffice, 1976.

Sanmuganathan, K. and Abernethy, C. L. A mathe-matical model to predict long-term salinity intru-sion in estuaries. International Water ResourcesAssociation.

United Nations. Committee for the Co-ordination ofInvestigations of the Lower Mekong Basin. Re-commendations concerning agricultural develop-ment with improved water control in the Mekongdelta. Bangkok, 1974 (unpublished).

. Report on indicative basin plan — a pro-posed framework for the development of water andrelated resources of the Lower Mekong basin.Bangkok, 1970.

. Economic Commission for Asia and the FarEast. The development of ground-water resourceswith special reference to deltaic areas. WaterResources Series No. 24, 1963.

. Proceedings of the fourth regional technicalconference on water resources development in Asiaand the Far East. Flood Control Series No. 19,1962. Flood problems in deltaic areas (parts Iand II).

. Proceedings of the regional symposium onflood control, reclamation, utilization and develop-ment of deltaic areas. Water Resources Series No.25, 1963.

. Proceedings of the tenth session of the re-gional conference on water resources developmentin Asia and the Far East. Water Resources SeriesNo. 44, 1973.

. Second regional symposium on deltas (watermanagement — including drainage and salinity —and coastal embankments). Water Resources SeriesNo. 39. 1969.

. Economic and Social Commission for Asiaand the Pacific. Proceedings of the fourth sessionof the Committee on Natural Resources. Feasibi-lity of utilizing coastal and estuarine storage forfresh water supplies. Water Resources Series No.48, 1978.

. Third regional symposium on the develop-ment of deltaic areas (development of deltaicareas in semi-arid and arid regions; developmentof marshes, lagoons and tidal land — includingflood control — in humid tropical areas). WaterResources Series No. 50, 1979.

United Nations Educational, Scientific and CulturalOrganization. Scientific problems of the humidtropical zone deltas and their implications. Pro-ceedings of the Dacca Symposium, 1964.

. Symposium on the hydrology of deltas.Proceedings of the Bucarest Symposium, 1969.

Wagret, Paul. Polderlands. London, Methuen and Co.,1972. English translation.

IV. INDUSTRIAL WATER USE IN RELATION TO OVERALLMANAGEMENT OF WATER RESOURCES

(E/ESCAP/NK. 7/4)

INTRODUCTION

The over-all management of water resources re-quires an integrated approach to the planning andmanagement of this resource. Integrated policies andlegislative and administrative guidelines are needed soas to ensure a good adaptation of resources to need

and reduce, if necessary, the risk of serious supplyshortages and ecological damage, to ensure publicacceptance of planned water schemes and to ensuretheir financing. Proper management of water resourcesshould ensure optimum social benefits of water re-sources use, as well as the protection of human healthand the environment as a whole.

Pan two: Working papers 63

As there is increasing competition for water forvarious purposes, the development and managementof water resources need to be planned and carried outin the context of a national water plan, which itselfis a component in national planning generally. Themajor uses of water are for agriculture, communitywater supply, municipal water supply, hydroelectricpower generation, industry, fisheries, control of salt-water intrusion and inland navigation.

In general, the amount of water required forfisheries, control of salt-water intrusion and inlandnavigation is more or less fixed, while that for hydro-electric power generation is non-consumptive in nature.With these considerations in mind, the management ofthe rest of the available water resources will dependon the competing demands of agriculture, communitywater supply, municipal water supply and industry.

In this context, a brief review of the characteris-tics of these various competing demands may be use-ful. With a given land area and specific crops, theamount of water for agriculture will be a more or lessfixed quantity. Some of the needs for agriculturalwater supplies may be beneficially supplied from ni-trate and phosphate-rich sewage effluents. In any case,the irrigation supplies should be provided from con-trolled storage in such a way that only the requiredquantities of water are delivered at the time of need.

The requirements for community water supply,however, will continue to increase because of (a) theincreasing population, (b) the rising standard of livingand (c) the increasing complexity of urbanizing regions.The requirements for the municipal water supply willnot increase very much after a given level of serviceshas been reached. It is, however, in the industrial sec-tor that the greatest scope for adjustment in the useof water exists. Many possibilities are available be-cause of improvements in technology, recycling, salvageof materials and increase in efficiency.

As the competition for water becomes keenerwith the economic and social development of the deve-loping countries in the region, industrial water use willgain increasing importance in the over-all manage-ment of the water resources of these countries. TheGovernments of the countries of the region will haveto be ready to change their policies regarding the useof water as well as to provide more effective storageand control of their water supply systems, especiallyin times of drought and seasonal shortages.

A. WATER FOR INDUSTRY

It was pointed out in a United Nations report1

that in the past the cost of water was not a major

cost item in most industrial processes. This being thecase, industrial planners and managers have not beenaccustomed to paying close attention to matters con-cerning water. Likewise, Biswas2 has pointed out thatwater is rarely a major issue in industrial plants sinceit represents 0.005-2.58 per cent of the total manufac-turing costs in a group of industries. However, theavailability of good quality water has been an impor-tant factor in industrial plant relocation. The avail-ability of good water supplies has been an importantfactor in the planning of new industrial estates in Iran,the Republic of Korea, the Philippines and Malaysia.The growing need for water to support the increasingrequirements for food, jobs and industrial output hasgiven rise to a very real concern for the prudent useand reuse of water. The moral commitment to thewise use of water resources has dictated a reassessmentof water resources management, while in the past theeconomic cost of a clean and plentiful supply of waterwas not a major factor in industrial management. Ad-justing the cost of water for industries can be an im-portant factor in promoting conservation measures.

Recently some areas of the world (California in1975-1976 and London in 1976) have suffered fromsevere drought during which the water supplies ofindustrial communities had to be severely restricted.The fact that these areas were able to cope under thesetrying circumstances demonstrated that the water con-sumption habits of a community are far in excess ofits real water needs. Blackburn3 cited the recentlycompleted interconnexions in parts of the Londonwater supply system as an important factor in the de-livery of emergency supplies to the most highly dis-tressed parts of the water supply network during adrought.

Bower and Sewell4 have shown a general outlineof a procedure for analysing an industrial water supplywhen recirculation and treatment are employed. Thisschematic diagram and the definition of the varioussymbols and terms are shown as figure 15.

Bower and Sewell have defined a degree of recir-culation which is the percentage of the gross demandwhich is recycled (fig. 15). As the industrial water-use efficiency improves, the degree of recirculation in-creases. As the degree of sophistication of the manage-ment of industrial water supplies increases, this degreeof recirculation will increase. The type of use, eva-

1 The Demand jor Water (United Nations publication, Sale No. E.76.II.A.l).

2 A. K. Biswas, "Water: a perspective on global issues and politics",Journal of the Water Resources Planning Division, American Society ofCivil Engineers, vol. 105, No. WR 2, pp. 205-222.

3 Anne M. Blackburn, "Management strategies: dealing with drought",Journal oj the American Water Works Association, vol. 70, No. 2, pp.51-59.

4 B. T. Bower and W. R. D. Sewell, cds., Forecasting the Demand jorWater (Government of Canada, Department of Energy, Mines and Re-sources, 1967).

1

Watertreatmentfacility

' R

G

1 = Woter intake =

PRODUCTIONPROCESS

water deman

- U P

d.

D

W D

i

UR

i

Wdste treatmentfacility otherthan lagoon,etc.

i

Lagoon, spray irrigation system,and/or underground disposal

E

- W E

R = Water recirculated.

G = Gross water applied for all in-plant uses.

U = Consumptive use or net depletion of water, = U + U + U , where U = consumptive use in the production.P D R P

process, Up.1 consumptive use in the waste water disposal system, and Up-consumptive use in the recirculation system.D - Waste water discharge from the production process.

E = Final effluent from the production unit (available for reuse). Where a lagoon or spray irrigation system is involved,

the final effluent if any consists of lagoon overflow, seepage, and/or surface runoff.

Wn = Waste load in the waste water discharge, for example, pounds of biochemical oxygen demand (BOD).

WE = Waste load in the final effluent, i.e., pounds of BOD.

Degree of recirculation = R/G x 100 % .

Source : flower and Sewell (1967)

sD2o

Pi

Figure 15. Definitions of terms relating to industrial water utilization


poration and other losses and the nature of the pollu-tant added to the water provide an upper limit to thedegree of recirculation. New industries must be en-couraged to develop a high degree of recirculation.

1. Industrial consumptive use

A certain quantity of water used by an industryis removed at least temporarily from the total watersupply. This includes such things as the water usedin the preparation of beverages and canned food andthe water used in the manufacture of Portland cementetc. The consumptive use (U) would also includewater which is evaporated, such as water used toquench hot steel, or water used in the operation ofwet cooling towers. The consumptive use would alsoinclude water which is lost by leakage, seepage or isunaccounted for in the water balance.

The consumptive use is an upper limit to theamount of recirculation which could take place withinthat industry; i.e., water which is consumed cannot berecirculated or reused. In the case of the data for themining industry in Hungary, it is seen that the con-sumptive use is 44 per cent of the annual water intake,while the degree of recirculation is 56 per cent.

There is some opportunity to reduce the consump-tive use in industries through the elimination of lossesand through the reduction of evaporation losses.Sometimes the industrial wastes are held in evapora-tion ponds while the water evaporates. More carefulmanagement of the washing process which producedthe waste in the first place might result in a smallervolume of water being evaporated. The case of themining industry in Hungary, which was cited previous-ly, is a good example. If the slurries and ores couldbe processed in a more concentrated form, a smallervolume of water would be consumed and the con-sumptive use would be smaller than the 44 per centshown for this industry.

The water consumption of various industries inthe United States of America is shown in table 13.Where available, the consumptive use for similar in-dustries is Hungary is also shown for comparison.

2. Electric power generation

The industry with the largest gross water loss dueto evaporation is steam-driven electric plants. Becauseit is a very large industry in all industrial societies,this represents a significant water loss on a world-widebasis. There has been a concerted effort in manycountries to use water of poor quality for electricpower station cooling. Brackish or salt water is usedwhere possible. In South Africa, sewage plant efflu-ent is used for this purpose.5 There are three basic

Table 13. Consumptive water use for major typesof industry

IndustryConsumptive use (percentage of intake)

United Stales Hungary

Automobile 6.2

Beet sugar 10.5

Cane sugar 15.9

Chemicals 5.9

Coal preparation 18.2

Wheat and corn milling . . . 20.6

Distillery 10.4

Food processing 33.6

Meat 3.2

Poultry processing . . . . 5.3

Salt 27.6

Soap and detergents . . . . 8.5

Machinery 21.4

Petroleum 7.2

Steel 7.3

Pulp and paper 4.3

Textiles 6.7

State-owned industries . . . —

8.3

12.7

10.6

7.4

8.1

3.4

4.315.111.9

ways to dissipate heat from an electric power station:(a) once-through cooling systems, (b) either wet or aircooling towers and (c) cooling ponds. In the past, thewaste heat was discharged into a nearby stream bydiverting cool water from the stream, passing the waterthrough the steam condenser and discharging the heat-ed water back into the stream. The power plant mayalso have discharged some waste products from theboilers into the stream. As a result, there was bothchemical and thermal pollution of the stream. Theseacts are no longer always permissible, and coolingtowers, cooling ponds and a larger degree of recircu-lation have resulted. The changing trend in past andfuture use of water in steam-powered electric generat-ing plants in the United States is shown in table 14.

Comparison of the growth of water demands inthe United States shows that the rapid rate of increasein water requirements for industrial purposes in theUnited States was exceeded by the rate of increase inthe water requirements for the generation of electricityby steam-power plants. The current crisis in world-wide energy production might have an effect on thefuture growth in water requirements for both the in-dustrial sector and the thermal electric power sector.The depletion of the world's reserves of oil is withinsight. While conservation of the remaining suppliesof oil is commendable, it is not the solution to theproblem. The solution to the problem lies in the

5 E. F. Schulz, Vaal River Studies: Development of Planning Procedure!jor Optimum Utilization of Water Resources (Johannesburg, Universityof the Witwatersrund, Hydrological Research Unit).


Table 14. Past and future use of water for electric power station cooling

(United States)

Past use Estimated use

1954 1959 1965 1970 1975 19S0

Steam-gcncratcd electricity (billions of kWh) . 368 569 880 1 250 1 730 2 300

Thermal efficiency (percentage) . . . . 28 31 33.5 36 38.5 40

Gross cooling water use (l i trcs/kWh) . . . 272 235 208 185 163 155

Gross cooling water use (litres X 10 'Vyear) . 103 133 148 232 285 370

Total intake (I) 94 124 — 182 — 258

Fresh water intake '. . . '.. '. . . 70 80 — 130 — 180

Brackish water intake 23 34 — 54 — 80

Rccirculation (R) . . . . . . . . 11 19 — 50 — 103

R + IDegree of recirculation (100) . • • 10 13 22 — 29

R

Evaporation loss (litrcs/kWh)*' . . . . 2.5 2.1 1.9 1.6 1.5 1.4

Source: Adapted'from G. O. G. L6f, "The water demand for power plant cooling", Industrial Water Engineer-ing, December 1966. •

Note: " Computed from generation and thermal efficiency by assuming 90 per cent boiler efficiency and that allheat entering cooling water results in evaporation at the rate of 0.35 litres per 1,050 BTU heat dis-charged (this is equivalent to assuming that 75 per cent of the heat is ultimately discarded by evapora-tion of cooling water and the balance by conduction and radiation to the atmosphere).

development and utilization of alternative sources ofenergy. These include: (a) coal; (b) uranium (U); (c)oil shale and tar sands; (d) natural gas; (e) hydro-electric power; (f) solar energy; (g) geo-thermal energy;and (h) wind.

The development of some of these alternative energysources has been progressing rapidly and it is obviousthat many countries are seriously trying to escape theirdependence on oil for their energy requirements.

The development of some of the alternative energysources also has a considerable effect on requirementsfor water. A study of the cooling water requirementsof different electricity generating technologies wasmade by Thompson and others.6 Table 15 is a com-parison of the heat producing characteristics and thecooling requirements of various methods of producingelectricity.

The use of alternate sources of energy to operateindustries and generate electricity in the coming de-cade is likely to cause an increase in the rate ofgrowth of water required for cooling. This may, inpart, be offset by the application of new technologyin power station cooling.

Table 15. Thermal heat rate and cooling requirementsof potential electricity generating technologies

0 R. G. Thompson and others, Forecasting Water Demands (UnitedStates National Water Commission, Report PB 206 491, Springfield, Vir-ginia).

Method Heat rateCool'"!! """"requirements( )

Fuel cell 5 000 Nil

Breeder reactor 8 500 140

Magnctohydrodynamics

Driving gas turbine 6 200 Nil

Magnetohydrodynamics

Driving a steam turbine . . . . 5 690 61

Electrogas dynamics 7 100 Nil

Solar collector 18 000 Nil

Fusion 5 700 61

Fusion with direct conversion . . . 4 900 38

Oil- or coal-fired steam

1970 10 800 164

1980 9 500 1401990 9 000 130

Conventional nuclear

1970 10 700 206

1980 10 500 198

1990 10 000 186

Internal combustion 12 500 144

Gas turbine 14 000 Nil

Source: R. G. Thompson and others, Forecasting Water Demands(United States National Water Commission, Report No.PB 206 491, Springfield, Virginia).


3. Types of industrial water use

Large quantities of water are required by indus-try. In the United States, 48 per cent of the totalwater used is taken by industries, while in Czechoslo-vakia, Poland, the two Germanies and the UnitedKingdom between 70 and 90 per cent of the total waterused is for industrial water use. Water is used in theindustrial sector in a number of ways. Some of theseneeds are consumptive in nature and others are notconsumptive. The industrial water uses can be classi-fied into five main industrial groups: (a) food andmeat products, (b) pulp and paper, (c) chemicals, (d)petroleum and (e) coal and primary metals. Theseuses account for slightly more than 85 per cent of thewithdrawals for industrial needs. A large proportionof the industrial water supplies is required for coolingand this need not be water of high quality. Sea watercan be used for this purpose and where water is invery short supply, this operation might be carried astep further: the heat might be used as the start ofa saline water demineralization process; the waste heatwould thus be absorbed and the supply of good-qualitywater extended.

Of all the common substances, water has a rela-tively high specific heat. This means that it has arelatively large capacity to transfer heat in relation toits mass. This property of water makes it ideallysuited to control temperatures or for cooling in vari-ous manufacturing processes. In many of these ap-plications water is not really consumed in the coolingprocess, but the water is of such high temperature thatit cannot be directly discharged as waste water. Thewater is held in a pond for further cooling beforedischarge into a stream. The cooling in the pond isby convection to the atmosphere, conduction to thesurrounding soil mass and evaporation from the pond.

In some industrial processes, water is used forquenching of hot metal parts, a process which nearlyalways results in the formation of some steam. Theevaporation in the cooling process is a consumptiveuse of water.

4. Growth in demand

One of the key elements of good planning andmanagement is always to have all of the necessarycomponents of the production process available at thetime they are required, not too soon and not too late.Skilled management of water resources therefore meansthat some prediction of future needs is necessary inorder to be able to have the required quantity andquality of water available at the right time.

The growth of the water demand in the UnitedStates in the 75 years between 1900 and 1975 is shownin figure 16. This figure also shows the growth in

demand for purposes of irrigation, industry, genera-tion of electricity by steam plants and municipal anddomestic uses. The comparison of these curves showsthat while there was an increase in the demand forall of these purposes, it was not always a steady or aconsistent growth in demand. As an example, theeffect of the great depression (1929-1933) on the growthrate can be seen in the curves for industrial use, muni-cipal use and domestic use. The rapid industrial ex-pansion during the Second World War (1939-1945)caused sharp increases in water demand for generationof thermal electricity, industrial needs and municipalneeds. This sharp rise was followed by a decrease inthe demand for electricity and industrial purposes inthe period 1944-1946, when the war ended and therewas a period of economic retrenchment. The effect ofthe technological advances made in the design of auto-matic clothes washing machines, dish washing ma-chines and household garbage grinders can be seen inthe sharp increase in demand for domestic purposes inthe period 1945-1950.

The effect of the population increase and thegrowth in industrial productivity (measured by GNP)on the daily water demand is shown in figure 17. Thetotal water demand from figure 16 is compared withthe population and gross national product produced inthe United States in figure 17. A multiple regressionequation can be derived from the data shown in figure17. The equation is:

Daily water demand (litres/capita/day) =

-3,139.14 + (54.51 X 10-6 X population)

- (0.07 X GNP) (R2 = 0.97).

This shows that the gross water demand can be pre-dicted when the population and industrial productivitycan be predicted. The problem of predicting futurewater needs is always going to be complicated at timesof economic recession or depression, as shown duringthe periods 1929-1933 and 1944-1946, when the regres-sion equation would overestimate the demand. Asecond problem occurs when there are great technolo-gical changes. The regression equation would under-estimate the growth in the domestic demand owing tothe introduction of the automatic clothes washers, dishwashers and garbage grinders during the late 1940s.

It should be pointed out that this regression equa-tion was derived for data in the United States between1900 and 1975. This equation would not fit thegrowth in water demand in any other country norwould it fit the data for the United States during thenext 75 years because the next century will be markedby a greater awareness of environmental and socialfactors. The regression equation demonstrates, how-ever, that growth in water demand is a function ofpopulation increase and national productivity. Each

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country will have its own relationship. Furthermore,water demand increases more rapidly than the rate ofpopulation growth and this more rapid increase inwater demand is correlated with rapidly rising na-tional industrial activity. Realistic planning for indus-trial water supplies needs to be aware of these twofacts.

B. WATER-USE PATTERNS INSELECTED COUNTRIES

The relationship of water used for municipal anddomestic water supply, agriculture and industry isshown in table 16. These data are given for a varietyof developed and underdeveloped countries of theworld.

Comparison of the data for Hungary given in table 17shows that the paper, chemical, food processing andmining industries have the highest degree of recircula-tion. This is in part due to the fact that these in-dustrial effluents tend to be highly degraded and thatthese industries have been compelled to reuse andtreat their effluents for environmental reasons. Theseindustries have already achieved a high degree of re-use, as evidenced in the relatively large figures in thecolumn showing the degree of recirculation in table17.

In order to be able to predict the future needsfor industrial water, it is necessary to know the type,of industry planned and the size of the industry. TheUnited Nations7 has assembled data from various coun-tries around the world on the water required per unit

Table 16. Water-use data in selected countries

Country Year

(2)

Bulgaria . 1965

Czechoslovakia 1965

France 1965

German Democratic Republic . . . 1965

Germany, Federal Republic of . . . 1965

Hungary 1965

India 1968

Israel 1960

Japan 1965

Mexico 1970

Mongolia . . 1965

Poland 1965

United Kingdom 1965

United Republic of Tanzania . . . 1970

United States of America . . . . 1965

USSR 1965

Annualper capita

withdrawal(cu m)

(3)

615

285

540

380

245

390

600

630

710

920

135

250

200

36

2 300

1 000

Distribution among difjercr(percentage)

Domestic andmunicipal

(1)

8

13

13

8

20

9

3

16

10

4

12

13

31

63

10

8

Irrigation andagriculture

(S)

72

6

38

12

10

45

96

80

72

91

80

17

3

35

42

53

it uses

Industry

(6)

20

81

49

80

70

46

1

4

18

5

8

70

66

2(est.)

48

• 3 9

The countries with the highest per capita with-drawals of water are also those countries which useapproximately 50 per cent of their withdrawals forirrigation. However, in countries where more than 40per cent of the water is used for industrial purposes,recirculation becomes an important consideration. Inthese industrialized countries, it has been profitable toimplement water salvage or water reuse. Water sal-vage is more practicable in certain industries. Table17 shows a comparison of the intake water for indus-trial uses (I), the recirculated water (R) and the wateractually consumed (U) for Hungary (1965) for varioustypes of industries.

of output for a large number of different industries.For some of the industries, data are given from severaldifferent countries. In addition, ranges of values ofwater use are given for some of the industries. Theseranges of values give an indication of the range inwater needs for these industries, based on differentlevels of technological development and different cli-matic conditions. These data were provided by therespondents to a request from the Secretary-Generalfor this information in 1957 and 1978 and representthe technology prevalent at the time.

7 The Demand for Water (United Nations publication, Sales No. E.76.II.A.1).


Table 17. Comparison of water recirculation and consumptive usefor various industries, Hungary, 1965

Industry

Annualindustrial water

intake (I)

cu ro x 10e

Recirculatedtvater (R)

cu m x 10°

Degree ofrecirculation

m(percentage)

R(100)

R+l(*)

Consumptiveuse (U)

(percentage)

U• (100)

(V

Paper 32.4 50.3 61 6.3

Chemical and rubber 144.3 229.1 61 12.7Petroleum refining 32.8 2.8 8 3.4

Food 93.6 56.4 38 10.6Sugar 30.2 27.7 48 8.3Canning and preserving 14.5 6.1 30 11.0

Meat 9.4 2.4 20 7.4Dairy 9.6 1.1 10 6.2

Textiles 39.7 4.1 9 15.1Leather and fur 5.5 0.21 4 7.3

Mining 33.9 44.7 56 44.0

Building materials 19.7 4.3 18 37.1Wood processing 3.8 1.4 27 10.5

Machines and appliances . . . . 12.3 2.2 15 8.1

State-owned industry 1684.0 2 035.0 55 11.9

1. Impact of environmental conservation

Under the impact of environmental conservation,many industries are now developing new technologiesfor the reduction of their dependence on water and forthe reduction of environmental pollution. In 1969, theNational Environmental Protection Act was enacted inthe United States. This and other laws made the dis-charge of pollutants into the nation's atmosphere,streams and land unlawful. The Environmental Pro-tection Agency, which was established to administerthe new law, acquired almost dictatorial powers insome cases. Some industries faced virtual shut-downbecause there was no economically feasible way inwhich they could meet the requirements of the law.New professions were created which had a completeknowledge of the details of the new law and couldhelp industrial management in designing acceptableremedies to pollution problems.

Similar environmental concerns have resulted indrastic changes in water use strategy in Japan, centralEuropean countries and the United Kingdom.

It has been pointed out that in the United Statesthe chemical industry ranked second (after electricpower generation) in the consumption of water andthat by the year 2000 the chemical industry would bethe leading user of industrial water.8 By 1975, about45 per cent of the water intake by the chemical in-dustry was used in the production of organic chemi-cals, while about 60 per cent was used for cooling.Some of the cooling water was recycled into the pro-

cess water. Good quality water is often wastefullyused in cooling.

2. New water-saving technology

Azad8 presented a scheme whereby the coolingwater intake of a chemical process could be reducedfrom 250,000 lb/hour to zero by the introduction ofan air fin cooler; however, in the conversion there wasan increase in the energy input because of the electricpower required to drive the fans, and moreover, theconcentration of the pollutant in the effluent was in-creased 26-fold. Schematic diagram of these threepossible cooling systems are shown in figure 18. Partof the water saving may be offset by an increase inthe water requirements of the electrical energy com-ponent.

Millington9 cites an example of an industry in theUnited Kingdom where the cost of installing an aircooling tower paid for its capital cost in one yearthrough the savings in the cost of fresh water, whichwas previously used on a once-through-the-plant basis.Most internal combustion engines successfully use awater-cooling engine with an air-cooled radiator. Ina similar way, many cooling problems in the industrialsector could be solved using a water jacket and aircooling tower at a considerable saving in expense, pol-lution and water.

8 H. S. Azad, ed., Industrial Wastewater Management Handbook (NewYork, McGraw Hill Book Company, 1976).

9 P. E. Millington, "Give priority to the wise use of water", WaterServices, vol. 83, No. 1003 (October 1978), pp. 781-783.


Ones through cooling

Cooling voter' 250,000 Ib/hr

TSewer

260,000 Ib/hr

Recycle

Cooling woter10,000 Ib/hr

Sewer10,000 Ib/hr

Sewer10,000 Ib/hr

Air-fin cooler

Vapor

Sewer10,000 Ib/hr

Figure 18.

Comparison of three systems for water cooling

Another example of the application of new tech-nology to reduce the need for cooling water in electricpower generation is under investigation in the UnitedStates. A test facility is being built to transfer thewaste heat from the steam turbine generator to acooling tower by boiling ammonia. The heat is dissi-pated to the atmosphere at the cooling tower.

New technological advances may allow water useand water pollution to be greatly reduced. An exampleis given in the food processing industry. The peelsmust be removed from fruits such as tomatoes, peaches,pears and apples before canning. These may be re-moved by a peeler followed by washing. Water isrequired and the peels pose a disposal problem. Asan alternative, the peels may be removed by a chemi-cal "burning" process which saves water and reducesthe pollution and disposal load.

The fruit is passed over a sorting table whereleaves, stems, foreign material and badly damagedfruit are removed. The fruit is then coated with apowder of sodium hydroxide (common lye). The fruitthen passes on a conveyor belt which rolls the fruitover and over through a "heat" tunnel heated by elec-tric heaters. The sodium hydroxide "burns" the peel,which falls off the fruit as a dried skin as the fruitrolls along the conveyor. After the heat tunnel, thefruit passes a high-frequency shaker which gently vi-brates any loose skin and sodium hydroxide free. Thefruit then rolls through a light water spray which re-moves the sodium hydroxide. This is the only waterused and amounts to a relatively small volume. Themajor part of the waste is in the form of dried peelsand sodium hydroxide powder. By screening, some ofthe sodium hydroxide powder is salvaged for reuseand the dried peels are relatively small in volume andcan be disposed of as dry waste in a suitably double-sealed container by burying. The process uses muchless water than the conventional fruit peeler, but theelectrical energy input is higher and the water usedis highly charged with sodium hydroxide, which maybe neutralized with hydrochloric acid and the resultingsalt salvaged by evaporating the water. This exampleshifts some of the industrial water demand to theelectric power industry.

The adoption of new technology has been resistedby industrial management because, among other rea-sons, the application of these techniques makes theplant work less efficient, results in a poorer qualityfinal product, causes rapid obsolescence of the existingplant and equipment and requires more expenditure forplant and equipment. There may be some validity tothese arguments; however, water which is unnecessari-ly used or polluted is a cost to society. Society hasa right to expect the most efficient over-all use of itsresources.


Nearly everywhere, industries are being called up-on to treat their effluents and wastes so as to protectthe environment. Established industries are faced withthe alternative of either ameliorating the adverseeffects of their effluents or shutting down. New indus-tries must take into account the probable effects of theirproposed operations on the environment. Azad hasgiven a table showing the known significant pollutantswhich result from the operation of 27 different classesof industries. These pollutants are given in table 18.Skilled management requires that these pollutants begiven due consideration in planning and designing theindustrial plant.

Reduction in the amount of water used by indus-tries can be achieved through:

(a) Technological improvements;

(b) Recirculation, treatment and filtration ofwater used for washing or cleaning;

(c) Reduction of losses;

(d) National policy and legislation encouragingindustry to devise and utilize water-savingmeasures;

Table 18. Known significant pollutants for selected industries

Categories of sources Known significant pollutants

1. Pulp and paper mills2. Paperbased, builder's paper and board mills

3. Meat product and rendering process4. Dairy product processing5. Grain mills

6. Canned and preserved fruits and vegetables processing7. Canned and preserved seafood processing8. Sugar processing9. Textile mills

10. Cement manufacturing11. Fecdlots

12. Electroplating

13. Organic chemicals manufacturing

14. Inorganic chemicals manufacturing

15. Plastic and synthetic materials manufacturing16. Soap and detergent manufacturing17. Fertilizer manufacturing

Subpart A — Phosphate typeSubpart B — AmmoniaSubpart C — UreaSubpart D — Ammonium nitrateSubpart D — Nitric acid

18. Petroleum refining

19. Iron and steel manufacturing

20. Nonferrous metals manufacturing21. Phosphate manufacturing

22. Steam electric power plants

23. Ferroalloy manufacturing

Subpart A — Open electric furnaces with wet airpollution control

Subpart B — Covered electric furnaces with wetair pollution control

Subpart C — Slag processingSubpart D — Noncontact cooling

24. Leather tanning and finishing

25. Glass and asbestos manufacturingGlassAsbestos

26. Rubber processing27. Timber products

BOD, COD, SS, bac, WSL, NH.,, DS, biocides

BOD, COD, SS

BOD, DS, SS, N, NO.,, NH,, O&G, P, bac.pH, BOD, COD, DS, SS, set. s.

BOD, SS, pH, DS, N, P, heat

BOD, SS, pHBOD, COD, SS, DS, O, fecal coliform, ClBOD, COD, SS, DS, coli, NH,, pH, heatBOD, COD, DS, color, SS, O&G, heavy metals (Cu, Cr, Zn)

DS, SS, pH, heatBOD, DS, SS, NO.,, P, coliHeavy metals (Cr, Zn, Ni, Cd, others), CN, acidity, pH, DS, SSO, unreacted raw materials, BOD, COD, SS, acidity or alkalinity,

heavy metals and heatDivided into 22 discrete subcategories* BOD, DS, COD, pH, heatBOD, COD, SS, heavy metals, pH (subcategories vary extensively)BOD, COD, SS, O&G, surf, pH

pH, P, F, Cd, As, V, UpH, N, OpH, Nph, N, NOa

ph, N, NO,O, S, Phen, NH3, BOD, COD, heavy metals, alkalinityPhen, CN, NHS, O, SS, heavy metals (Cr, Ni, Zn, Sn), DS, acidity, heat

BOD, SS, DS, COD, CN, pH, color, turb, heavy metals, P, N, O&G, heat

F, As, P, HjPO,, H2SO,, H=SO4, HCI, SS, Cr, DS, NH3

BOD, SS, DS, COD, CN, pH, surf, color, O&G, phen, turb, heavy metals,VS, P, N, heat

SS, Cr, Cr8t, CN, Mn, O, phen, POt

SS, Cr, Cr0?, Mn, O, phen, PO,

SS, Cr, Mn, OHeat, SS, Cr, Crot, O, PO,BOD, COD, DS, alkalinity, hard, color, NaCl, SO,, S, amines, Cr,

NaXO.,, O&G

NH,, pH, color, turb, heat, phen, BOD, COD, DS, SS, O&GSS, BOD, pHBOD, COD, N, surf, color, Cl, S, O&G, phen, CrBOD, COD, SS, DS, color, TOC


Definitions o£ parameters

phen PhenolsBOD Biochemical oxygen demand

COD Chemical oxygen demand

DS Dissolved solids

SS Suspended solids

O Oil

G Greaseset. s. Scttlcable solids

Cl Chloride

Cu Copper

Zn ZincNi NickelCd Cadmium

CN Cyanide

alk Alkalinity

surf Surfactants

• Inorganic chemicals manufacturing sub

1. Aluminum chloride

2. Aluminum sulfate

3. Calcium carbideA. Calcium chloride

5. Calcium oxide

Table 18 (contd.)

NH.,

pHcolor

turbheat

NNO.,P

bac

coli

FAs

H3PO,ILSO.,

H-SO,

HC1

+ categories

Ammonia

PHColor (APHA) and/or dyes

Turbidity

ThermalNitrogen (organic or Kjeldahl)

NitratePhosphate

Bacteria

Total coliform

Fluoride

Arsenic

Phosphoric acidSulfurous acid

Sulfuric acid

Hydrochloric acid

Cr

WSL

NaClhardMn

V

U

sSn

VSCr0 '

SO3

Na.CO;

TOC

Chromium (total)

Waste sulfitc liquor

Sodium chlorideHardness

ManganeseVanadium

Uranium

SulfideTin

Volatile solids

Chromium hexavalentSulfitc

, Sodium carbonate

Total organic carbon

6. Chlorine, sodium, hydroxide, potassium hydroxide7. Hydrochloric acid

8. Hydrofluoric acid9. Hydrogen peroxide

10. Nitric acid

Source: M. S. Azad, ed., Industrial Wastewater Management Handbook (New York, McGraw Hill), pp. 1-12 and 1-13.

(e) Economic instruments, including appropriatewater pricing policies, which encourage or dis-courage industries to convert to less wastefuluse of water;

(f) Vigorous publicity and public informationprogrammes to publicize the adoption ofwater-saving measures by industries.

Summary and conclusions

Industries must grow and expand in order to pro-vide not only for the needs of a growing populationbut also for the employment of a growing labour

force. Increasing industrial output need not necessari-ly increase the total requirements for water. Newtechnology, more recirculation and more attentiongiven to water reuse can help to keep down the risingneeds for industrial water supply as well as cope withthe growing awareness regarding stream pollution byindustries. Governments need to develop a vigorouspublic education programme on water saving and theactivities of industries to reduce their water require-ments and their pollution loads. Economic incentivesneed to be provided to help industries to convert towater-saving technology.

Part Three

INFORMATION PAPERS SUBMITTED BY GOVERNMENTS

I. AUSTRALIA(NR.7/CRP.12)

Introduction

This report reviews progress in Australia in anumber of important areas of water resources develop-ment and management since the fourth session of theESCAP Committee on Natural Resources in 1977. Ithas been prepared by the staff of the Department ofNational Development and Energy of the Common-wealth Government, which has primary responsibilityfor the Commonwealth's interest in water resourcesmatters and also provides a secretariat for the Austra-lian Water Resources Council (AWRC), formed in1963 with a membership of ministerial representativesof the Commonwealth and State Governments.

A. WATER RESOURCES MANAGEMENT

Responsibility for water resources managementlies with each of the seven State Governments and withagencies of the Commonwealth Government in respectof the Australian Capital Territory (ACT). The Com-monwealth Government has a direct involvement inthe operations of the River Murray Commission andthe Snowy Mountains Hydro-Electric Authority. More-over it was responsible for the establishment of AWRC,which provides a forum for co-ordination at the na-tional level and for the exchange of information ofmutual interest to the Commonwealth and the States,and it also provides special assistance to the States forwater resource projects.

The main water management agencies have beenestablished by the States and, in the case of urban sup-plies, by local government with State Government sup-port. There are generally one or two large boards ordepartments in each State providing metropolitanwater supply, sewerage and drainage services togetherwith State-wide commissions providing or co-ordinat-ing the provision of irrigation and rural water supplyand performing broad water management functionsthroughout the State. Two exceptions referred toabove are the River Murray Commission and theSnowy Mountains Hydro-Electric Authority, each ofwhich was formed to deal with matters related to theuse of water by more than one State.

While there are some private schemes, major ir-rigated areas in Australia have generally developed ona large scale through government investment. Mosturban areas are serviced by comprehensive water sup-ply systems with considerable attention being given tohigh reliability of supply. Waterborne waste disposal

systems, although not as comprehensive as water sup-ply systems, also serve large areas of most urban cen-tres.

B. WATER RESOURCES ACTIVITIESSINCE 1977

1. National water policy and planning

In 1978, a Senate Committee of the Common-wealth Parliament reported to Parliament on its in-quiry into the Commonwealth's role in the assessment,planning, development and management of Australia'swater resources (1). The inquiry was undertaken withregard to the diverse responsibilities of the Common-wealth and the States in these matters and the AWRCstatement on a national approach to water resourcesmanagement which had been endorsed by the Com-monwealth and State Governments (2). The SenateCommittee's first and most important recommendationwas that the Commonwealth Government make a clearstatement of its water policy objectives. Such a state-ment was made by the Government on 28 March1979 (3). In the broadest terms, the Commonwealth'sobjective is the long-term beneficial use of Australia'swater resources. The statement identified a numberof policy thrusts and various means available toGovernment to achieve this end.

Concurrent with the Senate inquiry, the Common-wealth Government announced a new National WaterResources Programme to assist the States on waterresource projects. Later it also decided to operateseparate sub-programmes for flood-plain managementand salinity control, both identified by the Senate Com-mittee as areas of high priority and national concern.

Since 1977, and based on considerations discussedin the Senate Committee's report, there have beensome further changes in the institutional structures inAustralia for co-ordinating water resources activities.At the national level, the Commonwealth Departmentof National Development and Energy now has primeresponsibility for the Commonwealth Government'sinterests in all aspects of water resources. There hasalso been a recent restructuring of the AWRC com-mittees to reflect a greater concern for specific aspectsof water resources management. Several of the Stateshave also moved either to strengthen their legislation,so that main responsibility for water is vested in onegovernment department, or to establish State co-ordinating agencies.

77


2. Water resources assessment

Detailed information on Australia's water re-sources is available in a review document publishedfor AWRC in 1976 (4). A further updated review isplanned for 1985.

Under the National Water Resources AssessmentProgramme, the Commonwealth Government has pro-vided assistance to the States for the assessment ofAustralia's water resources since 1964 and measure-ment networks are well developed. In 1978 a deci-sion was taken to review the programme, particularlyas to the most efficient and rational future directionsto be taken in the collection and analysis of Australianwater resources data. This has entailed the examina-tion of long-term objectives and requirements, appro-priate mechanisms for regular review, means of en-suring adequate availability of information and a re-view of costs. The working group undertaking thistask is currently finalizing its report.

Related to this and under the auspices of AWRC,a review of the design of water resources data net-works in Australia was undertaken by the SnowyMountains Engineering Corporation, supported by agrant from the Water Research Fund administered bythe Commonwealth Department of National Develop-ment and Energy (5).

Under the Australian Representative Basins Pro-gramme, initiated in 1968, a number of river basinsselected to represent the major hydrologic regions ofAustralia are being progressively and comprehensivelycovered by a network of measuring instruments, andstudied with the aid of a mathematical process modelin order to gain a clearer understanding of hydrolo-gical relationships under the range of conditions ex-perienced in Australia (6). It was expected that theresults could be extrapolated to predict the hydro-logic response of small ungauged catchments. In thepast two years, the objectives and certain other aspectsof the programme, including the concept of represen-tativity, have come under question and the whole pro-gramme is currently being reviewed.

3. National survey of water use in Australia

The primary uses of water in Australia are irri-gation of agricultural lands and urban and industrialwater supply. Data on water use is essential as a basisfor projecting future demands and planning. As inmost other countries in the region, the collection ofdata on water use presents some problems, but it isan important area which has received increased atten-tion in the past two years.

A first national water use survey developed withinthe framework of AWRC was carried out in 1978-1979

in respect of data for the year 1977 (7). Preliminaryresults were discussed in a paper prepared for anESCAP expert working group meeting on water usedata held at Bangkok from 31 July to 6 August 1979,at which Australia was represented. This work iscontinuing.

4. Flood mitigation in Australia

A number of large cities and smaller rural townsin Australia face potentially serious flooding problems.Under the provisions of the National Water ResourcesProgramme, areas of serious risk are being identifiedand the Commonwealth Government is providing assis-tance to State Governments in the development ofappropriate mitigation strategies.

There is increasing awareness of a need for morecomprehensive strategies than in the past, incorporat-ing a range of non-structural measures where appro-priate. These include relocation from areas of severedanger, zoning and planning of land use and the im-provement of flood warning systems.

In 1979/80 much of the effort was devoted tostudies of flood mitigation options for various locali-ties, mapping of flood prone areas and initial imple-mentation of flood mitigation strategies. The severeflood problem in Brisbane which manifested itself inJanuary 1974 has now been significantly reduced, al-though work is still proceeding in the Brisbane Valley.

5. Irrigation

Of the total land area in Australia, about 64 percent, or 493 million hectares, is currently used (1978/79) for agricultural enterprises. Only about 44 millionhectares, however, are actively cropped or under im-proved pasture. The bulk of Australia's agriculturalproduction is derived from a little under 6 per centof the total area, although the effects of agriculturalactivity are felt over a much wider area.

At present, nearly 1.5 million hectares of landare irrigated for agriculture and pastoral purposes.This figure has increased only slowly since the 1940s(table 19) and in the absence of any major change inthe economic situation, there is unlikely to be anymajor over-all expansion in the future.

The economics of some existing irrigation systemsare probably marginal and investigations based onavailable river systems indicate that others may beeven less favourable in strict economic terms. In-creased irrigation with water from whatever sourcecould lead in places to further degradation of soilsthrough increased salinization, already a serious prob-lem in some areas. In other places, some States havetaken measures to limit the growth of new irrigation

Part three: Information papers 79

Table 19. Area of land under irrigation in Australia

Area irrigated (thousand ha)

Sown and Cereals for allnative pastures* purposes

Sugar caneVegetablesfor human

consumption

Fruit andgrapevines All others Total

1949/50 277.91954/55 441.4

1959/60 559.51964/65 664.2

1969/70 868.81974/75 955.11975/76 920.4

66.3t>

b

b

b

184.4252.7

19.825.225.2

48.8

61.274.0

73.3

24.726.629.1

38.168.967.1

63.4

60.167.172.0

88.9

104.0101.0

98.5

145.9H3.7

161.4329.9

305.1

85.6

66.6

594.8704.0847.3

1 169.9

1 476.9

1 467.3

1 474.9

Source: ABS, Year Books 1977/78, 1979." Including lucerne.b Included in "all others".

development on heavily committed regulated streams.Tn addition, New South Wales has embarked on a verycomprehensive investigation of water needs for all pur-poses for the next 25 years and how they might bemet, with the objective of developing State water plans.

6. Salinity problems

In recent years salinity has emerged as a majorproblem in some parts of Australia. In conjunction withinadequate drainage and water logging, it has arisenin a number of irrigation areas; it has been estimatedthat some 700,000 hectares of land arc or will beaffected in the Murray River basin alone. Dry landsalinity is also causing problems, particularly in west-ern Australia, mainly as a result of the clearing ofdeep-rooted vegetation for agriculture and the conse-quent raising of saline water tables. Over-all, the areasaffected are increasing and if preventative action werenot being taken, the problems would almost certainlybecome even more serious in the future.

In 1978, a Senate Committee recommended to theCommonwealth Government that salinity be recogniz-ed as a national problem and that it receive highpriority attention (1). A report by consultants to theCommonwealth, New South Wales, Victoria and SouthAustralia Governments has identified a series of worksand measures to be undertaken in an action plan todeal with the immediate problems (8). Under theNational Water Resources Programme, the Common-wealth Government is now providing financial assis-tance to the three States for approved salinity con-trol and drainage projects. Other measures of longer-term significance are also being investigated.

River water quality, particularly with regard tosalinity, has now become a key factor in the long-termutilization of the River Murray, Australia's most im-portant water resource. Over the past few years the

four Governments which are party to the River Mur-ray Waters Agreement have been negotiating a newagreement which, among other things, will empowerthe River Murray Commission to take account of waterquality in carrying out its operations.

7. Water quality and pollution control

Water quality regulation in Australia is the res-ponsibility of State and Commonwealth (in respect ofthe Australian Capital Territory) water supply andhealth authorities. Where they arise, the main waterquality problems result from inadequate disposal ofeffluents from urban and industrial centres and fromagricultural drainage in rural areas. In general, thereare no serious or persistent problems of water qualityfor domestic supplies. However, the microbiologicalsoundness of small settlement water supplies in out-back Australia is not always satisfactory.

Recently, AWRC joined with the National Healthand Medical Research Council in the preparation ofguidelines for desirable quality of drinking water inAustralia (9). In their development, considerationwas given to current practice and experience in Austra-lia, published criteria and standards recommended byoverseas and international agencies and, in particular,the drinking water standards issued in 1971 by theWorld Health Organization (WHO).

8. Water weeds

Australia has experienced problems with a num-ber of introduced aquatic weeds which sometimes causesevere localized problems of water quality, filter clog-ging or impedence to river flow and the threat of in-festations spreading to other regions (10). The long-term solution to aquatic weed problems is one of over-all water resources management, but several short-term control measures have proved successful, includ-


ing chemical spraying and physical treatment such asharvesting. Research into biological control measuresis also being carried out by the Commonwealth Scien-tific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO).

In June 1979, AWRC in liaison with the Austra-lian Agricultural Council established a National Com-mittee on Management of Aquatic Weeds. AWRC hasnow endorsed that Committee's report and the estab-lishment of a National Co-ordinating Committee onAquatic Weeds to develop a national approach toaquatic weeds management, based primarily on ap-propriate land/water use management and controlstrategies.

9. Remote sensing

Traditional aerial photography is still providingby far the largest amount of remote sensing informa-tion in Australia. However, the use of satellite-basedremote sensing is increasing. Potential applicationswere assessed a few years ago (11) and with the recentconstruction of a Landsat receiving station in Austra-lia and the holding of a national conference, LAND-SAT 79, at Sydney in May 1979, interest has beengreatly stimulated.

AWRC established a Liaison Committee on Re-mote Sensing in 1977 to foster adoption of the tech-nology, to provide a forum for exchange of experienceand to communicate needs of water authorities to theAustralian Liaison Committee on Remote Sensing bySatellite (ALCRSS). Rapid technological advancesare now taking place with other forms of remote sens-ing, such as radar, microwave, thermal infrared, solidstate sensors and data telemetry via satellite. The po-tential of such techniques, along with Landsat, for wa-ter resources management, has been recognized buttheir adoption by individual water authorities, exceptfor special studies, is expected to be slow because ofthe cost.

10. Water resources mapping in Australia

Australian experience in the preparation of small-scale maps summarizing various water resources char-acteristics for the entire continent or for large regionswithin it was outlined in a paper presented during aregional meeting of national committees for the Inter-national Hydrological Programme held at Bandung inSeptember 1978 (12).

Since 1977 notable new water resources mappingcarried out by the Commonwealth's Division of Na-tional Mapping includes four maps on variability ofrun-off in Australia (13) and present mapping of thepluviograph network in Australia (at 1:1,000,000). Themap, "Australia: Dams and Storages (1975)", is also

now being issued in Natmap's new 1:5,000,000 mapseries.

11. Water resources research in Australia

Australia is well served by research institutionssuch as CSIRO, universities and units of State andCommonwealth agencies. • Since its inception, AWRChas engaged in regular reviews of the collective na-tional research effort and the development of nationalpriorities. Based on these reviews the CommonwealthGovernment has administered a water research fund toaugment current research effort where there are gapsin identified priority areas. The programme is operatedon a triennial basis and a new triennium commencedin June 1980.

12. Water information services

Adequate information is basic to any managementactivity. The first comprehensive review of Australia'swater resources in 1963 highlighted inadequacies in themeasurement and collection of data over large partsof the continent. The position has improved marked-ly as a result of the national water resources assess-ment programme. However, the need for more com-prehensive planning has highlighted information defi-ciencies in other areas and the additional problems ofexchange and dissemination.

The establishment of an Australian water resourcesinformation system, linking existing water libraries andother water information sources, was first proposed in1973 (14). Recent technological developments in theinformation field have given impetus to a renewed in-vestigation into means of improving the services cur-rently available to the water industry. In June 1979an AWRC working group on water resources informa-tion services was established for this purpose, support-ed by resources made available by the CommonwealthDepartment of National Development and Energy.

From a detailed study of overseas informationsystems, other industry data bases in Australia and anassessment of the current information requirements ofthe water industry, the working group has already in-dicated to AWRC that there is a need to create anAustralian water data base. Its full findings are ex-pected to be available in 1981.

13. Education and training

Education and training for professional develop-ment are reasonably well catered for in Australiathrough universities, colleges of advanced educationand technical colleges. These have tended to be dis-cipline oriented but there is now an increasing numberof courses being offered which combine several discip-lines relevant to resource planning and management.


People with appropriate skills and adequate edu-cation and training are an essential component of anywater management system. In recent years, measureshave been instituted within the AWRC framework toevaluate manpower needs in the water industry. Sup-ported by the Commonwealth's Water Research Fund,a research project has been undertaken to review waterresources education in Australia. In particular, pro-grammes are now available or are being developedthrough the National Training Council for DrillerTraining (ground-water technology) and means fortraining water treatment plant operators are also beingdeveloped.

C. AUSTRALIAN EXPERIENCE RELATIVE TOTHE MAR DEL PLATA ACTION PLAN

Activities undertaken in Australia since 1977 areconsistent with the Mar del Plata Action Plan andother recommendations of the United Nations WaterConference. Areas of highest priority have been:

(i) continuation of water resources assessmentwith some emphasis on water quality aspects;

(ii) water use efficiency, including research intowater pricing and other economic instru-ments;

(iii) flood mitigation and flood-plain manage-ment;

(iv) salinity mitigation.

These problem areas have been discussed in thepreceding section of this paper.

D. MUTUAL SUPPORT AND TECHNICALCO-OPERATION AMONG DEVELOPING

COUNTRIES (TCDC)

In the past three years, Australia has participatedin several ESCAP expert working groups pertinent tothe Mar del Plata Action Plan.

In general, Australia responds to requests forassistance by developing countries and does not initiateprojects: therefore no promotional activities have beentaken to encourage TCDC in the water supply sector.However, Australia has responded favourably to a bi-national request in which water resources developmentis part of a much larger study. Support is also pro-vided to the lower Mekong basin project. Australiahas been prepared to consider any request for assis-tance. However its response is governed by budgetaryconstraints, other commitments in the region, the abi-lity to provide the requested type of assistance, andgovernment policy at the time.

REFERENCES

1. The Parliament of the Commonwealth of Australia,Australia's Water Resources, The CommonwealthRole, report from the Senate Standing Committeeon National Resources, AGPS, Canberra, 1978.

2. Australian Water Resources Council, A NationalApproach to Water Resources Management, Aus-tralia, Department of National Development,AGPS, Canberra, 1978.

3. The House of Representatives, CommonwealthWater Policy, statement by the Hon. K. E. New-man, M.P., Minister for National Development, inthe House of Representatives on 28 March 1979,AGPS, Canberra, 1979.

4. Australian Water Resources Council, Review oiAustralia's Water Resources 1975, Australia, De-partment of National Resources, AGPS, Canberra,1976.

5. J. A. H. Brown, A Review of the Design of WaterResources Data Networks, Australia, Departmentof National Development and Energy, AWRCTechnical Paper 52, AGPS, Canberra, 1980.

6. Australian Water Resources Council, The Repre-sentative Basins Concept in Australia, Australia,Department of National Development, AWRCHydrol. Ser. 2, AGPS, Canberra, 1968.

7. Australian Water Resources Council, The FirstNational Survey of Water Use in Australia, Aus-tralia, Department of National Development andEnergy, Occas. Paper Ser. 1, AGPS, Canberra (inpress).

8. Maunsell and Partners, Murray Valley Salinityand Drainage Report, Canberra, 1979.

9. National Health and Medical Research Counciland Australian Water Resources Council, Desir-able Quality for Drinking Water in Australia,AGPS, Canberra (in press).

10. D. S. Mitchell, Aquatic Weeds in Australian In-land Waters, Australia, Department of Environ-ment, Housing and Community Development,AGPS, Canberra, 1978.

11. Australian Water Resources Council, A Reviewof the Potential Applications of Remote SensingTechniques to Hydrogeological Studies in Austra-lia, Australia, Department of the Environment,AWRC Tech. Paper 13, AGPS, Canberra, 1975.'

12. V. J. Ceplecha and T. W. Plumb, "Mapping ofsurface water in Australia", Cartography, 11(2):99-, 1979.


13. Australian Water Resources Council, Variabilityof Run-off in Australia, Australia, Department ofNational Development, AWRC Hydrol. Ser. 11,AGPS, Canberra, 1978.

14. Australian Water Resources Council, Water Re-sources Technical Information Services, Australia,Department of the Environment and Conservation,AWRC Hydrol. Ser. 7, AGPS, Canberra, 1973.

H. BANGLADESH(NR.7/CRP.5)

A. ACTIVITIES IN THE APPRAISAL,DEVELOPMENT AND MANAGEMENT

OF WATER RESOURCES

Bangladesh recently started implementation of itsambitious second five-year plan. The country desiresto achieve self-sufficiency in food production by 1984/85, as well as control over the population growth rate.

Bangladesh is located between latitudes 20° 30' Nand 26°45' N and longitudes of 88°0' E and 92°45' E,and has an area of about 144,000 km2. It is one ofthe most densely populated countries in the world; atcertain places density is around 5,200 per km2. Oneof the prominent characteristics of the topography ofthe country is extreme flatness. The climate is of thetropical monsoon type with erratic distribution of rain-fall throughout the year. In winter, temperature andhumidity are high.

The national policy for water resources develop-ment and management is currently aimed at the op-timum development of available water resources in thecountry and their proper use in order to accelerateagricultural production, especially of cereals. A speci-fic aim is to increase food production to at least 20million tons from the present level of 13 million tonsby the end of the second five-year plan (1980-1985).Depending on the performance and achievement dur-ing the first two years of this plan period, a supple-mentary programme for production of an additionalquantity of 2 million tons will also be launched fromthe third year, thus bringing the target of foodproduction to 22 million tons by 1984/85.

Water resources development, particularly irriga-tion, will be the main instrument to bring about aradical change in agricultural practices and producti-vity. In order to help achieve the food productiontarget, the specific objectives of water resources deve-lopment during the second five-year plan period areas follows:

(1) To provide irrigation facilities sufficient toincrease foodgrain production from the present levelof 13 million tons to at least 20 million tons;

(2) To develop and control surface water re-sources in order to provide dependable and timely irri-gation for winter crops;

(3) To complete the ongoing surveys and studiesof ground-water resources in the country, so that thetotal availability of water for irrigation from thissource may be known with more accuracy;

(4) To use water resources development pro-grammes and projects as an instrument for developingthe less developed regions in order to achieve as faras possible a balanced development in all regions;

(5) To protect coastal areas from saline waterinundation and to control and regulate floods in theaffected areas;

(6) To reduce dependence on cash resources forimplementing water development programmes by in-tensifying the utilization of voluntary labour for theexcavation or re-excavation of canals and constructionof embankments;

(7) To devise appropriate institutions and or-ganizations with people's representatives at village andregional levels and to reorganize and strengthen exist-ing institutions, so that land and water will be effec-tively and efficiently utilized;

(8) To arrange training for personnel at all levelsinvolved in planning, design, construction, manage-ment, operation and maintenance of water develop-ment programmes, so that a cadre of trained man-power will be developed.

Achievement of the national goal of increasingfood production during this plan depends largely onthe extension of irrigation to a total area of about 2.91million ha by June 1985, from the 1977/78 level of1.16 million ha. Table 20 shows the irrigation targetsfor the second plan.

Most of the flood control, drainage and irrigationprojects executed so far or in progress have adoptedlabour-intensive methods of work, such as manual con-struction of flood embankments, excavation of irriga-tion canals and drainage channels. Some schemeswere initiated by local agencies, such as the union andthana parishads and had been recommended by peo-ple's representatives. Out of 322 schemes initiatedduring 1979/80, over one third were initiated locally.


During 1979/80, special importance was attachedthroughout the country to small irrigation projects tobe executed through mass participation, so that irriga-tion facilities could be provided at reduced capitalcost. About 250 schemes were taken up for executionduring 1979/80 under the special canal digging pro-gramme through voluntary participation of the masses.Out of 250 schemes, work on 242 schemes was started.Between 1 December 1979 and 30 June 1980 work on183 schemes was completed. With a total of 19.36million m3 of earth work, 1,048 km of canals wereexcavated. The total area which will benefit from thecompleted schemes is 234,700 ha.

embankments and excavation and re-excavation of1,696 km of canals and channels to benefit nearly535,000 ha. Works on 120 schemes were completedby the end of May 1980, benefiting about 144,280 ha.

B. INTEGRATED OPTIMUM DEVELOPMENTOF THE DELTAIC AND UPLAND

PORTIONS OF A RIVER BASIN

Bangladesh is a predominantly agricultural riverinecountry. The life of the people of Bangladesh is there-fore closely linked with the waters of the rivers. Thepredominant need of Bangladesh is to grow enough

Table 20. Summary of flood protection, drainage and irrigation programmesin Bangladesh during the second five-year plan, 1980-1985

Agency (programme Achievement as

1 821

65

65

54824

136

708

achievement usoj June 1980

[thousan

1 93597

97

600

60

245

8

913

Second plan target(1930-1985)

Additional Cumulative

d ha)

607 2308

308

23039536228

1015 1

542405

405

83045560736

928

A. Bangladesh Water Development Board

1. Flood protection and drainage . .

2. Irrigation

Sub-total—irrigation (A) . . .

B. Bangladesh Agricultural DevelopmentCorporation

1. Low lift pumps

2. Shallow tubcwells

3. Deep tubewells

4. Hand tubcwells

Sub-total (B)

C. Private irrigation

1. Bangladesh Krishi Bank—shallow tube-wells 17

2. Integrated Rural DevelopmentProgramme hand tubewells . . . 10

3. Traditional 364

Sub-total (C) 391

Total irrigation 1 164

49 103 152

19405

473

1483

3

—

108

1431

24405

581

2 914

The Bangladesh Water Development Board hasalready completed 493 schemes under its "Food forWork" programme, involving construction of 4,813 kmof embankments, and repair and excavation of deadchannels. An area of 1.24 million ha had benefitedfrom the programme by June 1979. A total of 293,361tons of wheat had been utilized for compensation byJune 1979.

During 1979/80, a total of 104,000 tons of wheatwas allocated for the programme. The programmeenvisaged construction and remodelling of 692 km of

food for its population, which is growing rapidly.Water is the key to the agriculture programme objec-tive of attaining self-sufficiency in food grains. Waterresources development is also essential for the rivertransportation system. Rivers can be harnessed forcontrolling and regulating floods, hydropower genera-tion, prevention of salt-water intrusion, facility ofdrainage and reclamation of land.

The river network, underground waters and mon-soon rainfall provide Bangladesh with an abundance ofwater resources. However, too much river flow and


rainfall during the monsoon season and a shortage ofwater during the rest of the year make an unbalanceddistribution of water and pose problems of flood dur-ing part of the year and drought during other seasons.Furthermore, all the major rivers are international andconstruction of works on these rivers outside the bor-ders of Bangladesh affect conditions downstream inBangladesh. No rational plan for the use of riverflows in Bangladesh is therefore possible without estab-lishing an understanding with the upper riparian coun-tries, and no effective measures of flood control arepossible without soil conservancy measures and con-trol works in the head reaches of these rivers lying inother countries.

Until 1947, no major development work had beencarried out in the region now comprising Bangladesh,nor had hydrological, meteorological and topographicaldata been collected. These have been gradually builtup and a master plan for water resources developmentwas prepared in 1964, using the information madeavailable by that time. The main contribution of thismaster plan was that it brought together all availabledata, and on the basis of preliminary investigations andstudies, indicated a portfolio of projects. Most of theseprojects were developed on the principle of the polderconcept, i.e., suitable areas were selected and protectedfrom flood by means of embankments, internal drainagewas provided by control structures on the embank-ments and drainage channels within the polder, andpumping stations were set up to pump out accumu-lated rain water into the river. The same pumpswhich were used for drainage also were used to supplyirrigation water by pumping river water into the pol-dered area. An example of this kind of project is theChandpur irrigation project. Major irrigation pro-jects were also carried out, of which the most impor-tant is the Ganges-Kobadak irrigation project. Theonly hydroelectric project that had been carried outis the Kaptai hydroelectric project. Flood control as-sumed great importance after the devastating floodsof 1955-1956. The most notable flood protection pro-ject is the Brahmaputra right embankment project,which measures 217 km from Fulchari to Serajganj. Amajor coastal reclamation project is the 3,535 km longcoastal embankment project which has reclaimedabout 1.2 million ha of land in the southern region ofBangladesh. Water development in Bangladesh hassuffered because of the reluctance of aid-giving agen-cies to finance any project which involves the use ofwaters of international rivers. The local constraintsinclude: lack of co-ordination among different agen-cies dealing with water development of related matters;

the problem of acquisition of land required for deve-lopment works; maintenance and operation of com-pleted projects; and factors associated with develop-ment of irrigation arising from fragmentation of landand smallness of the holdings. The experience gather-ed while the Ganges-Kobadak project and others werebeing carried out has been used to modify the outlineand planning of projects such as the Chandpur irriga-tion project and the Barisal irrigation project.

The Mar del Plata Action Plan provides recom-mendations for the use, management and developmentof shared water resources, in which national policiesshould take into consideration the right of each Statesharing the resources to equitably utilize such resourcesas the means of promoting bonds of solidarity and co-operation. It was further recommended that in theabsence of bilateral or multilateral agreements, themember States continue to apply generally acceptedprinciples of international law in the use, developmentand management of shared water resources.

In November 1977, Bangladesh and India con-cluded a short-term agreement to share the dry sea-son flows of the Ganges River from 1 January to31 May of each year, with effect from 1978 for fiveyears. The agreement also includes provision foraugmentation of the dry season flow of the Ganges fora long-term solution of the problem. The long-termsolution as proposed by Bangladesh envisages storageof the monsoon flood by constructing storage dams atappropriate sites in the upper reaches for its utiliza-tion in the dry season. It calls for active co-operationamong all the riparian states for their common agri-cultural and economic development. Bangladesh iscurrently endeavouring to ensure just and equitablesharing of the water resources of not only the Gangesbut also other common rivers with other concernedstates. It may be recalled in this connexion that theMar del Plata Action Plan recommended that formutual co-operation on water resources and manage-ment, increased attention to integrated planning andwater management was required. It further declaredthat river basin planning of water resources schemeswith multi-purpose objectives will give an optimumbenefit to all the countries participating in such aplan. It is hoped that all the States sharing a basinwill respond favourably so that the objectives of agri-cultural and economic development will be fulfilledthrough mutual co-operation.

To achieve these recommendations, a legal frame-work is necessary. The codification of an internationalwater law should not be further delayed.


. BURMA(NR.7/CRP.8)

GROUND-WATER DEVELOPMENT*

Introduction

To keep pace with the increases in population,agricultural and industry, proper development of waterresources is of vital importance. Burma has a mon-soon climate; however, the mean annual rainfall gra-dually increases from about 635 mm in the centraldry zone of the country to more than 2,500 mm asone goes north, south, east and west, and the mini-mum relative humidity increases from 80 to 90 percent respectively. The highest mean daily tempera-ture is more than 37°C in the central part of Burmaand evaporation is high throughout the country.Under such circumstances, except for the portion ofrainfall which seeps into the ground and the waterthat seeps from canals and perennial streams, notmuch rain water is likely to become part of theground-water reserves. The utilization of groundwater becomes important where surface water is notavailable or has not been harnessed for technical and/or financial reasons. In the central dry zone ofBurma, ground water should be developed for domes-tic, drinking, agricultural and industrial purposes.

Burma has been very poorly studied from ahydrogeological point of view. Hydrogeological in-vestigations were carried out only for solving theproblems of supplying water to population centres.Ground water, where required and found of suitablequality, is detained by means of shallow hand-dugwells; it is used mostly for domestic purposes, and toa small extent, for agricultural ones. About 6,475 haof land are cultivated by hand-dug well water. How-ever, utilization of ground water from deep tube-wellsfor domestic purposes is comparatively limited, andthat for agricultural and industrial purposes is neg-ligible. The utilization of ground water from tube-wells for domestic purposes has increased manyfoldsince 1952. Before 1952, ground water was tapped fordomestic purposes only for Rangoon and about 20 largetowns. Since 1952, several thousand villages and townshave begun to use ground water for domestic watersupply, in conformity with the rapid increase of popula-tion. This increase in the consumption of tube-wellwater is the outcome of a country-wide programmeof supplying tube-well water to towns and villagesfor domestic use in order to reduce the incidence ofwater-borne diseases and to improve the hygienic con-dition of the people. The Rural Sanitation and Water

* By Thein Lwin, Geologist, Hydrogeology and Engineering GeologySection, Department o£ Geological Survey and Mineral Exploration, Ran-goon, Burma.

Supply Board was founded in 1952 to operate therural community water supply. In addition to theRural Sanitation and Water Supply Board and to theprivate contractors who cater for various privatepersons and industrial concerns, the Defence Depart-ment, the National Housing Board and Burma Rail-ways have also been drilling for their cantonments,housing estates and railway stations respectively, al-though on a very minor scale compared to the RuralSanitation and Water Supply Board.

Status of ground-water development

Development of ground-water supply began inabout 1890 in Burma, but its progress has been slow,except in the Rangoon area. The total number ofdomestically and industrially usable tube-wells inBurma is not known. It is roughly estimated thatthere were more than 4,000 tube-wells as of 30 June1962. These included 700 wells in the Rangoon areaand 2,700 wells drilled by the Rural Sanitation andWater Supply Board; the rest was made up of wellsdrilled by private drilling contractors, the Defence De-partment, the National Housing Board and BurmaRailways.

There are over 2,250,000 people in Rangoon.Ground-water consumption in the Rangoon area wasabout 19 million litres per day in 1930. This hadincreased to about 38 million litres per day in 1978.The increase in ground-water consumption has resultedfrom population and industrial growth.

The Agricultural Mechanization Department hasbeen drilling tube-wells for rural community watersupply as follows:

1974/75 1975/76 1076/77 1977/78

Number of tube-wells . 7 783 7 832 7 910 8 139Number of villages . . 5 276 5 510 5 347 5 442Population (thousands) . 3 081 3 110 3 135 3 203

To increase agricultural production and croppingintensity, an exploration project to study ground-waterresources for irrigation purposes is currently beingconducted by the Irrigation Department, with assis-tance from UNDP under the multisector programme ofproject preparation. The areas to be studied and areacoverage are:

Area Hectares

Yinmabin-Pale 101200

Monywa-Chaungoo 85 000Wundwin-Tatkon 168 000Nattalin-Paunde 117 300

Total 471 500


The investigation started in December 1978 andthe first phase studies are expected to be completed inDecember 1980. The Irrigation Department intendsto extend the hydrogeological studies beyond the abovefour areas for future development of ground-waterresources.

The Burma Geological Department (now the De-partment of Geological Survey and Mineral Explora-tion) began to establish a hydrogeological survey in1955. Experts from the United Nations were invitedand a systematic hydrogeological survey was carriedout in the dry zone in 1959. One of the experts madestudies on the utilization of ground water in areas suchas the dry zone, the Shan States and the Irrawaddydelta. His prominent contribution was the report

"Ground waters of Burma and perspectives of theiruses", and the first hydrogeological map of Burma ona scale of 1:2,000,000. Hydrogeological and ground-water surveys were continued by the hydrogeologistsand engineering geologists of the Burma GeologicalDepartment until 1965. At present, the Departmentperforms water resources investigations for mines andindustrial plants.

Conclusion

In view of the importance of the exploration,development and management of water resources, theWater Supply and Utilization Committee was formedunder the Research Policy Direction Board in 1978.Under the guidance of this Committee, a systematicand intensive study on water resources is in progress.

IV. China

A. THE DEVELOPMENT AND UTILIZATIONOF GROUND-WATER RESOURCES IN CHINA

(NR.7/CRP.13)

Since the establishment of the People's Republicof China, great attention has been given by the Gov-ernment to the investigation and development ofground-water resources. In the 1950s, the Bureau ofHydrogeology and Engineering Geology was set upin the Ministry of Geology. This Bureau is respon-sible for the investigation of ground-water resourcesthroughout the whole country. It co-operates withthe agencies of water conservancy, urban reconstruc-tion and industrial sectors in exploiting ground waterfor domestic water supply, agriculture and industry.

All the provincial geological bureaus and those ofautonomous regions now have their own hydrogeolo-gical teams that undertake relevant tasks under unifi-ed state leadership. To co-ordinate the prospectingwork, three research units have been set up under theMinistry of Geology. They are the Institute of Hydro-geology and Engineering Geology in Zhengdin, the In-stitute of Karst Geology in Guilin, and the ResearchBrigade of Technology and Methodology in Hydro-geology and Engineering Geology in Paodin. Theseunits are principally engaged in scientific research.With regard to education, there are five major geologi-cal colleges, all with departments of hydrogeology andengineering geology, established to train specialists.

China has a total land area of around 9.6 millionkm2, most of which has been covered by hydrogeo-logical surveys on scales of 1:200,000 and 1:500,000.Much specialized prospecting work.has been carried

out for the development of well irrigation, the im-provement of saline soil and the control and harnes-sing of swamps, especially in the agricultural areas ofnorthern China. Investigations have been undertakento facilitate water supply to many large- and medium-sized cities and industrial bases as well as to pastoralareas and water-deficient mountainous districts. Therecently published "Hydrogeologic Atlas of China"gives all the details of the hydrogeological work beingcarried out in China.

The extensive work mentioned above has provideda preliminary knowledge of regional hydrogeologicalconditions and the ground-water resources of thecountry, and also a scientific basis for the developmentand utilization of ground-water resources. Ground-water resources in China have become an importantsupply source of water for domestic as well as indus-trial and agricultural use and play a significant rolein urban construction and industrial and agriculturaldevelopment.

1. Outline of regional hydrogeology

Over the vast territory of China, physiographicand hydrogeological conditions vary greatly in differ-ent regions, those in the north differing strikingly fromthose in the south.

The east-west Qinling Shan mountain range is thenatural dividing line between north and south China.In areas north of these mountains, the annual preci-pitation is less than 800 mm, and the amount is gra-dually reduced from east to west. In the semi-aridregion east of the Holan Shan mountain range theannual precipitation is commonly about 300 to 600


mm, while in the region to the west of this range,which is known as the extremely dry Gobi area, theannual precipitation gradually decreases to below200 mm.

As flat plains cover a large expanse of northernChina, the amount of cultivated land in that areamakes up more than 50 per cent of the total of thewhole country. The water resources are not sufficient,however, for the run-off of the surface water is only6 per cent of the total of 2,600 billion cubic metres.In contrast, ground water is comparatively plentifuland plays a more important role in northern China.

Geologically, the major plains, such as the Sung-liao, the Huang-Huai-hai, the Hetao, the Guanzhongand the Yinchuan plains are mainly Mesozoic orCenozoic down-faulted basins with enormously thickunconsolidated sediments which provide favourableconditions for the preservation of plentiful groundwater. These plains are the principal cereal-growingareas in China. The construction of wells and instal-lation of pumps has already become one of the im-portant ways to bring all the farm land under irriga-tion. With such wells already built, remarkable resultshave been achieved in combating drought and inpromoting the increase of food-grain production.

In north-western China (chiefly west of the HolanShan range), although rainfall is scarce, ground waterin the vast piedmont plains, such as those in the Hexicorridor and along the southern border of the Junggarbasin, is mainly recharged by the streams originatingfrom the melting snow on the high mountains chainsknown as the Qilien Shan and Tian Shan. Almost60-80 per cent of the run-off penetrates into the groundof the piedmont Gobi region, where the gravel bedsformed of alluvial and deluvial deposits several hun-dred metres thick serve as a great natural subsurfacereservoir for the storage of a large volume of groundwater, which then discharges onto the surface in theform of spring clusters in the frontal part of the allu-vial fan and flows into so-called "oases" to becomethe main water source for irrigation.

In areas to the south of the Qinling Shan (ex-cluding the Tibetan plateau), the annual precipitationis much higher than that in northern China, averaging1,000-3,000 mm. Lakes and rivers are densely distri-buted, hence the surface run-off accounts for about 75per cent of the total of the whole country. The wide-ly distributed mountains and hills are the chief physio-graphic features in the south. The mountains formedof bedrock yield mainly fissure water, and the develop-ment of ground water is therefore restricted. Theplains in southern China are relatively small in area.Although Quaternary aquifers of great thickness andabundant ground water are found in such areas as the

delta plain of the Changjiang River (the YangtzeRiver), the Jianghan plain and the Chengdu plain,there is no acute demand for ground water in agri-culture. On the contrary, the ground-water level theregenerally is too high to favour cereal production. Theproblem of how to lower the level of ground water hastherefore become the chief hydrogeological concern inthose regions.

Although southern China is quite rich in surfacewater, some areas are still seriously short of waterbecause of its unbalanced distribution. These water-deficient areas can be divided into three types:

Coastal plains: rainfall in the coastal areas iscomparatively scarce, and generally concentrated inthe rainy seasons. Widespread salinity in shallowaquifers is the main cause for difficulties in watersupply. As a result of extensive investigations, freshwater has been found in confined aquifers below thesaline water beds and is now being highly exploitedfor agricultural, industrial and domestic use. Especial-ly in the Guanghai district of Guangdong province,abundant ground-water resources have been found inthe artesian basin of Tertiary strata covered by Quater-nary lava, and this water now has become the prin-cipal source of agricultural and industrial water supply.

Red-bed basins: Mesozoic and Cenozoic red-bedbasins of rolling hills are widespread in southern China.These basins, along with others, are the chief cerealproduction areas in the south. The Sichuan basin isthe biggest red-bed basin in China. Although riversand streams are well developed in the central and east-ern parts of Sichuan, there is often drought in springor summer, causing many small reservoirs to becomedry. This not only seriously affects cereal production,but also causes a shortage in drinking water. Severalprojects have been considered by the Government, in-cluding the building of channels to bring in water fromthe rivers in the mountain areas of west Sichuan.

Hydrogeological investigations have revealed thatthere is plenty of ground water in the weathered zoneof the red beds. Although the water yield per wellrarely exceeds 100 ms/day, there are advantages inusing the water for domestic purposes, as it occurs ata shallow depth and therefore can be easily exploited.Consequently, the serious shortage of water in the dryseasons has now been relieved to some extent throughuniversal exploitation of such shallow aquifers. Thered beds are usually intercalated with calcareous sand-stone or calcareous conglomerate to form confinedaquifers commonly yielding as much as 100-1,000 m3/day from a single well. Such aquifers are often usedas the water supply source for small industrial enter-prises. In southern China, many other red-bed basinsare found to have similar hydrogeological conditions.


promising good prospects for ground-water develop-ment in these regions.

Karst mountain regions: carbonate rocks are wide-spread in south China, especially in the south-westernpart, where they make up one third of the total area.The karst strata are mainly of Palaeozoic and partlyof Triassic limestones of great thickness, which formhills and mountains. Karst features are extensivelydeveloped. Because of the occurrence of fissures andcavities in karst rocks, rainfall penetrates rapidly intothe ground to become ground water. Thus, most val-leys on the land surface become dry, causing a seriousdeficiency of water, while underground the run-off ismostly concentrated in the karst tunnels to form anunderground stream system, chiefly controlled by tec-tonic conditions.

Many field investigations have been carried outin recent years. In central Guangxi, for example,within an area of about 150,000 km2, 353 undergroundstreams have been found with a total flow of 158 m3/sec in low water seasons, indicating that the under-ground streams have fairly good development pros-pects. Now many engineering measures have beentaken to exploit the underground streams in differentways, such as constructing channels, building under-ground reservoirs and setting up pumping installationsand small electric power stations.

2. The utilization of ground water in agriculture

In the arid and semi-arid regions of northernChina, ground-water resources in the vast plains arefairly plentiful. According to statistics, 11.3 millionha of arable land are now irrigated with water fromwells, and the annual exploitation of undergroundwater has reached 40 billion cubic metres. The cul-tivated land which might potentially be irrigated bywater from wells amounts to 33.4 million ha. Fromthis one can see that there are great prospects for ex-ploitation of ground water.

Before 1949, the Hebei plain was often menacedby drought; the grain yield was very low and the re-gion had to rely on support from southern China tomeet its cereal demand. In the last 20 years, morethan 400,000 irrigation wells have been built, with anannual yield of about 10 billion cubic metres. Thearea under well-water irrigation is more than 2 millionha, occupying 60 per cent of the total irrigated areaand over one third of the cultivated land. The situa-tion in Shandong, Henan and other provinces is simi-lar. Taking the Xinxiang region in Henan provinceas an example, since the 1960s the number ofpumped wells has increased from 4,000 to 50,000 andthe land irrigated by well-water has reached 244,000ha, 63 per cent of the total irrigated area. Because

the cultivated land in northern China has basicallybeen brought under irrigation by universal construc-tion of wells or wells and channels in combination, thispart of China has witnessed bumper harvests for manyyears, and consequently has become self-sufficient incereal products. Thus it is no longer necessary to sendgrain from the south to the north.

• Such achievements in developing well irrigationin the north can be attributed mainly to the close co-operation between the local departments of water con-servancy and geological organizations. Furthermore,while laying emphasis on water prospecting, geologicalunits are also engaged in the construction of wells forexploitation in the course of prospecting. They pro-vide hydrogeological maps to county departments andcommunes, give rural peasants guidance in allocatingwells, help them to keep records of pumping wells andoffer them technical services. Thus they have trainedmany peasant technicians. Now most of the countriesand communes in the region have their own well-dig-ging teams, drilling machinery and gravel-cement pipeplants. The government provides funds for develop-ing pumping wells every year and has set up manylocal factories that manufacture pumps and necessarymachinery.

However, there are still many problems whichhave arisen in the course of developing well irrigation.For example, it is common found that wells are soclosely spaced that they interfere with each other, andas a result the water yield is generally quite low. Itshould also be noted that an excessive number of wellshas entailed unnecessary capital investment. In theRongcheng area of Hebei province it was originallyplanned to set up 2,700 wells, but after investigationonly 1,300 were found to be necessary. This exampleshows how important it is to know how many wellsare actually needed. Accordingly, adjustment of thewell networks is now being carried out, with due at-tention to well spacing. Another common problem inconstruction of wells is that the quality of wells isoften neglected, so that the water yield and the lifeof the wells are seriously affected.

In some areas, such as the central part of theHebei plain, the water level keeps declining, becauseof excessive exploitation, and consequently new waterpumps have to be installed from time to time to re-place the original ones. In some cases the pumps ofa single well has had to be replaced four times, anda great deal of money has thus been wasted. This ismore common where deep confined water is exploited.Rational ground-water exploitation and the control andalteration of conditions that cause the water level todrop are therefore of particular importance in watersupply to agriculture.


In order to expand ground-water resources, in-tensified experimental tests and research on artificialrecharge have been undertaken in China and prelimi-nary results have been obtained. For instance, anexperiment on artificial recharge in sand-gravel pits inthe western suburbs of Beijing has shown that thevolume of the percolating water reached 2 million m3/day within an area of one km2. This suggests thatwith a flood period of 60 days, 200 million m3 ofground water can be stored every year. NangongCounty in Hebei Province took advantage of an oldriver course to store ground water, and the volume ofwater stored amounts to 100 million m3, which isenough to irrigate 13,340 ha of cultivated land.

As northern China is characterized by strong eva-poration of ground water, proper control of the ground-water table will naturally be another important wayto enrich the ground-water resources. All in all, itcan be concluded that artificial recharge is doubtlesslyan important measure for increasing the ground waterin the future.

In northern China, saline ground water is wide-spread due to continental salinization. The improve-ment and utilization of the saline water is one way offinding additional exploitable sources of ground water.For example, a pilot irrigation scheme with salinewater containing 3-5 g/1 of dissolved solids in YuchengCounty, Henan Province, resulted in a 26.5 per centincrease in cereal production and now the area ofirrigated land has increased to 6,670 ha. Practice hasproved that pumping up the saline water to replenishthe fresh water can accelerate the circulation of theground water and hence promote the desalinization ofthe saline water.

In part of the northern China plain in the 1950ssecondary salinization of soil occurred as a result ofinappropriate extensive irrigation with water from theHuanghe River (the Yellow River), which led to anincrease in the salinized land from 1.9 to 4 million ha.The salinized land did not gradually become cultivableagain until measures had been taken to drain the landand develop well irrigation to reduce the area coveredby canal irrigation. In the areas of the Hetao andYinchuan plains, where the farmland is irrigated byHuanghe River water, the extensive secondary salini-zation of soil caused by flood irrigation still remainssevere at present. It seems that in those areas irriga-tion with well water in co-ordination with restraineduse of surface water will conserve surface water, helpto prevent soil from salinization and improve salinizedsoil. Therefore, the rational and multi-purpose con-junctive use of surface and ground water should begiven due attention.

3. Some problems related to urban water supply

Many of the important cities in China are depen-dent mainly on ground water for their water supply.The level of exploitation of ground water in Beijing,Shenyang, Xian and other cities has increased to onemillion m3/day.

With the growth of the urban population andrapid development in industry and agriculture, waterdemand has also increased significantly. For example,the output of the waterworks in Beijing has increased40-fold since the early 1950s. To meet the increasingdemand, a new ground-water plant was recently setup to exploit ground water in the alluvial fan of theChaobai River and was scheduled to begin productionin 1980. Total water resources available amount to5 billion ms per year, of which the ground-water re-sources are calculated at 3 billion m3 per year and thesurface water resources (chiefly in reservoirs) at about2 billion m3 per year. The amount of annual waterconsumption, however, has already grown to 4 billionm3, of which 63 per cent is consumed by agricultureand 30 per cent by industry. The total output ofground water, which is 2.6 billion m3 per year, makesup 60 per cent of the total water consumption. Inthe central part of the city, the water level has drop-ped by 20 m and more at a rate of 1-1.5 m per yearowing to excessive exploitation of the ground water.Therefore, the water yield per well has been remark-ably reduced and the original pumps of some produc-tion wells have had to be replaced. At present, effec-tive ways are being sought to control water consump-tion. It is estimated that total water demand in 2000will reach 6 billion m3 per year, which is beyond thecapability of the water supply in this area.

Because of the rapid increase in industrial waterconsumption, the needs of industry and of agriculturefor water supply are coming into greater conflict. Theextensive exploitation of water by industrial wells hascaused most of the nearby irrigation wells (mainlyshallow wells) to dry up or be abandoned. Forexample, exploitation of ground water by industrialenterprises in Cangzhou, Hebei, caused the water levelto drop by 60 metres, and 38 per cent of the irriga-tion wells within range of a 100 km2 depression conewere abandoned. Such a conflict becomes even sharp-er when the amount of water in reservoirs is greatlyreduced in years of drought. In order to ensure suffi-cient water supply for industry, the water supply toagriculture has to be reduced and cereal productionis seriously affected.

A special problem that has appeared in urbanwater supply is land subsidence. Such a phenomenonoccurs mainly in large coastal cities which consumemuch water. A distinct example is Shanghai, wherethe cumulative maximum of land subsidence has


reached 1.6-2.4 m, and this has brought about a greatloss to the national economy. Statistical analyses haveindicated that the magnitude of subsidence increaseswith the rise in output of the ground water, and thearea of the subsidence commonly coincides with thecoverage of the cone of depression. This suggeststhat the subsidence of land is chiefly caused by thecompaction of the soft soil layers as a result of over-exploitation of ground water.

The city of Shanghai has adopted since 1965multiple measures to control land subsidence. Theseinclude: reduction in water consumption; adjustmentin the order of exploitation of aquifers and artificialrecharge; and studies of the interrelations amonggroundwatcr output, recharge and water-table fluctua-tion. In line with the requirements for low-tempera-ture water in summer and medium-temperature waterin winter by industrial enterprises, the city of Shanghaihas developed a method of regulating ground-waterstorage by winter recharge for summer use and sum-mer recharge for winter use, which has not only helpedcontrol surface subsidence but has also made use ofthe peculiar thermopreserving property of the groundwater. Now such a method has found wide applica-tion in many cities.

Also important to note is the fact that waterpollution has brought about a serious menace to theurban water supply. Discharge of industrial wastewater and the use of polluted water for irrigation incity suburbs are among the main causes of ground-water pollution. An investigation has indicated thatin more than 40 cities the ground water is pollutedto different degrees, containing such harmful sub-stances as phenol, cyanide, mercury, chromium andarsenic. It is polluted in both shallow and deep aqui-fers. This has caused some production wells to stopoperating. The use of chemical fertilizers and farminsecticides on suburban farms are among the maincauses of the ground-water pollution.

Besides the pollution resulting directly fromdomestic and industrial sewage, the hardness of theground water has kept rising, making the water qua-lity even worse. Preliminary studies have shown thatthe increase in hardness is related to the large-scaleexploitation of the ground water. The increased hard-ness not only harms public health, but also affects thenormal production of pharmaceutical factories, win-eries and other enterprises.

In some coastal cities, such as Luda, excessiveexploitation of ground water has caused the intrusionof sea water, which has resulted in an increase ofchlorine ions and a decline in water quality. In someother cities, such as Tianjin, there occur two separateaquifers, the upper one containing saline water andthe lower being a fresh-water aquifer. However, in

the construction of industrial wells, usually no propermeasures are taken to separate the two aquifers, result-ing in deterioration of water quality in the surround-ing areas.

The pollution of ground water has menaced thepeople's health, and sharpened the already acute urbanwater supply situation. In this connexion, the Govern-ment has stipulated that the Ministry of Geology isin charge of monitoring ground water. Now manyobservation stations have been set up, especially inimportant cities. On the basis of the monitoring work,research has been conducted on the origin and thecourse of pollution, the intensity of pollution and thescope of dissemination of polluted substances, so thatappropriate effective measures may be proposed toprevent ground-water pollution.

Conclusion

A comprehensive appraisal of water resources inChina has become an important aspect of the realiza-tion of national development. Appropriate measuresare now being taken to conduct more detailed inves-tigations and to make a separate regional estimationof surface and subsurface water resources, so as toprovide scientific bases for the solution of the watersupply problem for farmland irrigation.

In the last few years, the scheme of divertingwater from south to north in the eastern part of Chinato meet the demand of water-deficient northern Chinahas aroused heated discussion among the organizationsconcerned. There exist two different opinions. Somepeople hold that to solve the water-deficiency problemin the north there is no other choice but to divertwater from the south. Others believe that a basicsupply-demand balance can be achieved if water re-sources in the region are fully developed and utilized.The two opinions differ mainly in the assessment ofthe water resources, particularly the ground-water re-sources, of the region. Therefore, a further in-depthstudy is required in this respect in the future.

To discuss the principles of ground-water resourcesappraisal and the system of rational utilization andmanagement of ground water for development, theGeological Society of China organized the First Sym-posium on the Appraisal of Ground-water Resourcesin 1978. While discussing the methodology applicableto ground-water resource appraisal, the participants tothe symposium pointed out the current arbitrary ex-ploitation of ground-water resources in some of theregions. As a result of the lack of a unified planningand strict management system, arbitrary exploitationof ground-water resources in some regions has led toa consistent decline in the ground-water level and agradual reduction in ground-water yield. Thereforethe daily conflict between industry and agriculture in


the use of water has been sharpened and the area ofwater pollution enlarged. The wasteful use of waterto a serious extent is also common. This situationwill surely have a harmful effect on the lives of thepeople and industrial and agricultural production ifno effective measures are taken.

To settle the above-mentioned problems, the gov-ernment is now considering the following measures:(a) to work out a unified programme of rational utili-zation of both surface and subsurface waters; (b) toformulate, as soon as possible, a Water Resource Actto ensure legally the rational development and utiliza-tion of water resources; (c) to establish appropriatecontrolling agencies to undertake management in ascientific way, comprehensive planning, rational ad-justment and regulation, supply-demand balancing, andwater resource conservation; (d) to apply the methodof artificial recharge to regulate the storage of surfacewater and increase ground-water resources; and (e) tomake intensified investigations of water resources.

While conducting an over-all appraisal of ground-water resources in the entire country in support ofregional planning of agriculture, the Ministry of Geo-logy of China has strengthened ground-water monitor-ing services in key cities and major areas of water-well irrigation. As a result of the close co-operationbetween geological and urban construction depart-ments, some key cities such as Shanghai have alreadyachieved fairly good results in the management ofground-water resources. Similarly, as a result of jointco-operative efforts, excellent achievements have alsobeen made in the rational development of well irriga-tion in some of the irrigated agricultural areas.

B. A BRIEF REVIEW OF WATERCONSERVANCY AND FLOOD CONTROL WORKS

(NR.7/CRP.1S)

1. Natural and geographical conditions

The topography of China is such that the land inthe west is of high altitude and that in the east of lowaltitude. Tt slopes away from the Qinghai-Xizang(Tibet) plateau 4,000 metres above sea level northerlyand easterly to the highlands and basins 2,000-1,000metres above sea level, and then descends further east-ward to hilly regions and plains below 1,000 metresabove sea level. The whole country has an area of9.6 million square kilometres.

Plateaux and mountainous areas cover 59 percent, basins 19 per cent, plains 12 per cent and hillyareas 10 per cent of the total territory. One hundredmillion hectares of cultivated lands are concentratedin the three main plains of the country (the north-eastern plain, the north China plain and the middle

and lower Changjiang plain) and the Zhujiang Riverdelta as well as some inland plains.

China has more than 1,500 rivers, each of whichhas a drainage area of over 1,000 square kilometresand among which the Changjiang, Huanghe, Huai, Hai,Zhujiang, Liao, Heilong, Songhua, Yarlung Zangbo,Lancang and Nu Rivers are the longer ones.

The normal yearly run-off of all rivers reaches2,600 billion m3 and the average yearly depth of therun-off is 273 mm. The hydropower potential is680,000 MW. The run-off of rivers north of the Qin-ling Shan mountains and Huai River is unevenly dis-tributed, varies greatly between flood seasons and non-flood seasons and also changes from year to year,while the run-off of the rivers south of the QinlingShan mountains and Huai River is plentiful andchanges relatively little between seasons. The inlandrivers, such as the Tarim, Qaidam and Shule, are locat-ed in the arid areas of north-western China. Theseinland rivers originate in the snow-covered mountain-ous areas, so that the run-off often disappears and theybecome seasonal rivers. Moreover, there are somerivers flowing from the south-west, north-east andnorth-west boundaries of the country.

The lengths, catchment areas and annual runoffsof the main rivers in China are as follows (not in-cluding international rivers):

River Catchment area Annual run-off{thouiand %m3) (billion m3)

Changjiang . . . . 6 300

Huanghe 5 460

Zhujiang 2 200

Mai 1 090

Huai 1 080

Liao I 390

Songhua 1 660

1 807752453319262232546

9214730723392276

China's climate is strongly influenced by the mon-soons. It is wet with abundant rain in summer, anddry and short of rain with a prevailing north-west windin winter. The normal yearly precipitation of thewhole country amounts to over 6,000 billion m3, andthe average yearly depth of precipitation to 630 mm.The precipitation in the four months of June, July,August and September is often up to 70-80 per centor more of that for the whole year. The precipita-tion is unevenly distributed and decreases from thesouth-cast coastal region, where the normal yearly pre-cipitation is 1,500-2,000 mm, toward the north-westarid region, where the normal yearly precipitation isless than 200 mm. Run-off in the main rivers differssignificantly from wet to dry years, easily causingdrought or flood.

Note: All the figures hereafter are based on statisticstaken at the end of 1978.


2. General features of water conservancy construction

China has a long history of combating flood anddrought; there were many famous water, conservancyworks built in ancient China by labouring people.About 2,200 years B.C. the Chinese people who in-habited the Huanghe River and Huai River valleysbegan building dykes to control rivers. The Dujiang-yan irrigation system was built in 256-251 B.C. It waslocated on the left bank of the Min River in SichuanProvince. This large-scale water conservancy projectcould be used for both irrigation and flood control.The irrigated area covered more than 200,000 hectares.From 486 B.C. onward, many generations of labouringpeople dug the Grand Canal, which is 1,794 km long,and reaches from Beijing to Hangzhou.

However, under past feudal dynasties and as aresult of reactionary rule in the country's long history,socially productive forces developed very slowly andwater conservancy works failed to be well maintainedand repaired. Floods and droughts were frequent;historical records show that a total of 1,092 big floodsand 1,056 severe droughts occurred over the period of2,155 years from 206 B.C. to the founding of thePeople's Republic of China in 1949, with an averageof almost one disaster every year.

Since 1949, water conservancy works have beenregarded as an important part of socialist construction.By the end of 1979, 84,000 reservoirs of all sizes hadbeen built, with a total storage capacity of 400 billionm3; 319 of these were large-sized ones, each with astorage capacity of more than 100 million m3, and2,200 were medium ones, each with a storage capacityof 10 to 100 million m3. At present, the total outputof the mechanical and electrical pumping stationsamounts to 70 million hp, altogether covering an irri-gated area of 29.7 million hectares. In the last 10years, the ground-water supply has been widely deve-loped in the arid areas of northern China and thereare now 2.1 million power-operated wells for agri-culture all over the country. The total installed capa-city of large and medium-sized hydropower stations is17,000 MW, while 90,000 rural small-sized hydropoweistations have a capacity of 6,300 MW. The irrigatedarea throughout the country has increased greatly andit is now 47 million hectares, covering 48 per cent ofthe total farmland. There are over 20 million hectaresof farmland susceptible to waterlogging, of which twothirds have been preliminarily remoulded.

3. Harnessing big rivers

The Changjiang River is the longest river and themain waterway for transportation in China. Theflood of 1931 covered an area of 3.33 million hectaresof farmland in the middle and lower reaches of theriver; 28 million people suffered and 145,000 people

died as a result of the flood. Since 1949, flood anddrought have been better controlled and at the sametime the abundant water resources of the ChangjiangRiver, are being explored and utilized. Dykes havebeen strengthened in the middle and lower reaches.The Xiang Jiang flood diversion works and the Han-jiang flood diversion works have been constructed,ponds and low-lying lands were dredged and 926 largeand medium-sized reservoirs as well as 45,000 smallones have been built, with a total storage capacity of110 billion m3. Some big pumping stations have beenbuilt on both banks of the Changjiang River. Theirrigated area has reached 14.9 million hectares. Atthe same time, the river has been regulated and greatefforts have been made to improve its navigability, andnow the navigable length of the main river has reached2,900 kilometres.

The Sanxia (Three Gorges) project is the key pro-ject of the multi-purpose development of the Chang-jiang River. It is located upstream of Yichang City,Hubei Province. In order to satisfy the needs of floodcontrol, power generation, navigation and irrigation,a series of problems or conflicts must be solved. Ac-cording to the over-all plan, the Sanxia reservoir canprovide more than 30 billion m3 volume for floodcontrol, and thus, in co-ordination with other projects,it can control the flood peak in the Changjiang Riverand prevent inundation in the middle reaches. Withregard to power generation, the total installed capacitycan reach 25,000 MW, with an annual output of 120billion kWh. The power generated can be transmittedto Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou, forming a unifi-ed national network. As to navigation, there aremany gorges and dangerous shoals in the naturalwaterway of the Changjiang River from Yichang toChongqing, causing many difficulties. After the com-pletion of the Sanxia dam, the natural navigationchannel will be improved and at the same time thenavigation conditions in the 1,800 km river channeldownstream will also be improved because of theregulation of run-off during the flood season and thedry season. In the future, it might be possible tobring water from the Sanxia reservoir to northernChina, thus providing an abundance of water to thearid areas.

The Gezhouba project is located near YichangCity, 40 km downstream of the Sanxia project. Thedam is 2,561 m long and 70 m high. The installedcapacity of the power station will be about 2,718 MW.The total earth and rock work involved is 72 millionms, and total concrete work is nearly 10 million m3.The principal structures are now under constructionon a large scale and the first stage of work is expectedto be completed before 1982. Navigation and powergeneration will then began.


Comprehensive exploitation of the tributaries ofthe Changjiang River is being carried out. The Tan-jiangkou water control project, for example, is situatedon the Han River. Its main structure is a concretedam 110 m high, while the subdykes are earth dams.With a total storage capacity of 29 billion m3, it is alarge-scale multipurpose water control project for floodcontrol, power generation, irrigation, navigation andfish breeding. It protects 5 million people and 730,000hectares of farmland downstream from the threat offlood. The power station has an installed capacity of900 MW, and 246,000 hectares of farmland can beirrigated. A 150-ton ship elevator has also been in-stalled for the development of navigation.

The Huanghe River has a very high silt content.Every year 1.6 billion tons of silt are brought down tothe lower reaches, but its annual volume of flow isonly 47 billion m3. This has brought about sedimen-tation of the river channel in its lower reaches. Theriver bed was raised continually and it became higherthan the surrounding land. During the 2,000 yearsprior to 1949, there occurred in the Huanghe Riverover 1,500 breaches of dykes and 26 major shifts ofwater course. Flood covered an area of 250,000 km2,north to Tianjin and south to the Changjiang andHuai Rivers. In the past 30 years, soil conservationworks were undertaken by the labouring people in theupstream area, while reservoirs were built on the mainriver and its tributaries. There are now 150 large andmedium-sized reservoirs and 3,700 small ones, with atotal storage capacity of more than 55 billion m3. Asa safeguard against flood, 1,800 km of dykes alongthe lower reaches of the Huanghe River were streng-thened and heightened. Since 1949 the Huanghe Riverhas experienced peak discharges exceeding 10,000 m3/sec on four occasions; in 1958 the peak dischargereached 22,300 m3/sec, but in spite of that, the flooddischarge flowed down safely. Together with the up-per and middle reaches, the irrigated area of the wholeriver valley amounts to 4.3 million hectares.

Some large multipurpose projects have been builton Huanghe River. In the middle reaches, the con-crete gravity dam of the Sanmenxia reservoir is 106 mhigh. By holding the flood and discharging the silt,it can control the flood over an area of 688,400 km2

in the upper and middle reaches. In co-ordinationwith the dykes in the lower reaches, it can prevent theHuanghe River from overflowing its banks. In theupper reaches, there are also six multipurpose projects,one of which is the Liuchiaxia hydropower station. Ithas a concrete dam 148 m high and it is China's big-gest hydroelectric station at present, with an installedcapacity of 1,225 MW. Built mainly to generatepower, it also provides flood control, irrigation, fishbreeding and prevention of ice jamming.

Dykes in the lower reaches of the Huanghe Riverare being strengthened and heightened every year be-cause of the sedimentation of the river channel. Morelarge reservoirs will be built in the ravines and gorgesalong the main river in the future.

In its history, the Huai River basin was an areafrequently visited by disasters. After 1949 the HuaiRiver was the first river to be radically controlled. Inthe past 30 years, 184 large and medium-sized reser-voirs with a total storage capacity of 35 billion m3

and 5,000 small ones with a total storage capacity of3 billion m3 have been built in the mountainous areas.In the plains, lakes and ponds are controlled in orderto store flood water and the storage capacity has nowreached 28 billion m3. In the lower reaches, new out-let channels have been dug and enlarged, connectingthe Changjiang River and the sea, so that the flood-discharging capacity has increased from 8,000 to 22,000m3/sec. Moreover, all dykes on the main river andits tributaries have generally been strengthened and allthe big and small rivers have been dredged and deep-ened. The above measures, have basically brought thefloods under control. Irrigated lands have increasedfrom 0.8 million hectares shortly after 1949 to 7.4million hectares.

The Hai River is the largest river system in north-ern China. In the past it was known as a harmfulriver. With many tributaries upstream, it fans outover the north China plain. It often overflowed itsbanks because of the great difference between thewater coming from upstream in the flood season andthe discharging capacity downstream. Moreover, floodsand droughts were very serious, for there used to below-lying land between two rivers and the drainagecapacity was low. In the mountainous areas, 22 largereservoirs have been completed up to now. Miyunreservoir is the largest among them, with an earth dam66 m high and a storage capacity of 4.4 billion m3.There are also 90 medium-sized reservoirs and 1,300small ones in the Hai River system. The total storagecapacity of all reservoirs amounts to over 20 billionm3. Independent channels for the five main tribu-taries to discharge flood water directly into the seahave been excavated. Therefore, the capacity forcarrying flood water has been increased from the ori-ginal 4,600 m3/sec to 24,680 m3/sec. The capacityfor draining waterlogged areas has increased from 400to 2,100 m3/sec. Thus the Hai River basin is basical-ly free from the menace of floods and droughts. Atthe same time, small water conservancy works havebeen carried out on a broad scale and more than700,000 power-operated wells have been drilled so thatthe irrigated lands have been increased from 670,000hectares before 1949 to 6 million hectares. Largeareas of alkaline lands have also been improved. Thedevelopment of water conservancy works promotes


agricultural production and makes it possible to realizeself-sufficiency for those areas originally seriously shortof grain.

The annual run-off of the Zhujiang River is nextonly to that of the Changjiang River, taking secondplace in China. The Zhujiang River consists of Xi-jiang (the west river), Beijiang (the north river) andDongjiang (the east river), of which Xijiang has thelargest catchment area, occupying 80 per cent of thetotal. In the alluvial plain of the Zhujiang Riverdelta, the cultivated land protected by dykes amountsto 570,000 hectares and is an important base for grainand economic crops and aquatic products in Guang-dong. The total installed electrical pumping capacityin the Zhujiang River delta is 750 MW. The totalmechanical pumping capacity is 190,000 hp. In addi-tion, 4,200 km of dykes along the river and the sea-coast have been built.

In the Zhujiang River basin, the large-scale hydroprojects already completed are the Xinfengjiang reser-voir (with a total storage capacity of 13.8 billion m3,a concrete buttress dam 105 m high, and an installedcapacity of 292 MW) and the Fengshuba reservoir(with a concrete hollow gravity dam 100 m high, atotal storage capacity of 1.9 billion m3 and an installedcapacity of 150 MW). In co-ordination with otherreservoirs and downstream dykes, they basically con-trol the flood water in the Dongjiang tributary of theZhujiang River.

The other hydroelectrical projects being plannedin the Zhujiang River basin are the Feilaixia, Dateng-xia and Longtan projects. The Feilaixia project issituated in Qingyuan County, Guangdong Province. Itshould eliminate the threats of the Beijiang flood, andcan bring benefits of irrigation, power generation andnavigation. The Datengxia project is situated in Gui-ping County, Guanxi Province. It should reduce themenace of floods to the downstream area of the Xijiangand the Zhujiang River delta and it can bring benefitsof power generation and navigation. In addition tothe benefit of power generation, the Longtan hydro-power station, situated in Tian County, Guanxi Pro-vince, can basically .control the flood peak of theHongshui tributary of Xijiang.

4. Irrigation development

Since 1949, old irrigation areas have been re-habilitated and new ones built. Now there are 150large irrigation areas covering 20,000 hectares each,and more than 5,000 medium ones (from 667 to 20,000hectares each). Depending on local conditions, thewater supply for irrigation mainly comes from: storage(ponds and reservoirs); digging (utilization of groundwater); diversion (diverting river water); lifting (me-

chanical pumping); and stoppage (blocking seepageflow from the seasonal rivers). In the 1950s, designwas based on a single source of water, but now acombination of different sources of water supply isconsidered in the design. Thus the irrigated areashave been enlarged and high and stable yields havebeen secured. The different types of irrigation inseveral big catchment areas with examples, are pre-sented below.

The Dujiangyan irrigation project in the middlereaches of Minjiang in Sichuan Province has a historyof more than 2,000 years. Its headwork is composedof three major structures: the dividing pier, the waterintake and the Feisha overflow weir. It can divert aflow of 665 m3/sec from the Minjiang. It plays animportant part in agricultural production. After 1949,the Dujiangyan irrigation system was restored, trans-formed and enlarged, and now the irrigated areas havebeen extended from the Chuanxi plain to the hillyareas and have reached 530,000 hectares.

The Huanghe River irrigation area in the NingxiaAutonomous Region has a history of more than 2,000years. Since 1949, over 1,000 km of main canals havebeen enlarged, remoulded and dredged on a largescale. In 1958, the Qingtongxia hydroelectric pro-ject was built on the main stream of the HuangheRiver, thus ending the history of water diversion with-out dams and ensuring water supply for agriculture.At the same time, new irrigation areas have been builtand extended, and now the whole irrigation area in-cludes 11 counties and municipalities, covering an areaof over 170,000 hectares.

The Huanghe River irrigation area in the NeiMonggol (Inner Mongolia) Autonomous Region islocated in the western part of the region and has ahistory of several hundred years. Before 1949 theirrigated areas were limited because of water diversionwithout a dam and because there were no drainageworks. Since 1949, enlarging and remoulding workshave been carried out. In 1961, the Sanshenggongproject with a diversion capacity of 500 m3/sec wasbuilt. Over 40 diversion canals and more than 30drainage canals have been dug, 877 canal structures ofdifferent sizes and for various purposes have beenbuilt, and 30 water drainage stations have been set up,with a total draining capacity of 55 m3/sec. Theirrigated lands have increased from 200,000 ha short-ly after 1949 to 500,000 ha at present.

The Huanghe River water has been diverted toirrigate 40,000 ha of farmland at Huayuankou, HenanProvince. In the irrigation area, great changes havetaken place by linking the wells and canals, combiningirrigation and drainage, and controlling alkalizationand improving the soil. The per hectare yields ofgrain and cotton has been increased manyfold. Many


small irrigation areas have also been built on bothbanks of the Huanghe River.

The Pishihang irrigation project in Anhui Pro-vince is a large-scale water conservancy project be-tween the Changjiang and the Huai Rivers. It coversan irrigated area of over 530,000 hectares. Becauseof the uneven distribution off precipitation, damagesfrom flood, waterlogging and drought had been verysevere. The Pihe, Shihe and Hangbuhe often over-flowed their banks, and waterlogging occurred in thelow-lying areas, while in the vast hilly area and high-lands there were droughts in nine out of ten years be-cause of the scarcity of precipitation. In 1951 thepeople began to control the Huai River on a largescale, and after seven years' hard struggle, in the upperreaches of these three rivers they had built Fozilingreservoir (concrete multiple arch dam, 74 m high),Meishan reservoir (concrete multiple arch dam, 88 mhigh), Xianghongdian reservoir (concrete arch dam, 86m high) and Mozitan reservoir (concrete buttress dam,80 m high). With the completion of these reservoirs,these three rivers were basically controlled, and alsoprovided an excellent water supply for the develop-ment of irrigation. The Pishihang irrigation projectwas started in 1958. Its three diversion head workswere completed in succession, with the main canalstotalling 1,500 km, branch canals totalling 40,000 kmand over 10,000 canal structures. The total earth androck works amounted to more than 500 million m3.Aside from the five large reservoirs (the above fourreservoirs and the Longhekou reservoir), the Pishihangirrigation project is composed of more than 800 small-sized reservoirs interconnected with canals, ponds andfarmland. It also links two irrigation areas in theChangjiang River and Huai River basins, and thebenefits of navigation, irrigation, power generation,aquatic production and urban water supply have allbeen secured.

The Subei irrigation area is situated on the northside of the Changjiang River, Jiangsu Province, andcultivation extends over 3 million hectares, most ofwhich are plains and low-lying lands. Before 1949,this area suffered not only from floods, but also fromdroughts, water-logging, alkalization and sedimenta-tion, causing serious losses in agriculture. In the past30 years, over 100 river channels have been dredgedand deepened, more than 3,000 km of dykes have beenstrengthened and heightened and over 1,000 sluiceshave been built. The pumping capacity has reached2 million hp, forming a new water system. The totalirrigated area has increased to more than 2 millionhectares.

The Shaoshan irrigation project in Hunan Pro-vince comprises the storage headwork, the diversionheadwork and the irrigation area. The trunk and

branch canals have a total length of more than 1,800km, the trunk canal being 240 km long. There arealso 26 aqueducts, 10 tunnels and more than 2,300other structures of various sizes. The diverting capa-city is 46 m3/sec, which can irrigate 70,000 hectares offarmland. The project was started in 1965, and in10 months' time the diversion headwork, the principaltrunk canal and the northern main canal were com-pleted, resulting in the irrigation of 30,000 hectares offarmland. Over-all planning and comprehensive con-trol were given serious attention throughout the con-struction period; design and construction were carriedout in the same year, and benefits and production in-crease were also realized in the same year. Afterthis, further miscellaneous ancillary engineering workswere completed, land was levelled, water was put torational use, the irrigated area reached the design re-quirements, and grain output was doubled. At thetwo headworks hydropower stations, ship lock anda ship lift were also built to facilitate navigation andpower generation. The building of the irrigation areawas combined with the planting of trees, and fishbreeding has became an important activity area. Inthis way, the project developed multipurpose benefits.

The Jiangdu hydroproject, the first stage of theproject to bring water from south China to the north,is situated on the northern bank of the ChangjiangRiver at the confluence of the outlet channel of theHuai River with the Changjiang. It is a large-scalewater conservancy project for irrigation, drainage andnavigation, comprising four pumping stations, 10 regu-lating sluices and two shiplocks. In the four stationsthere are altogether 33 machinery units with a totaldischarge capacity of 465 m3/sec and a total installedcapacity of 498 MW. In the future, the amount ofwater to be delivered northward is expected to expandto 1,000 m3/sec. The total length of the diversionchannel is 1,155 km, against a total pumping head of70 m, which will be divided into 15 steps south of theHuanghe River. After crossing the Huanghe River,it will flow by gravity north to Tianjin. The total ir-rigated areas can be extended to 4 million hectares.It also can provide 2,700 million m3 of water forurban water supply, industrial use and navigation.

C. EXPERIENCE EN RURAL WATER SUPPLYTO WATER-DEFICIENT MOUNTAINOUS

AREAS OF NORTH CHINA

(NR.7/CRP.14)

China is a mountainous country, where it is dif-ficult to supply sufficient water to local inhabitants andlivestock in mountainous rural districts, particularlyin the north.


To solve water supply problems in vast water-deficient rural mountainous districts, numerous water-storage projects such as small-sized reservoirs, pump-ing stations and water-storage pools, riverside pondsand underground cisterns, have been built accordingto local conditions by various people's communes withsupport from the State. Because of the serious defi-ciency of surface water in northern China, however,these water-storage projects have often failed to per-form their normal function in drought years. Conse-quently, vigorous development and utilization of groundwater have become an important approach to thesupply of drinking water in such areas.

For many years, geological organizations in thecountry have made great efforts to solve water supplyproblems in water-deficient areas in northern China.In the course of hydrogeological surveys, these organi-zations have both assisted rural people's communesand brigades in locating water sources, and transfer-red wells originally drilled as exploratory boreholes torural communities for local use. In connexion withthe well-digging campaign to combat drought, provin-cial geological bureaux have often sent teams to ruralareas to look for and exploit water in bed-rock fis-sures, karst caves or fault zones in close co-operationwith water conservancy sections of counties and com-munes as well as with the local peasants. Provincialgeological bureaux have also helped local people inselecting well sites, digging and expanding springs, dis-covering concealed water-flows and constructing vari-ous works appropriate to local conditions, so as toprovide sufficient drinking water for the water-deficientmountain villages. By so doing they have made avaluable contribution to the living conditions of thepeople, the freeing of productive forces and the in-crease in agricultural production.

1. Hydrogeological surveys

China started planned nation-wide hydrogeologicalsurveys in the 1950s. These surveys have been muchaccelerated and more closely linked with water-findingactivities in water-deficient mountain districts since1976. For example, the loess plateau in north-west-ern China is one of the most water-deficient regionsin the country. However, recent hydrogeological sur-veys in the loess plateau of northern Shaanxi indicatethat the loess beds are underlain by an artesian basinof more than 14,000 km2 of Cretaceous rocks withwidespread occurrence of ground water. The hydro-geological team working in the region bored and con-structed for the local communes over 160 water wellswith a total yield for more than 44,000 tons per day,providing enough water to irrigate about 1,250 ha ofarable land in addition to supplying local domesticneeds. One of the wells completed in Shuanhochanbrigade of Xinnoncun commune in Qingbien countyhas a daily yield of over 2,000 tons of water, resulting

in an increase of 40 ha of irrigated land. It shouldbe noted that in constructing these wells, all the ex-penses except for the pipes were covered by the State.Although the rural communities in this region are stillunable to afford the machinery for well sinking, thehydrogeological survey has provided an excellent pros-pect for change in the future outlook of the region.

Among the "Support-the-Agriculture" teams, theQianang team sent by the Geological Bureau of HenanProvince to the seriously water-deficient mountains ofMixian county has made excellent progress. The teamascertained the hydrogeological conditions of the areaand located many water-filled fracture zones by apply-ing geomechanical methods. In collaboration with thelocal water-conservancy units and commune peasants,the team has constructed 1,658 wells, thus findingenough water to meet the drinking water demand of140,000 people and reducing an increase of 56,7000ha in irrigated farmland.

Quyang county in the Taihang Mountains is anarea of predominantly Cambrian and Ordovician lime-stones. Here a team has helped the local communesto select over 1,000 well sites and now about 700 wellshave been completed. As a result, 318 villages witha total population of about 34,000 have enough waternot only for drinking purposes, but also for irrigationof 3,300 ha of arable land. Also based on a hydro-geological investigation, an inclined well 120 m deepwas designed on the slope of the mountain near thePangjiawa brigade. The well tapped a water-filledkarst cave and yielded over 70 tons of water per hour,hence putting an end to the need for carrying drinkingwater from outside the village and for weather-depen-dent farming.

Tn the mountainous areas around Beijing, "Sup-port-the-Agriculture" teams toured the water-deficientvillages in the mountains and made over 800 propo-sals to help these villages to find water. As a conse-quence, within less than two years the villages becamebasically self-sufficient in drinking water and thou-sands of ha of farmland were brought under irrigation.

Among the provinces of northern China, Shaanxihas the largest area of mountainous districts and isthe most water-deficient province. The provincialgovernment has placed great emphasis on mobilizingthe people and has made special arrangements to pro-vide funds, equipment and materials for the construc-tion of a large number of small-sized water conser-vancy projects of various types in conformance withlocal conditions; consequently it has succeeded in solv-ing the water supply problems for 75 per cent of therural community in the province.

In the vast mountainous districts of northernChina, apart from an insufficient water supply, there


is also the problem of various endemic diseases thatare related to the quality of the drinking water. Forinstance, such endemic diseases as chronic keshandisease, the "big joints" disease, the "high-fluorine"disease and goitre are quite widespread in hilly areasin the north, causing serious harm to public health.Such endemic diseases are found in 70 out of 80 coun-ties in Heilongjiang province. Investigations andstudies in recent years have indicated that endemicdiseases, excluding keshan disease and goitre, areknown to be directly related to drinking water quality.Various measures of prevention and cure are now be-ing practised to reduce the incidence of disease, themost important of which is the improvement in waterquality. Case histories have shown that the level ofmorbidity in infected areas decreases remarkably afterthe original shallow wells and ditches are replaced bydeep wells as drinking water sources. Therefore, im-provement in water quality and introduction of newwater sources have become important measures inareas of endemic diseases.

2. Future planning policy

To satisfy the basic need for drinking water inthe water-deficient mountainous rural areas of thecountry by 1985, the Ministry of Water Conservancyin China has demanded that all the provinces concern-ed should formulate and ensure the fulfilment of res-pective programmes of work. It has also demandedthat all construction works and measures to be takenshould be adapted to local conditions, with specialattention to their practical effectiveness. With regard

to funds, materials and equipment, the principle ofself-reliance should be considered the leading factor,while State support may be accepted as a supplement.In allocating the provincial budgetary funds for waterconservancy, priority should be given to water supplyprojects for water-deficient mountain villages. More-over, care must be taken to prepare the designs proper-ly before such works are constructed and to providefor maintenance and management after they are built.

To define water deficiency of the rural communityin mountainous areas, the Government has laid downsome norms. Accordingly, water-deficient villages arethose which are situated at a distance of over 1-2 kmor at a vertical distance of over 100 m from the near-est water point where the villagers get their drinkingwater. As to the volume of available drinking water,the norm is 10 litres per capita per day in dry seasonsin the north and 40 litres in the south, and 20-50 litresper head of cattle or buffalo and 5-10 litres per headof pig or sheep. Therefore, villages where the avail-able volume of drinking water exceeds the abovenorms are tentatively considered as not having difficul-ty in drinking water supply.

With a view to realizing the four modernizationsand steadily raising the people's living standard, theprovision of water supply to rural communities in vastwater-deficient mountainous areas has become a pri-ority task. In this connexion, water conservancy andgeological agencies are required to make still greaterjoint efforts and work is even closer co-operation soas to contribute further to the fulfilment of thisarduous task.

V. INDONESIA(NR.7/CRP.15)

INTRODUCTION

As an archipelago located on the equator, Indo-nesia is blessed with an abundance of water. However,the water tends to be available in the wrong place andat the wrong time. The unequal distribution of popu-lation among the islands, the rapid population growthand the increasing need for water, especially in thedry season, is straining the water resources. Realizingthe pressing problems of water resources, the Govern-ment of Indonesia established its policy and programmewith regard to water resources during the first five-year development plan (REPELITA), 1969/70 to 1973/74.

The development of water resources, being a partof the development of public works, was concentratedon providing infrastructure support for agriculturaldevelopment, especially food production. Consequent-ly, irrigation development, reclamation of swampy

areas for agricultural purposes and flood protection ofrice production areas were on the priority list of thenational development plan. Efforts were focused onan increase in rice production, especially near the ma-jor consumption centres and around the areas preparedfor farmer resettlement and transmigration schemesin underpopulated regions.

The activities relating to water resources develop-ment in REPELITA II (1974/75 to 1978/79) includedin general:

(a) Support to the development of agriculturalareas by supplying irrigation water and safeguardingthose areas and the population against inundation byflood and volcanic debris;

(b) Support to the industrial sector by the con-struction of multi-purpose projects and by the supplyof water for industrial purposes.


For the implementation of the development ofwater resources in REPELITA II, the following fivebasic programmes were adopted:

(a) Continuation of the rehabilitation and im-provement of the existing irrigation networks and ifpossible, completion of the programmes of REPELITAI;

(b) Continuation and acceleration of the develop-ment of new irrigation networks, emphasizing develop-ment of simple irrigation and reclamation projects.These activities were concentrated around the areas offood-consuming centres, the areas for trasmigration andthe areas with dense population;

(c) Intensification of protection measures in agri-cultural areas against catastrophes, e.g., inundationsand volcanic eruptions;

(d) Intensification of water resources planningbased on comprehensive river basin development toestablish co-ordinated and synchronized master plans,to promote the development of industries and the gen-eration of hydroelectric power;

(e) Intensification of study and research in thetechnology of water resources development.

In the present five-year development plan,REPELITA HI (1979/80 to 1983/84), the goals forwater resources development are as follows:

rice;(a) To support food production, especially of

(b) To support the transmigration programme;

(c) To support industrial development;

(d) To provide water supply for cities and ruralareas;

A. WATER RESOURCES FEATURES OFINDONESIA

The archipelago of Indonesia, lying along theequator, forms a highway between the Pacific and theIndian Oceans, and a bridge between the mainland ofAsia and the continent of Australia. The whole ter-ritory lies between 95° and 141° east longitude andabout 6° north and 11° south latitude. The longestdistance from west to east is 5,120 km, and from northto south 1,800 km. Covering a land area of 1,920,000km2, Indonesia consists of 13,700 islands, amongwhich about 6,000 are uninhabited.

The total population of Indonesia is about 142million people, 80 per cent of whom live in rural areas.

About 64 per cent of the total population lives on theisland of Java, although the area of Java is only 6.6per cent of the total area of the archipelago.

The climate is distinctly seasonal. The easternmonsoon occurs from June through September, con-trolled by the continental air masses, and the westernmonsoon from December through March, controlledby moisture-laden maritime air masses. The monthsof April to May and October to November are in thetransitional periods between the two seasons. Therainfall in Indonesia varies widely between 700 mmper year to 7,000 mm per year, with an average of2,810 mm per year; evaporation and transpiration aregenerally within the range of 1,000 mm to 1,500 mmper year.

The water resources potential in Indonesia relatedto its population can be classified into three categories:

(a) The good water potential region, with morethan 100,000 m3/capita/year, consists of Kalimantanand Irian Jaya;

(b) The fair water potential region, between10,000-100,000 m3/capita/year, consists of Sumatra,Sulawesi and the Maluku islands;

(c) The poor water potential region, with less than10,000 m3/capita/year, consists of Java, Madura, Bali,and the Nusa Tenggara islands.

Figure 19 is a map of water potential in Indonesia.Specific details can be found in table 21. The waterpotential as stated above consists of surface water andground water, of which only 25 to 35 per cent is avail-able as firm flow, while 65 to 75 per cent is floodflow, which until now flowed to the sea. There aremore than one thousand rivers, both perennial andintermittent, which are registered. There are 433which are more than 40 km long, while 855 rivers areless than 40 km long.

Ground-water resources can be classified into thefollowing groups: sub-surface water; confined andsemi-confined ground water; fissure and fracture water,under drainage; and saline ground water.

The alluvial type of land which has good proper-ties for irrigated agriculture, and with a slope of lessthan 8 per cent, covers an area of 16.8 million hectaresor nearly 4 per cent of the total land area of Indo-nesia. This type of land, as well as the volcanic soil,are quite suitable for rice cultivation. Moreover, alarge area of swamp land can be found on severalislands, including Sumatra, Kalimantan and IrianianJava. The productivity of this kind of soil is sub-stantially improved with better drainage and watercontrol.

LEGEND:

Water potential description ( m3 per capita per year)

|&j3 Good ( more than 100,000 nP/cop/ta/year )

frgffj Foir (10,000-100,000 m3/cap/to/year)

1=1 Poor (less than in/capita/ytat)

Figure 19. Map of the water potential of Indonesia


Table 21. Indonesia: land surface, agricultural land, irrigated land,rainfall and water availability by region

Total area* Agricultural Irrigated Av"aS'. aniu'aUc'tual Average annual run-off Popuh,ion WaterRegion Total ana* ^ ^ annual cvapo_ "m0 avatlabihly

transpiration (m^/capital(1 000 ha) (1 000 ha) (1 000 ha) (mm) (mm) (mm) (billion m3) (1 000) year)

Java and Madura 13 219 5 647 3 100 2 580 1250 1330 175.8 89 657 1961Sumatra 47 361 3 909 1150 2 820 1350 1470 696.2 26 635 26138

Kalimantan 53 946 1418 110 2 990 1400 1590 857.7 6 501 131933

Sulawesi 18922 966 354 2 340 1200 1140 215.7 10279 20 984Bali 556 382 109 2 120 1 100 1 020 5.7 2 460 2 317

Nusa Tcnggara Barat . . . 2018 358 163 1450 1050 400 8.1 2599 3117Nusa Tenggara Timur . . . 4788 469 51 1200 1000 200 9.6 2641 3635Maluku 7 451 370 2 2 370 1200 1 170 87.2 1 339 65 123

Irian Jaya 42 198 210 — 3 190 1400 1790 755.3 187 4 039 034

Total 190 457 13 729 5 039 2 810 — — 2 811.3 142 298 —

Note: There are considerable spatial variations within each of the above regions." Not including land area of East Timor.

B. GROUND-WATER RESOURCES should be further investigated for the assessment of

t c , .. . . . . . . . such resources. In Indonesia, potential ground water1. Systematic hydrologeological mapping , ^

can normally be found along the foot of QuaternaryThere is a national hydrogeological mapping pro- volcanoes and in the intermontane basin. Some coastal

gramme for the preparation of maps at a scale of , . , , • , , t- , ,. • . r\ t „ „ ^ J :7-.cr.nnn r- • i_ u \. c 1 mw u io plains underlain by relatively thick Quaternary sedi-1:250,000. Each sheet covers an area of l°30' by 1°. v } . .By April 1980, five maps had been published, as shown m e n t s a n d s o m e limestone terrain also have goodin table 22. Hydrogeological maps are required for potential for ground-water occurrence,regional development planning, since they providebasic data on the mode of ground-water occurrence, Investigations have been carried out in 14 ground-availability of ground water and ground-water quality. water basins by the Directorate of Environmental

Geology in co-operation with the Institute of Geolo-2. Ground-water resources evaluation g i c a l Sciences (London) and the Federal Republic of

Areas of potential ground-water resources iden- Germany through the Bundesanstalt fur Geowissen-tified during the hydrogeological mapping programme schaften und Rohstoffe.

Table 22. Published hydrogeological maps of Indonesia, 1980

Name of map Scale Year ofpublication

Remarks

Tentative ground-water map ofJava and Madura

Hydrogeological map of Maduraisland

Hydrogeological map of Sumbaisland

Reconnaissance hydrogeologicalmap or Bali

Reconnaissance hydrogeologicalmap of Lombok

1:1 000 000

1: 250 000

1: 250 000

1: 250 000

1: 400 000

1960

1962

1965

1970

1972

Geological Survey of Indonesia(with explanatory note).

Geological Survey of Indonesiaand Bundesanstalt fur Boden-forschung of the Federal Repub-lic of Germany.

Same as (2).

Same as (2).

Same as (2).

Note: The map of Java and Madura consists of 9 sheets, which are now being prepared for publication.In addition field work has been carried out in the northern and southern part of Sumatra (16sheets), the southern part of Kalimantan (3 sheets), in the Sulawesi islands (5 sheets) and inmost of the Nusa Tenggara islands. Thus some 25-30 per cent of the country has been coveredby this programme.


3. Ground-water resources management andconservation

Proper management of ground-water resourcescan only be carried out in a basin or an area whichhas been intensively investigated. This requires reli-able data on ground-water recharge and discharge,hydrogeologic properties of the aquifers, the extent ofthe aquifers and other important factors. The futureeffects of the ground-water abstraction can then bepredicted. Optimum development of ground-waterresources would be achieved if the recharge of theground water were balanced by the total discharge.In most cases it is recommended to limit the rate ofthe ground-water abstraction to the practical sustainedyield of the basin.

At present there are two areas which are beinginvestigated in detail, both located in the highly de-veloped northern coastal plain of Java. They are theJakarta artesian basin and the Semarang area. Seawater intrusion has taken place along the northernpart of Jakarta, as a result of large-scale ground-waterabstraction for domestic and industrial water supplies.

4. Ground-water development projects: activities bythe Directorate General of Water Resources

Development, Ministry of Public Works

Some parts of Indonesia suffer severe shortages ofwater, especially in the dry season. The agriculturalactivities in these regions are therefore confined to thewet season, with one crop grown per year. Supple-mentary irrigation water is essential for growing asecond or possibly even a third crop.

In some regions where construction of reservoirsfor storage of surface water is not feasible, ground-water exploitation becomes the only option to remedythe situation. Therefore, ground-water developmentprojects are now being carried out in Java, Madura.Bali, Lombok and Timor islands.

5. Ground-water data bank

The Directorate of Environmental Geology is incharge of the management of the ground-water re-sources of the country, and there is an urgent needfor the establishment of a proper ground-water datasystem within this institution. The system should besuitable for the storage of ground-water data receivedfrom various other institutions and should be capableof speedy retrieval of data required for planning thedevelopment of the ground-water resources. At pre-sent, skilled personnel and facilities are still beingsought through technical assistance from the FederalRepublic of Germany and other sources.

C. WATER UTILIZATION

^^— 1. Domestic water supply

Throughout Indonesia, there arc about 140 citieswhich already receive piped water supplies. Most ofthese cities receive their water from springs whichoriginate on the mountain slopes, and only a minorityobtain their water from artesian wells. A few cities,such as Jakarta, Bandung, Semarang and Surabaya,have their own water treatment installations. It isestimated that for all of Indonesia, water usage forthis sector is about 9-15 million m3 per day. Most ofthe smaller cities and villages depend on wells for theirdaily needs. Hence efforts for the improvement ofsanitation in the future are necessary.

Water installations are divided into the followingtypes: simple piping systems; rain water collection;protected springs; artesian wells; and wells with handpumps. As seen in table 23, the larger part of thepopulation served by water installations gets its drink-ing water from wells with manual pumps. However,the vast majority of the rural population obtains itsdrinking water from surface supplies, e.g., rivers orirrigation canals, or from shallow hand-dug wells.

Table 23. Distribution of rural water supply andsanitation facilities in Indonesia

(number)

Infrastructure

Simple piping system

Artesian well . . . .

Rain water collection

Protected springs . .

Well with manual pump

Deep well pump .

Latrine

1969-1974

1083

2416

2 882—

2 546 1

1974-1979

692

188

2 1081 000

84 682

1 061

050 000

1980-1981

300100

1000400

48 0004 500

300 000 1

Total

1 100291

3 132

1 416135 564

5 561

352 546

Source: Directorate of Hygiene and Sanitation, 1980.

2. Irrigation

The main food of the Indonesian people is rice.The water needed for irrigation of wet rice is estimatedat between 10,000-14,000 m3/ha per season, if all thecanals and ditches are in good condition.

The majority of irrigation areas, especially thosewith technical irrigation facilities, are concentrated inJava. Irrigated areas in Indonesia are usually classi-fied according to the type and quality of irrigationfacilities provided, as listed below.

Technical irrigation systems are those which havea water supply system which is separate from thedrainage system and where the volume of incomingwater delivered can be measured at a number ofpoints.


Semi-technical systems have fewer permanentstructures and only one water measurement device(usually at the major intake), and the supply anddrainage system are not always fully separate.

Simple systems have no measurement devices, con-veyance systems for water supply and drainage are notseparate, and there is the possibility of recirculationof water.

A further classification of irrigation systems isbased on the controlling authority. Most of Indone-sia's irrigation systems (about 80 per cent) are underthe control of the Ministry of Public Works. The re-mainder are known as village irrigation systems. Vil-lage irrigation systems are managed, operated andusually constructed under the leadership of villagechiefs. Data on Indonesia's irrigated areas are pre-sented in table 24.

of March 1979, the total PLN installed capacity inIndonesia was about 2,413.38 MW, of which about20 per cent was based on hydropower, 23 per cent onsteam power, 21 per cent on diesel power and 36 percent on gas turbine power plants. A higher proportionof demand comes from domestic consumers (66 percent) than from industrial consumers (34 per cent),and all of the consumers are concentrated in the largetowns.

Besides the PLN generation facilities mentionedabove, there are also generating facilities owned byprivate industries and local government for their ownuse. These tend to be small units, separate from oneanother and also separate from the PLN network,which amounted to 2,059 MW in March 1980. Ininternational terms, per capita electric consumption inIndonesia is still very low (about 69 kWh/capita),

Table 24. Irrigation areas in Indonesia(hectares)

Gravity

I stand/provinceTechnical Semi-

technical Simple Totalpublic tvor Village

Totalpublic worthsand village

Tidal andswamplands

Total Percentage

Java 1631289 384 667 551,288 2 567 244 532 958 3 100 202 — 3 100 202 59

Bali — 44 355 8 291 52 646 51174 103 820 — 103 820 2Sumatra 224 259 320 172 281952 826383 293 017 1119400 214400 1333 800 25Kalimantan 3 490 15 184 41226 59 900 15 920 75 820 107 600 183 418 3Sulawesi 139 794 84 671 44 704 269 169 84 904 354 073 — 354 073 7

Nusa Tenggara 63 343 61070 51455 175 868 38 496 214 364 — 214 364 4Maluku — 1419 — 1419 — 1419 — 1419 0

Total 2 062 175 911538 978 916 3 952 629 1016 469 4 969 098 322 000 5 291098 100

Sources: 1. Directorate of Irrigation, Directorate General of Water Resources, Ministry of Public Works, 1979.

2. Directorate of Swamp Land Development, Ministry of Public Works, 1979.

3. Industry

Indonesia has a range of light to heavy industries,most of which get their water from rivers. Therefore,many industries are located near such major rivers asthe Brantas, the Bengawan Solo in east Java, the Cili-wung and Citarum in west Java and the Musi in southSumatra. Over 77 per cent of the industries are locat-ed in Java, with 11 per cent in Sumatra.

4. Electrical power supply

The electricity supplied to the public is almostexclusively generated by the State Electricity Corpora-tion (PLN). At present, electric power generationutilizes two kinds of energy resources, hydropower andfuel oil, while the types of power plants comprisehydroelectric, steam, diesel and gas turbine plants. As

consisting of 38 kWh/capita from other generating

sources.

5. Other uses

(a) Fisheries

The only fisheries which need fresh water areinland fisheries. The regions in which the populationbreeds fish are usually those around lowland plains,where ponds and dams are constructed for this pur-pose. The water used is generally from rivers. An-other method of fish-breeding is to use rice fields (atcertain times) as breeding places. Sometimes fish arebred in rivers by use of the karamba (a kind of boxof plaited bamboo), or existing lakes, reservoirs andswamps are used. The area used for fish ponds isrelatively small. About 68 per cent of the fish re-quired by the Indonesian people come from sea fish-ing.


(b) Inland navigation

There are very few rivers in Indonesia which canaccommodate the navigation of big ships. Rivers inJava are often shallow as a result of their high sedi-mentation content. The few rivers which can be na-vigated far inland are found in Sumatra and in Kali-mantan. The Kapuas River in Kalimantan, which canbe navigated up to Putusibau (a distance of 600 km) is,at present, the major one which can accommodate bigships.

(c) Mining industry

Data related to water resources needs and usesin the mining sector are relatively sparse. With res-pect to the monitoring of water utilization in extract-ing and/or refining the various mineral ores up to arequired quality or grade of produce, the mining in-dustry in general speaks of water withdrawal ratherthan water consumption or use. Very large volumesof water are used to produce one unit of the product;however, virtually all of the water is returned to thestream system, be it a nearby river or one which hasbeen dammed up for the purpose. Until the mineralindustry is required to reduce the possibly negative

lion people. If the urban/rural population patternremains the same as at present (70 per cent of thepopulation in rural areas), and the water demand forthe urban population is estimated to be 200 I/day/capita, and 60 1/day/capita for the rural population,then the water demand for the population in 2001 willbe as presented in table 25.

2. Water demand for irrigation

If Indonesia intends to become self-sufficient inrice, this means that in the year 2001 the country mustbe able to supply rice at the amount of 210.25 x 106x102 kg, or 21.025 million tons of rice (assuming thatthe consumption of rice per capita per year = 100 kg).That amount of rice can be produced by 7.01 millionha of irrigated rice fields. At present the availableirrigated area throughout Indonesia is 5.3 million ha.Therefore, an expansion of 2 million ha will be neededby the year 2000. Table 26 shows the extent of agri-cultural regions and irrigated regions in 1979.

Additional available land which has good proper-ties for irrigation is chiefly of the alluvial type. Thistype of land represents plains (with a slope of 0-8°),

Table 25. Indonesia: estimation of domestic water demand forrural and urban population in the year 2001

Population, year 2001 Water demand

Region Urban Rural(1 000)

Urban(1 000 i

Rural

Totalwater demand

(1 000 m3/yr)

Java and Madura 39 739

Sumatra II 806

Kalimantan 2 881

Sulawesi 4 556

Bali 1 090

Nusa Tenggara Barat . . . 1 152

Nusa Tenggara Timur . . . 1 171

Maluku 593

Irian Jaya 83

Total 63 071

92 72327 5466 72410 6302 5442 6882 7311385192

2 900 947861 838210313332 58879 57084 09685 48343 2896 059

2 030 634603 257147 256232 79755 71458 86759 80930 3324 205

4 9315811 465 095357 569565 385135 284142 963H 5 29273 62110 264

147 163 4 604 183 3 222 871 7 827 054

effects by restoring the quality of the water withdrawnand subsequently returned to the river for public usefurther downstream, water control by the mining com-panies will be limited to routine monitoring of waterresources availability; anti-pollution measures are notincluded. Thousands of tons of water are used by themining companies in Indonesia for mining and pro-cessing of tin, granite, iron sand, nickel ore and gold.

D. MEASUREMENT AND PROJECTIONSOF WATER DEMAND

1. Water demand for the population

Population statistics are basic in an estimation ofdomestic water demand. Therefore, population trendsmust be predicted. The total population of Indonesiain the year 2001 has been estimated at over 210 mil-

Table 26. Area of agricultural regions and irrigatedregions in Indonesia, 1979

. o Agricultural IrrigatedRegion region region

(ha) (ha) (ha)

Java and Madura . . 13 218 700 5 647 000 3 100 000Sumatra 47 360 600 3 908 600 1 334 000Kalimantan . . . . 53946000 1418000 183000Sulawesi 18 921600 996 300 354 000Bali 556 100 381900 109 000Nusa Tenggara Barat . 2 017 700 357 700 163 000Nusa Tcnggara Timur . 4 787 600 469 400 51000Maluku 7 450 500 370 000 1500Irian Jaya 42 198 100 210 000 —

Total 190 456 900 13 728 900 5 295 500

Sources: 1. Statistical Pocketbook. oj Indonesia, 1977'/1978, Jakarta,Central Bureau of Statistics.

2. Directorate of Irrigation, Directorate General of WaterResources.

" Not including the land area of East Timor.


amounting to an area of 16.8 million ha or nearly 9per cent of the total area of Indonesia. From theabove it is clear that there is more than enough poten-tial land available to support agriculture, especiallyrice, if other types of land are considered (for examplelatosol, with an area of 17 million ha). However, forthe island of Java, the area for agricultural expansionis very limited. Therefore, it is advisable that priori-ty be given to Sumatra and Kalimantan for agricul-tural expansion. For Java and Nusa Tenggara, re-habilitation and intensification of existing irrigatedareas should be the first priority. Estimates of thearea and water demand for irrigation for every islandin the year 2000 are given in table 27.

The estimated water required to be drawn forsteam power plants is 0.125 1/kWh and for hydro-power plants 1.86 m3/kWh, and the estimated per-centage of water losses for boiler water (fresh water)is 3 per cent. Total water demand for energy pro-duction on Java is estimated at 14,113 million m3 forthe year 2000.

4. Water demand for industry

Water for industries is obtained from ground waterand surface water. In Indonesia there is not yet anenterprise which supplies water particularly for indus-

Table 27. Estimation of water demand for irrigation in Indonesia(year 2000)

RegionEstimation ofirrigated area

(thousand ha)

listimation ofwater demand in

the year 2000(million m3/yr)

Assumptions

Java and Madura .

Sumatra . . . .

Kalimantan

Sulawesi . .

Bali

Nusa Tenggara Barat

Nusa Tenggara Timur

Maluku . . . .

Irian Jaya . . . .

2 600

2 250

2 300

350

250

250

5

10

52 000

45 000

46 000

7 000

5 000

5 000

100

200

Water demand for rice is around1.1-1.5 1/sec/ha or equivalentto 10 000 m3 for one crop, as-suming a second crop, andhomogeneous land conditionsfor every territory.

Total 7 765 155 300

Source: D. Muljadi and Ir. Sitanala Arsjad, The Role of Land Factor in Use Planning, Jakarta.

Apart from rice irrigation, land is also needed fora second crop and for vegetables. Land suitable fora second crop, in particular of andosol type soil, isplentiful, amounting to 4.7 million ha throughout theislands.

3. Hydro power

By March 1980, the electric power facilities own-ed by the PLN had a total installed capacity of 2,527.7MW, of which 523.3 MW were generated by hydro-power plants. In view of the meteorological and topo-graphical conditions in Indonesia, the hydropowerpotential was estimated at around 31,000 MW, and itis planned to develop hydropower potential up to11,000 MW by 1984, at the end of the third five-yeardevelopment plan. Based on PLN long-term planningin Java, and parallel with increasing modernizationand industrialization, the share of electricity in com-mercial energy consumption should be raised to 15-20per cent by the year 2000.

Water utilized for hydropower plants is only "pass-ed" through the turbine and does not represent realconsumed water; the water can still be used for variousother purposes.

tries. Therefore every industry or factory generallyarranges for its own industrial water supply.

For a few types of important industries, locatedmainly in Java, data concerning the amount of waterused have already been established, as seen in table 28.

Table 28. Estimation of water used incertain industries in Indonesia

(m3/year)

Type of industry Capacity/yearWater used per year

(thousand ms)

BeveragesMilk . . .Ice. . . .LeatherTextilesCementPaper . . .Urea/fertilizerGlass/mirrorsMetal . . .

Total use of water for 10 types ofindustries for 1975

156 000 m 3

86 000 m 3

250 000 tons18 000 tons

974 000 000 m1 950 000 tons

50 000 tons200 000 tons25 000 tons450 000 tons

300850500

130056 0005 000

25 0004 00080

50 000

143 030


Since industrial growth in Java is more rapid thanin other regions, and the island's water resources arerelatively limited, the problem of water supply in Javaneeds more serious attention in the future. In regionsoutside Java, especially on the large islands of Sumatra,Kalimantan and Irian Jaya, the problem of obtainingwater resources for industry is probably easier than inJava.

Total water demand for the year 2000 for the 10types of industries listed in table 28 is estimated at784 million m3.

Table 29 shows the comparison between waterdemand and water availability in the year 2000. Themajor findings are the following:

(a) Java has already exceeded the critical point(over 100 per cent);

(b) Bali, Nusa Tenggara Barat and NusaTenggara Timur are in a critical situation (90 percent);

(c) Sumatra, Kalimantan and Sulawesi are stillfar from the critical point (23-31 per cent);

(d) In Maluku and Irian Jaya the water usageis less than 1 per cent of the available firm flow.

Table 29. Comparison of water supply and demandin Indonesia for the year 2000

Estimated Estimated Comparisonwater water between

n • availability demand water demandK's'°" (m*/capita/ (m*/capita/ and water

year) year) availability(Sear 2000) (percentage)*

Java and Madura 332 540 163

Sumatra 4 423 1 366 31

Kalimantan 22 325 5 028 23

Sulawesi 3 551 963 27

Bali 390 )Nusa Tenggara Barat . . . 526 > 480 94

Nusa Tenggara Timur . . . 614 J

Maluku 11018 88 0.8

Irian Jaya 686 680 796 0.12

Location not yet determined:

— industry 784.03

— steam power plant (PLTU) . 15.94

— nuclear power plant (PLTN) 14.35

* Estimated conditions o£ water supply scarcity in the various islandsin 2000 can be determined as follows:

Approaching the critical point 50-75 per cent

At a critical stage 75-100 per cent

Exceeding the critical point 100 per cent

On the basis of these findings, the water in Java,Bali and Nusa Tenggara must be managed efficiently,while on the other islands, water usage may still under-go an increase.

E. WATER RESOURCES DEVELOPMENTIN INDONESIA

1. Policy, planning and management

Under REPELITA III, the third five-year plan(1979/80-1983/84), the goals for development of thewater resources sector in Indonesia, as listed in theintroduction, are the support of food production, thetransmigration programme and industrial development,and the provision of water for cities and rural areas.Since agriculture is the largest single sector in theIndonesian economy, irrigation development has re-ceived considerable emphasis in the Government's de-velopment efforts.

Agriculture accounts for approximately 43 percent of gross domestic product and for 60 per cent ofemployment. The Government is pledged to providea considerable amount of water for rice cultivationand to give special attention to water resources develop-ment in the rural areas.

River basin development is considered to be themost suitable method for achieving planning aims. Theriver basin constitutes a development region. By thisapproach the ultimate water potential, includingground water, and the total water demand in the riverbasin development is aimed at the optimum utilizationof water resources. It is understood that about 80 percent of the population of a river basin live in ruralareas; it is therefore the policy of the Government todevelop the rural areas through the development of thebasins as water resources regions. Accordingly, thewhole country has been divided into 53 river basins orwater resources regions.

2. Planning procedure

The planning of water resources development, withemphasis on river basin development, should be donethrough an over-all integrated approach, with multi-and interdisciplinary co-operation, should be well co-ordinated, and should take into account various needsin a balanced way. It should include a realistic timeperspective and should recognize existing limitations.

The application of modern techniques, such assystems analysis, will enable people to make betterdecisions than had hitherto been made on the basis ofintuition and experience. Such techniques will cer-tainly be useful tools for the river basin approach. Inthe development of river basins, the planning body hasto consider not only water resources, but also otherrelated natural resources, especially land and forest re-sources, which form the most important elements inthe hydrological cycle. Finally, human recources, towhich the main efforts are devoted, must be prominentlyconsidered.


The planning process for water resources develop-ment consists of assessing activities which may requirea year or several years to complete. Under favourableconditions, it is possible to carry out a sequential pro-cess for a project as follows:

(a) Identification study

The study may be initiated by the central Gov-ernment or be requested by the provincial government.This first stage is carried out to formulate developmentplanning objectives and implementation programmesbased on the potential and problems of water resourcesdevelopment in the framework of regional developmentplan objectives.

(b) Reconnaissance survey

This stage is carried out to formulate preliminaryideas of possible development measures and the workprogramme for further stages.

(c) Master plan study

This stage is carried out to assess data and suggestmeasures to optimize water resources development andto identify priorities for implemenation.

(d) Feasibility study

From the priority list in the master plan there willbe a selection of individual project(s) for which afeasibility study will be carried out.

(e) Design

Engineering design is the next step to make theproject(s) ready for construction implementation.

3. Implementation

During the second five-year development plan(1974/75-1978/79), REPEL1TA II, there werefour sections of work, as follows: rehabilitation andextension of existing irrigation networks; developmentof new irrigation networks; improvement and develop-ment of rivers and swamps; and institutional researchfor water resources development.

With regard to river basin planning, the ultimatewater potentials, including ground water and totalwater demand in the river basins, were identified withthe help of computer programming. Master plans forbasin development were prepared, which aimed at theoptimum utilization of water resources. In REPELITAII, 11 such basin studies were finalized. The problemof environment was considered in carrying out thesestudies. The ecological impact will be carefullyexamined to prevent destruction of the human environ-ment by future development.

The targets of water resources development inREPELITA II were as follows:

Rehabilitation and improvement ofexisting irrigation networks 834 698 ha

Development of new irrigationnetworks 950 000 ha

River improvement and protectionof agricultural and urban areas 407 190 ha

Tidal drainage and swamp areasdevelopment 272 000 ha

Total 2 463 888 ha

The third five year development plan (1979/80-1983/84), REPELITA III, includes the currentactivities listed below.

(a) Management of water resources development,handled by the Ministry of Public Works, coversirrigation and drainage; reclamation of swampy areas;river engineering, river training, river improvement andriver basin development planning; protection and con-trol of flood and volcanic debris hazards; and develop-ment of reservoirs for irrigation, flood control andmultipurpose uses.

(b) Management, operation and maintenance ofirrigation networks, under the provincial governments,are carried out by the provincial public works bodies.

(c) Improvement of irrigation works financed bythe central Government carried out by the provincialpublic works department. The rehabilitated irrigationsystem is then handed over to the relevant provincialpublic works department for further management.

(d) For large developments such as river im-provements and irrigation reservoir, which are financedby the central Government, a project is set up and anon-permanent executive body put in charge of thedesign and construction of the project.

(e) Village irrigation projects are managed by thevillage authorities or by the farmers' community underthe guidance of the Ministry of Interior.

(f) Management of water use and management atthe farm level (including consideration of the waterrequirements of various crops) is provided by theMinistry of Agriculture in co-operation with localgovernment, while the general water management ofthe whole irrigation system remains the responsibilityof the Ministry of Public Works.

(g) Management of soil and water conservationin the river catchment areas to prevent flood anderosion is implemented by the Ministry of Agriculture,


and includes prevention of uncontrolled and improperplanning of deforestation, and reforestation, terracing,contour farming and planting of ground cover.

The civil engineering aspect of soil conservationis controlled by the Ministry of Public Works and isco-ordinated with the river development programme.

4. Appropriate technology

Local technologies which are commonly used inIndonesia for water resources development include thefollowing:

(a) Water wheel in west Sumatra

The water wheel lifts the water from the river tothe rice field. It is commonly used in west Sumatra.The typical water wheel is made of bamboo and woodand is propelled either by human power or by waterpower.

(b) Subak system in Bali

A subak is a traditional Balinese water users' as-sociation. All decisions and regulations concerningthe distribution of water to the members and con-struction of works are governed by the subak. A re-markable example of subak activity is the constructionof water tunnels, using local technology.

(c) The use of water pails (ebor) in central Java

The ebor system is a method of lifting water froma river or canal to irrigate rice fields, using bamboostakes. This method is practised by individual farmersor by a group of people organized by the head of thevillage.

(d) The tidal irrigation system

The tidal rice fields are found along the coast ofeast Sumatra, west Kalimantan and south-east Kali-mantan, and were originally swamps. By using a canalsystem including main, secondary and tertiary canals,tidal fluctuations can be used to transform the swampsinto rice fields. The system has been co-ordinated withthe transmigration programme.

(e) Polder system

Polder is an irrigation system dependent on thecontrol of the water table on low-lying land. Besidesthe construction of dykes around the polder, thissystem involves an arrangement for the distributionand disposal of water. The supply and disposal ofexcess water is carried out mechanically, using pumps.Polder Alabio, with an area of 6,000 ha, is located insouth Kalimantan and Polder Mentaren, with 2,300ha, is in central Kalimantan.

I

5. Environmental aspects

Watershed management methods proposed forovercoming negative environmental impacts have beendirected to population activities, through:

(a) The reforestation programme, for which massguidance has been provided by the provincial govern-ment;

(b) Contour farming, grass covering, strip crop-ping and terracing, which have received special atten-tion in the hill farming areas, in order to prevent gulleyerosion and topsoil erosion;

(c) Aquatic weed control, for which manual andmechanical measures have been attempted and tested;

(d) Check dam construction, as a measure againstheavy granular sediment transport in the upper reachesof rivers; and

(e) River training and improvement, to preventbank erosion along wild rivers.

Other means of finding effective methods for over-coming negative environmental effects were the ex-change of knowledge and experience of the problemsencountered, through seminars, workshops, symposiaand conferences. The qualitative measures proposedto assess environmental disturbance caused by waterresources development are set forth in environmentalimpact assessments, which should be submitted forevery proposed water resources development.

At the national level, the environmental aspect ofnatural resources development is handled by theMinistry of Environmental and Development Control.In 1978, the Directorate General of Water ResourcesDevelopment of the Ministry of Public Works set upa programme for monitoring the over-all environmentalaspect of water resources development, with the follow-ing targets:

(a) To conduct an inventory of water quality ofrivers, lakes, reservoirs, spring and ground water withinthe programme of water resources development formunicipal and industrial water supply, irrigation,fisheries and other uses.

(b) To monitor through both intensive and ex-tensive monitoring systems the quality of the waterresources as mentioned above, affected by the develop-ment of urban areas, industry, mining and agriculture.

(c) To use the existing capacity of the availablepersonnel for monitoring the aggregate water qualityof 15 rivers, one reservoir and four locations of ground-water exploitation.

(d) To apply the extensive programme mainly tothe rivers, reservoirs, ground water and industrial wastewater throughout Indonesia.


The other activity concerned with the environ-mental aspect of development is the setting up of atask force for special monitoring of urgent cases toovercome the water pollution caused by industries andmining.

F. ACTION PROPOSAL

Without minimizing the significant progress of thedevelopment of water resources in Indonesia, in thepresent stage of REPELITA III, one must bear inmind that the problems encountered in earlier phasesstill remain, and must continue to be dealt with.

The following are action proposals to overcomethe problems:

1. Manpower

The illiteracy of water users and the lack of know-ledge of irrigation system management at the farm level,e.g. structures, the cause of losses, crop water require-ments, legal aspects and administration, adversely effecttarget achievement. Therefore, efforts to improve theirrigation system must include education, with internaltraining programmes, and better information system.An orderly programme of water resources developmentin Indonesia only began in 1968, so that experience islimited. On one hand, there is a shortage of profes-sional workers at the planning and design level. Onthe other hand, each project has its own characteristicsin regard to problem-solving methods and administra-tion. To overcome these problems, the exchange ofknowledge between different projects will be veryworthwhile. The proposed modes include guest lec-turers from similar projects; internal seminars on prob-lems and problem-solving methods in such areas as en-gineering hydraulics, coastal hydraulic and hydraulicstructures design; and pilot projects in scientifical in-stitutes or universities.

2. Institutional arrangements

A clear picture of water supply and demand re-quirements and their variations is necessary for effectivewater resources management. Moreover, water re-sources features depend also on the co-ordination ofwater users and planning efficiency. Therefore, theestablishment of a national water board or clearinghouse in each region would be appropriate.

3. Action proposal for ESCAP or otherUnited Nations bodies

(a) Manpower training programme

There is a shortage of professional planners anddesigners for water resources development in Indonesia.To overcome this deficiency, the transfer of knowledgein the form of regular training programmes among

countries would similar conditions and water resourcesfeatures would be most beneficial.

(b) Water resources management andadministration

By establishing a. national water board or regionalclearing house, an effective and efficient system of in-ventory and information could be obtained in Indo-nesia. Guest lecturers from developed countries whocould present material in this field would be helpfulin establishing this kind of institution.

(c) Legal aspect

In countries such as Indonesia, where the tradi-tional way of life is prominent, legal enforcement isnecessity. At present, the law is still very general;how law enforcement will be accepted by the peopledeserves a study of its own. Site visits and orientationin other countries which have a similar historical back-ground, or guest lecturers discussing such material,would be very useful to Indonesia.

(d) Technological and environmental aspects

Any further effort to realize the above targetswould entail adaptation of modern technology to localconditions. For that purpose, the Indonesian Govern-ment has held several seminars and invited foreignexperts to teach and train field staff workers in waterresources development. The following seminars arestill needed, because of the urgency of the mattersinvolved: flood forecasting and warning system; en-vironmental aspects of water resources; water pollutionmanagement and control; and data processing.

Research programmes are needed in the followingareas: hydrology, including model basin research andbasin response to rainfall or rainfall run-off relation-ships; experimental basins, including water-balancestudies related to geographic and geological features ofthe watershed and to sediment transport; and cropwater requirements, especially for wet rice field cultiva-tion.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Central Bureau of Statistics. Statistical pocket-book of Indonesia, 1978-1979. Jakarta, 1979.

Mardjono Notodihardjo. Water resources plan-ning in Indonesia. Jakarta, June 1979.

Ministry of Public Works and Electric Power. Thedevelopment of water resources in Indonesia. Jakarta,March 1976.

Progress in the execution of the Mar del PlataPlan of Action in Indonesia. Information paper pre-pared by the delegation of Indonesia. Jakarta, March1979.


VI. JAPAN(NR.7/CRP.18)

A. HYDROPOWER RESOURCES IN JAPAN

Japan has a population of some 115 million (as of1978) and a total land area of about 378,000 km2. An-nual precipitation from rainfall throughout the countryaverages 1,788 mm and reaches 674.9 billion m3 in totalvolume.

The precipitation varies seasonally. It is con-centrated in the rainy season of early summer (June-July) and in the typhoon season from August to Octo-ber. In the northern and central regions on the JapanSea side, precipitation comes mainly from snowfallduring the winter season. Japan is handicapped inutilizing river water because of the rapid outflow ofrainfall or snowfall precipitation to the sea, broughtabout by the short length and steep grade of most rivers.The potential net reserve of available resources in Japanamounts to some 450 billion m3 in a normal year andto some 330 billion m3 in a dry year (see table 30).

Available water resources vary greatly among re-gions because of climatic differences, particularly inwinter, between the Japan Sea side and the PacificOcean side, which are divided by mountain rangesstretching from north to south through the islands ofJapan. Excessive concentration of population andindustrial facilities in provincial areas around Tokyoand Osaka has led to a deficit in water resources, aproblem which now confronts Japan.

Table 30. Precipitation and available waterresources in Japan

Dry year .

Normal year .

Wet year . . .

Annual averagerainfall

(mm/year)

1 480

1 788

2 131

Annualprecipitation

(10s ms/year)

5 587

6 749

8 044

Net availableresources (after

deducting evapo-transpirationfrom annualprecipitation)(10s m3/year)

3 338

4 494

5 791

Note: The normal year is set at the average of the annual precipita-tion recorded over the past 18 years; the dry year is set at thesecond lowest precipitation, and the wet year is set at thesecond highest precipitation.

1. Administrative organizations involved inwater resources

Among the ministries and agencies involved direct-ly in water resources development are the NationalLand Agency (planning and co-ordination); the Minis-

try of Construction (river control and multipurposedams); the Ministry of Health and Welfare (publicwater service); the Ministry of International Trade andIndustry (industrial water supply and power genera-tion); and the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry andFishery (irrigation, drainage and forestry maintenance).The government-financed Water Resources Develop-ment Corporation has been established under the jointsupervision of those four ministries and one agency.

Projects on water resources development andwater utilization are implemented by the various or-ganizations as discussed below, according to purpose.

(a) Water resources development project

Construction and maintenance of water resourcesdevelopment facilities, such as dams, headwater chan-nels and estuary weirs, are under the jurisdiction ofdifferent organizations, depending upon the purpose ofeach project. For instance, flood control and its re-lated multipurpose development projects are under-taken by the Ministry of Construction; irrigation pro-jects by the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fish-ery; and power development projects by electric powercompanies or the Electric Power Development Com-pany. Development projects on river systems desig-nated specifically under the Water Resources Develop-ment Promotion Act are mainly the responsibility ofthe Water Resources Development Corporation. Directgovernmental involvement is limited to those projectsplanned on a relatively large scale, while other pro-jects on a medium or small scale are assigned to pre-fectural governments or public bodies concerned withwater utilization.

(b) Waterworks

As a rule, the waterworks are operated by eachlocal municipality and its authorized co-operativeunder the Ministry of Health and Welfare. In manyinstances, these municipal enterprises depend for theirwater sources upon the multipurpose dams constructedand operated by the Water Resources DevelopmentCorporation, the Ministry of Construction and theprefectural government involved. In special cases, thewaterworks enterprise constructs the dam to be usedexclusively for its own water supply purposes.

(c) Industrial water supply projects

Each prefectural government operates an indus-trial water supply, in nearly all instances by permis-sion of (or by application to) the Ministry of Inter-


national Trade and Industry. The water supply ismade available in the same way as the municipal watersupply.

(d) Irrigation and drainage projects

The projects are normally undertaken by the re-gional office for land improvement, except for large-scale projects which are carried out either by theMinistry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fishery or bythe prefectural governments concerned, after receipt ofapplication from the regional office for land improve-ment. Although the available source of water is veryoften exploited by the enterprise itself, it sometimesdepends upon a multipurpose dam built by the Minis-try of Construction or the Water Resources Develop-ment Corporation.

(e) Hydropower generation projects

The projects are generally undertaken by nineelectric power companies, each serving a block of thecountry, with the Electric Power Development Com-pany as the nationwide electric wholesaler, and insome instances by prefectural governments or localmunicipalities. In case of power generation from alarge dam, the company may itself construct the damsolely for this purpose or it may depend upon a multi-purpose dam constructed by another organization.River control is under the jurisdiction of the Ministryof Construction or the prefectural government con-cerned. Control relevant to the preservation of waterquality and over-all co-ordination with other ministriesand agencies is assigned to the Environmental Agency.Surveillance and monitoring for water quality arecarried out chiefly by each prefectural government.However, such monitoring services are also performedby the river administration authorities and by the riverwater users.

2. Present status of water utilization

The total water demand in 1975, as shown intable 31, accounted for about 26 per cent of the maxi-mum available water resources in a dry year. Duringthe 10 years from 1965 to 1975, domestic water de-mand rose about twofold and industrial water de-mand increased by about 1.4 times. Since 1975, domes-tic water demand has continued to increase furtherwhile industrial water demand (fresh water supplybasis) has remained on almost the same level, reflect-ing a slow-down in production activities and ration-alization of water use after the oil crisis of 1973.

In analysing water utilization by water sourcesavailable, river water ranks highest, with consumptionreaching 64.9 billion m\ or 74 per cent of the annualtotal supplies. This is followed by ground water, ofwhich 13.8 billion m3, or 16 per cent of the annual

total, was utilized, and then spring water or pondstorage, of which 10 per cent was used. In particular,municipal water (both domestic and industrial) showsgreater dependence upon river water, particularly upondam reservoirs.

Table 31. Trends in water demand in Japan(100 million m3/year)

Purpose 1965 1970 1975 1975/1965

Municipal use . . Domestic use 62.6 94.4 123.4 2.0

Industrial use 126.5 179.7 182.8 1.4

Agricultural use — — 570.0 —

Total — — 876.2 —

Source: "Long-term water utilization plan in August 1978", theNational Land Agency.

Notes: 1. Each figure is based on an intake-withdrawal basis.Industrial water is based upon fresh-water make-upsupplies.

2. Agricultural water is calculated from general observa-tions of farmland preparation and cropping status.

3. Domestic water excludes consumption for industrialplant use in the total supply available from the citywater supply system.

3. Development of water resources

In Japan, reservoir ponds are traditionally deve-loped for agricultural use. At present there are about180,000 ponds of this kind. Development of waterresources by dam construction, as is seen today, canbe traced back to the 1930s. In the post-war periodthe multipurpose dam was established as the mainobject for development. As of 1975, there were atotal of about 1,700 dams higher than 15 m, with areservoir capacity for water utilization (as distinguish-ed from reservoirs for power generation), whose totalreservoir capacity amounted to some 3.6 billion m3.

The Water Resources Development PromotionAct was implemented in 1961 to meet the need toestablish rational water management for water utiliza-tion, especially in large city areas. Since that time, inan effort to cope with increased water demand, vari-ous water resources projects have been developed forcertain specific river systems designated under the Act.So far, six large river systems including the Tonegawaand the Arakawa, running through the Tokyo metro-politan area have been designated for development.

The basic plan for Water Resources Developmenthas estimated future water demand, target supply andconstruction of required facilities by the target year.Pursuant to this plan, development projects have beencarried out mainly by the Water Resources Develop-ment public corporation, under governmental supervi-sion and guidance.


Dams, weirs and channels at 23 sites have beencompleted, with development of additional water re-sources for 4.9 billion m3 in municipal water suppliesand 1.3 billion m3 in agricultural water supplies res-pectively each year. Since the total municipal waterresources newly developed by the Ministry of Con-struction, prefectures and water users, as well as bythe corporation, may be estimated at about 10 billionm3 for the 1961-1976 period, roughly half of the totalis shared by the development projects related to thesix designated river systems in the industrialized re-gions, where the population accounts for about 58 percent of the nation's total and industrial productionfor about 62 per cent.

One difficulty involved in constructing a dam isobtaining full consent from the local community con-cerned prior to the start of a project; this is becausethe local inhabitants are forced to leave their ownland, which will be submerged by the reservoir, andresettle in a new but strange area requiring a differentlife style. The Act on Special Measures for the Reser-voir Area Development came into force in 1973 tohelp to resolve this problem. In addition to compen-sation to each owner for submerged land, the Actprovides for the implementation of necessary measuresfor economic promotion of the reservoir area and forresettlement of the inhabitants in the area.

Ground water has been widely used for variouspurposes because of its good quality and low price.This has resulted in widespread ground subsidence inevery part of this country, although at a slower pacerecently. To cope with this situation, a study is nowbeing made for legislation relevant to proper utiliza-tion of the ground water, including its conversion intoriver water. The total ground water consumption in1975 was 13.8 billion m3 throughout the country, whichwas shared among the sectors as follows: 52 per centfor industrial use; 27 per cent for agricultural use; and21 per cent for domestic use.

As one new approach to water resources exploi-tation, a project for the desalination of sea water isunder way, with 45 unit plants installed in 1978, anda total planned production capacity of 79,723 m3/day.Among those, 14 units are being operated for domes-tic use on certain isolated islands to supply 7,738 m3/day. Desalination is divided into two different pro-cesses: one is the evaporation process, applicable tosea water, and the other is the electrolysis or reverseosmosis process, applicable to brine water. Althoughproduction costs vary depending upon raw water qua-lity, productive scale, the availability factor and thedesalination method, it is within a range of 200 to1,000 ¥/m3 for sea water and 60 to 860 ¥/m3 for brinewater. In view of the energy saving, sea-water de-salination by use of the reverse osmosis method hasbeen receiving particular attention.

4. Long-term projections of water demand

In August 1978 the National Land Agency formu-lated and published its long-range water demand andsupply plan, which aimed at the promotion of effectiveand efficient development and utilization of the waterresource potential, on the assumption that the re-sources were of a finite nature.

This plan covers long-range projections of futurewater demand and supply by 1985 and 1990 with theperspective view up to the year 2000, under the thirdcomprehensive national development plan, and includesmatters essential to the development, preservation andutilization of water resources. The plan is, therefore,expected to be a guideline for governmental measuresto be taken towards stabilization of the future demandand supply balance. Any future projects related todevelopment of water resources by dam constructionand expansion of various water supply facilities willbe pushed forward within the framework of this plan.

Estimated water demand for domestic, industrialand agricultural uses by 1985 and 1990 are presentedin table 32. The forecast of the future demand andsupply balance by regions in 1985 is shown in table33. As noted from the data, it is anticipated that thebalance of water demand and supply will remain tightor unstable in major parts of Japan, such as the coastalzones of Kanto (Tokyo) and Kinki (Osaka), NorthKyushu and Okinawa, where the total water deficit isestimated at roughly 1.5 billion m3.

Table 34 shows the forecast of water demand andsupply by regions for 1990. It is estimated that thetotal shortage will decline to 900 million m3, thoughan unstable balance may continue in the Tokyo coastalzone and in some other regions. In the long run, thenationwide balance is expected to improve steadily andgradually in the years to come; however, since it hasbecome increasingly difficult to develop water resourcesfurther by dam construction in those industrializedregions around Tokyo and Osaka, every possible effortmust be made to rationalize water utilization and toconserve water in full recognition of the finite natureof water resources, so that the balance of demand andsupply can be stabilized on a firm basis.

5. Major problems in water resources developmentand utilization

As stated earlier, in order to meet an expected in-crease in future demand for water resulting from im-provements in living standards and growth of theeconomy, comprehensive, well-planned measures mustbe implemented to promote development of waterresources, conserve water and rationalize consumption,and to co-ordinate all the competing users in order to

Table 32. Estimates of water demand in Japan

Units: 100 million m3/year

Area Municipal water

Domestic Industrial

1975

Subtotal

Agri-cultural

waterTotal

Municipal water

Domestic Industrial

1985

Subtotal

Agri-cultural

waterTottil

Municipal water

Domestic Industrial

1990

Subtotal

Agri-culturalwater

Total

Hokkaido 4.1 12.3 16.4

Tohoku 10.0 18.8 28.8

Kanto 43.4 33.9 77.3

Tokai 15.2 37.2 52.4

Hokuriku 3.0 10.9 13.9

Kinki 24.4 26.6 51.0

Chugoku 7.5 17.7 25.2

Shikoku 3.7 9.9 13.6

Kyushu 11.0 15.2 26.2

Okinawa 1.1 0.3 1.4

Nation-wide total . . . 123.4 182.8 306.2

43

158

100

41

33

47

51

24

72

1

570

59.4

186.8

177.3

93.4

46.9

98.0

76.2

37.6

98.2

2.4

876.2

7.5

16.5

66.4

22.7

4.9

33.5

11.7

5.8

17.7

1.6

188.3

18.0

30.2

46.8

53.7

13.6

34.1

25.6

13.0

23.8

0.5

259.3

25.5

46.7

113.2

76.4

18.5

67.6

37.3

18.8

41.5

2.1

447.6

46.3

171.7

112.9

45.2

34.8

52.7

52.3

27.3

75.6

1.2

620.0655.0

71.8

218.4

226.1

121.6

53.3

120.3

89.6

46.1

117.1

3.3

1 067.61 102.6

9.1

19.7

75.0

25.5

5.7

37.1

13.4

6.7

20.5

1.9

214.6

22.0

36.4

50.7

59.5

14.8

36.3

29.3

14.4

28.8

0.6

292.8

31.1

56.1

125.7

85.0

20.5

73.4

42.7

21.1

49.3

2.5

507.4

49.8

175.3

114.9

47.5

35.1

52.9

52.4

27.3

81.0

1.6

637.8700.0

80.9

231.4

240.6

132.5

55.6

126.3

95.1

48.4

130.3

4.1

1 145.21 207.4

Notes: I. Figures are on the intake base.

2. Agricultural water demand was calculated on the basis of the conditions of field improvement and planting. The demand in 1985 or 1990 is the sum of the demand in 1975

and the estimated demand increase through land improvement works which arc expected to be completed by 1985 or 1990.

:OOmmDoo• i

gc/3CO

Cfl

5•z


Table 33. Estimated water balance between supply and demand in Japan, 1985

Units: 100 million

Increase in municipal water demand

PlannedIncrease, reduction of19761985 ground water

UnstableSubtotal

Increase tn Toul Increase in wateragricultural inmase in rcsources developed, Deficit in 1985'

demand 1976-1985'

Hokkaido 9.1 0.3 0.1 9.5 3.3 12.8 14.1 (10.4) — (2.4)

Tohoku 17.9 0.8 0.5 19.2 13.7 32.9 30.7 (29.4) 2.2 (3.5)

Kanto Inland 15.3 1.8 2.8 19.9 10.8 30.7 30.9(25.0) — ( 5 . 7 )Littoral . . . . 20.6 5.9 16.3 12.8 2.1 44.9 40.0 (38.0) 4.9 (6.9)

Total 35.9 7.7 19.1 62.7 12.9 75.6 70.9 (63.0)

Tokai 24.0 7.3 2.8 34.1 4.2 38.3 41.9 (40.9) — (—)

Hokuriku 4.6 1.8 0.9 7.3 1.8 9.1 10.0 (8.7) — (0.4)

Kinki Inland 7.1 0.3 0.5 7.9 3.8 11.7 10.8 (8.9) 0.9 (2.8)Littoral . . . . 9.5 1.5 7.3 18.3 1.9 20.2 19.4 (18.6) 0.8 (1.6)

Total 16.6 1.8 7.8 26.2 5.7 31.9 30.2 (27.5)

Chugoku San'in 2.2 0.1 0.0 2.3 0.7 3.0 2.5 (2.5) 0.5 (0.5)

Sanyo 9.9 0.3 1.2 11.4 0.6 12.0 14.4 (11.7) — (0.3)

Total 12.1 0.4 1.2 13.7 1.3 15.0 16.9 (14.2)

Shikoku 5.2 0.9 0.0 6.1 3.3 9.4 11.2 (10.5) — (—)

Kyushu North 10.1 0.7 0.4 11.2 1.6 12.8 8.8 (6.8) 4.0 (6.0)South 5.2 0.2 0.0 5.4 2.0 7.4 5.8 (5.8) 1.6 (1.6)

Total 15.3 0.9 0.4 16.6 3.6 20.2 14.6 (12.6)

Okinawa 0.7 — 0.4 1.1 0.2 1.3 1.0 (0.7) 0.3 (0.6)

Nation-wide total . . . . 141.4 21.9 33.2 196.5 50.0 246.5 241.5(217.9) 15.2(32.3)

Notes:

* Figures arc on the intake base.

b Planned reduction of ground-water resources is the amount for which diversion of source to river water is planned between 1975 and 1985in areas where subsidence occurred.

c Unstable intake of river water is the amount o£ river water intake, such as temporary intake, which is likely to be difficult during thedry season.

d Increase in agricultural water demand is the amount of increase which will result from land improvement works expected to be com-pleted by 1985. This includes the increase in demand due to diversion of ground sources or the increase due to stabilization of unstableintake o£ river water resulting from land improvement works.

' Increase in water resources developed includes the unused water which had been developed by 1975. Figures in parentheses are thoseobtained from water resources development which had commenced construction by 1978.

' Deficit in parentheses is that corresponding to the increase in water from water resources development which commenced constructionby 1978.


Table 34. Estimated water balance between supply and demand in Japan, 1990

Units: 100 million nvVyear*

Increase in municipal water demand

Increase,1976-1990

14.7

27.3

20.7

27.7

48.4

32.6

6.6

9.6

12.8

22.4

3.2

14.3

17.5

7.5

14.09.1

23.1

1.1

201.2

resources*

0.3

1.3

1.9

6.4

8.3

7.5

2.1

0.3

1.8

2.1

0.1

0.4

0.5

0.9

0.8

0.2

1.0

0.0

24.0

in^er

0.1

0.5

2.8

16.3

19.1

2.8

0.9

0.5

7.3

7.8

0.0

1.2

1.2

0.0

0.4

0.0

0.4

0.4

33.2

Subtotal

15.1

29.1

25.4

50.4

75.8

42.9

9.6

10.4

21.9

32.3

3.3

15.9

19.2

8.4

15.2

9.3

24.5

1.5

258.4

Increase in Increase inagricultural Total increase water resources Deficit in

water demand, in demand developed. 19901976-1990* 1976-1990'

Hokkaido

Tohoku

Kanto Inland

Littoral

Total

Tokai

Hokuriku

Kinki Inland

Littoral

Total

Chugoku San'in

Sanyo

Total

Shikoku

Kyushu North

South

Total

Okinawa

Nation-wide total

6.8

17.3

12.72.2

14.9

6.5

2.1

4.0

1.9

5.9

0.80.6

1.4

3.3

5.13.9

9.0

0.6

67.8

21.9

46.4

38.152.6

90.7

49.4 .

11.7

14.4

23.8

38.2

4.116.5

20.6

11.7

20.313.2

33.5

2.1

326.2

25.5

49.6

40.445.7

86.1

.52.1

13.4

. 17.3

22.7

40.0

4.6

. 18.8

23.4

13.6

19.3

14.4

.33.7

2.2

339.6

6.9

1.1

1.0

9.0

Notes:

* Figures are on the intake base.

b Planned reduction of ground-water resources is the amount for which diversion of source to river water is planned between 1975 and 1990in areas where subsidence occurred.

c Unstable intake of river water is the amount of river water intake, such as temporary intake, which is likely to be difficult during thedry season.

" Increase in agricultural water demand is the amount of increase which will result from land improvement works expected to be com-pleted by 1990. This includes the increase in demand due to diversion of ground sources or the increase due to stabilization of unstableintake of water resulting from land improvement works.

* Increase in water resources developed includes the unused water which had been developed by 1975.


balance demand and supply of water. To comply withthis need, the National Land Agency prepared its long-term plan for water demand and supply in August1978. Its over-all system chart for stabilization ofthe demand-supply balance is shown in table 35. Theplanning strategies drawn up in the plan would na-turally require joint efforts by the national govern-ment, prefectural authorities, local municipalities,water users and the general public. Among them, thestrategies of particular importance are as follows.

(a) Promotion of water resources development

New projects for development of an additional 34billion m3 per year must be carried out between 1975and 1990. Further efforts must be exerted to promotedevelopment of water resources with due considerationto the declining number of optimum sites for construc-tion projects, compensation for loss or damage, incen-tive measures for reservoir area development and har-mony with environmental preservation.

(b) Strengthening of incentive measures forreservoir area development

The construction of a dam and reservoir may en-counter resistance from the local community. Forthis reason, the living environment and the industrialfoundation in the resettlement area close to the reser-voir should be improved so as to provide stabilizationof the community's livelihood and improvement ofpublic welfare. Incentives may be offered under theSpecial Measures for Reservoir Area Development andthe Fund for Reservoir Area Development. It is alsoimportant to introduce well-planned measures for im-provement of forestry resources near the reservoir area.

(c) Formation of a water-saving society

With the recognition that water is a limited re-sources of high value, efforts must be exerted to forma community with water-saving attitudes. This re-quires rationalization of domestic, industrial and agri-cultural water consumption through introduction ofwater-saving technology, promotion of the use of re-cycled waste water and reduction in water leakages.

Table 35. Strategies for reducing the water supply and demand imbalance in Japan

Comprehensivemeasuresregardingwater supplyand demand

—Formation of •water-savingsociety

—Stablesupply ofwater

-Promotion ofconsciouswater-saving by users(water day, waterweek, waterworksweeks, publicrelations)

-Rationalizationof water use

-Promotion ofwater resourcesdevelopment

-Utilization of •other waterresources

-Improvement ofefficiency inwater supply

-Rationalization of household water use (introdiictinn of water-saving technology)

—Rationalization of industrial water use (stricter water control,improved production and manufacturing processes)

—Rationalization of agricultural water use (improvement inirrigation facilities, stricter water management)

—Promotion of leakage prevention (replacing worn-out piping andjoints, early discovery and repair of leaks, stricter management ofwater distribution)

—Promotion of dual water supply system (individual recycling,collective recycling)

—Implementation of water resources development projects

—Measures for upstream areas

—Co-ordination with other development works (flood control works,forestry improvement works, electricity generation development)

i—Conservation and utilization o£ ground water (prevention ofground subsidence, underground dams)

—Desalination of sea water (osmosis method, evaporation method)

I—Use of treated sewerage (open recycling method, closed recyclingmethod)

-Conservation ofenvironment

-Regional and community expansion, region-wide water supply,industrial water supply, promotion of land improvement works

-Minimum acceptable flow, improvement of flow regime,development of sewerage systems, measures against eutrophication


B. WATER QUALITY CONSERVATION

The results of water quality measurements inpublic water areas in Japan in 1978 showed that speci-fic pollutants such as cadmium and cyanogen, whichare toxic to human health, were present in excess ofthe environmental standard at a rate of 0.07 per centin the total quantity tested. When compared with 1.4per cent in 1970 and 0.17 per cent in 1975, the latestfigure implies a remarkable improvement in waterquality.

With regard to those items related to conservationof the environment, such as biochemical oxygen de-mand (BOD) and chemical oxygen demand (COD), theenvironmental standard for BOD (or COD) has beenattained to 59.5 per cent in rivers, 37.6 per cent inlakes and 75.3 per cent in the sea. As a whole, therequirement has not yet been met in 38.3 per cent ofthe water areas. In particular, little improvement hasbeen observed in the lakes, inland sea and inner bay,and in those water areas rapid entrophication has beenobserved, which is regarded as a cause of poor filtra-tion or unpleasant odours in the city water supplysystem and a red tide in the sea.

Effluent control standards were established in1958 under the water quality conservation law and thefactory effluents control law, but these laws did notact as effective preventive measures in many instancesbecause separate control standards were set up foreach designated water area and no penalty clause wasapplied. For this reason, these two laws were replacedin 1970 by the water pollution control law, under whicha uniform effluent standard was introduced nation-wide, and was enforced under local regulations. Eachprefectural governor is authorized to set up a moreintensified control standard for the specified water'area.

In 1973, as a result of severe pollution in the SetoInland Sea, the Seto Inland Sea environmental conser-vation law (revised in 1978 as a permanent law) wasenacted, with provisions for water quality controlwhich require official permission for any effluent dis-charge into the Sea and also provide for environmen-tal assessment measures. In 1978, in order to inten-sify control over water pollution in this wide semi-1

closed water area, the water pollution control law andthe Seto Inland Sea environmental conservation lawwere revised so as to regulate total emission of CODinto Tokyo Bay, Ise Bay and the Seto Inland Sea.

In recent years water pollution has been causedincreasingly by organic matter related to chemicalresidue from sewage treatment plants and from non-point polluting sources washed out by rainfall fromthe urban, forest and arable areas. Since such sourcesof pollution are not covered by the control standards,

necessary measures must be taken for survey andassessment of environmental impact from developmentprojects. Furthermore, to prevent poor nitration andunpleasant odours from the city water supply systemand any damage from red tide produced by enrichednourishment in the lakes, inland sea and inner bay,comprehensive measures must be taken to reduce pol-lutants such as phosphorus and nitrogen, which maycause enriched nourishment of the water.

C. RESEARCH AND PUBLIC RELATIONS

Research activities on development and utiliza-tion of water resources are carried out by concernedministries, agencies and their annexed organs. Basicresearch activities are being conducted by the Agencyof Science and Technology in the fields of conserva-tion of resources and environment, and prevention ofnatural disasters.

The Survey Institute on Resources has conducteda survey on ground water by the use of several al-ternative simulation models to determine the idealpattern for future ground-water control. The purposeof the research is to clarify various problems involvedin practical use of the experimental method, the con-ditions for application of the method and the advan-tages and disadvantages of the method. As a resultof this survey, relevant data were collected by eachorganization through monitoring of precipitation, eva-poration, river discharge and ground water. On thisbasis, a summary could be compiled of additionalneeds for future monitoring of data and systematiccontrol of information.

The Institute is now conducting a study to iden-tify various problems incidental to the exploitation ofwater resources and a strategy for water resourcescontrol. Another survey is also in progress to de-termine the possibility of using the self-purificationfunctions of forestry, farm land and water areas forsewage treatment. Furthermore, in view of the recentincreasing trend in ground-water demand, a basicstudy is being made to help establish a rational utiliza-tion plan for ground water, including the allowablelimit of dependence upon ground water. At the sametime, a survey is being conducted to define the adapt-ability of a simulation model developed for one regionfor transfer to another region.

The National Research Centre for Disaster Pre-vention has published the following technical reports,which are intended to mitigate possible damage causedby rainfall: "Examples of return periods of rainfall fordisaster countermeasures", "Developments of flood vul-nerability estimation method by, application of prin-cipal component analysis" and "Experiments on raininfiltration in soil".


With the aim of arousing interest and deepeningunderstanding among the people as to the finite natureof water resources, the value of water and the signi-ficance of water resources development, the Govern-ment has set up a "Water Day" on the first day ofAugust every year since 1977 and an annual "WaterWeek" for a week, starting on that day. Moreover,the first week of June has become the annual "Water-works Week", with publicity activities to draw the at-tention and interest of the general public to water-works for a better understanding. The "Green LandCampaign" is also one of the main publicity activitiesfor the preservation of forestry resources, closely re-lated to the recharging of water resources.

In October 1977, Tokyo provided the forum ofdiscussions for the Symposium on Water Resources,the first international gathering of this kind in Japan,held for the purpose of exchanging research resultsand views on various themes related to effective utili-zation of water resources, thus contributing to futureresearch and administration.

D. PRESENT STATUS OF INTERNATIONALCO-OPERATION

As a part of international co-operation to develop-ing countries, the Government has been extending itsactive co-operation, in the area of water resources aswell as in other areas, by accepting a number oftrainees from those countries and by dispatching manyexperts to those countries for technical and financialassistance. The Government still intends to continueits co-operative effort internationally in the field ofwater resources in line with the needs of developingcountries. Japan's international co-operation in thefield of water resources is characterized by its diversi-fied objectives and patterns of co-operation. The tech-nical and financial co-operation activities of Japan in1979 may be summarized as follows: sixty-six personsfrom developing countries were accepted as trainees ingroup training courses (including seminars) and 28persons in individual training courses. Twenty-sixJapanese experts were dispatched to those countrieson a long-term basis and 99 persons were sent for ashort period. Grants-in-aid were extended to twoprojects and yen credit loans to four projects.

E. MUNICIPAL WATER SUPPLY

The water supply system in Japan has been ex-panding rapidly since 1955. As a result, the popula-tion served as of March 1979 has reached 104 million,or 90.3 per cent of the total population. The totalwater supply has reached 13.7 billion m3 per annum,anticipation of a continuing increase in both popula-tion served and annual water supply, it is estimated

that by 1985 the total population served will amountto 118 million, or 96 per cent of the population, andthe annual water supply will increase to 20.76 billionm3. The daily water requirement on a per capitabasis remained at 363 litres in 1978.

It is estimated, however, that the per capita de-mand will rise to 482 litres per day, mainly becauseof an increase in demand for domestic uses, resultingfrom higher living standards and more widespread useof water-related home appliances, and for commer-cial and industrial uses, in order to keep pace witheconomic activities.

The whole country was troubled by scanty rain-fall in 1978. Especially in the western part, about 11million people were forced to contend with a suspend-ed or restricted water supply for a long period. Toavoid recurrence of such distress, the balance betweenwater demand and supply must be improved on acomprehensive basis by effective measures for reducingwater consumption and promoting dam constructionfor development of water resources.

1. Available water sources for public supply

Available supply sources in 1978 may be brokendown into: 42.9 per cent from river discharge (run-of-river); 23.5 per cent from reservoirs (dam); 1.1 percent from lakes; 7.4 per cent from riverbed water;21.6 per cent from ground water through both shal-low and deep wells; and 3.5 per cent from othersources. Although ground water may be generallywell-fitted for a city water supply in its quality, exces-sive use of ground water has become a cause of groundsubsidence. Therefore, any future increment in de-mand will have to be met mainly by surface waterfrom the large reservoirs.

2. Waterworks expenditure and water rates

Operating expenditures for public water supplyhave been on the increase for years. The majority ofthe investment is financed by municipal bonds (loanfinancing from Government or financing corporations)and by governmental subsidies. In 1979, such financ-ing amounted to 718.3 billion yen from bond issuesand 128 billion yen from governmental grants-in-aid,including 59.4 billion yen granted for development ofwater sources related to the public water service sys-tem.

The water charge is averaged generally at 95 yenper m3, although it varies with the supply system.Average spending for water consumption is 1,421 yenfor each household per month, which corresponds to0.7 per cent of monthly household expenses.


3. Region-wide water supply system

The water supply network in Japan has tradi-tionally been expanded and improved independentlyfor each city, town or village unit. At present, how-ever, with further increases in water demand, theselected site for a new consuming terminal tends tobe more and more remote from the water supplysource. Therefore, the small waterworks enterprise,such as the local municipality, finds it difficult todevelop a new source within its own financial andtechnical capability. It is for this reason that eachindividual unit of a water supply system existing todayon a limited scale will have to be reorganized andmerged into a region-wide integrated supply systemwith adequate financial backing and the technicalcapacity for the promotion of new supply source deve-lopment projects.

By integration into the wide service network, it isexpected that the unbalanced situation of water de-mand and supply by service areas will be ironed outand the facilities will be utilized more effectively andefficiently. To promote amalgamation of local supplysystems into a region-wide co-ordination system on awell-planned basis, the provisions of the region-widewater supply plan were added in 1977 to the waterworks law. Today, this plan is being formulated forimplementation in about 20 local areas and the region-wide supply system is expected to expand with anincreasing number of projects as time goes on.

4. Water saving and leakage prevention

To cope with the rapid increase in water demand,a continuing effort to try to curb future demand in-creases for water has become essential. The Ministryof Health and Welfare has conducted a cost-benefitanalysis of leakage prevention and has provided ad-ministrative guidelines for preventive measures againstpossible leakage, setting the target rate of availabilityat 90 per cent. The Ministry also makes a generalappeal for everyone to save water, through WaterworksWeek which begins annually on 1 June.

F. INDUSTRIAL WATER

Today, Japanese industry is undergoing structuralchange as a result of the shift from heavy chemicalindustry as a core to machinery and its associatedassembling industry. In line with this change, thestructure of demand for industrial water has shown agradual alteration; the rate of increase in demand forwater has slowed down as compared with the previousperiod.

As shown in table 36, the recent trends in indus-trial water consumption can be characterized as fol-lows:

(a) Consumption of water by industry has in-creased year after year;

(b) Since an increase in the use of recycled waterhas been closely matched by the increase in industrialwater consumption, the additional water needs in re-cent years have remained almost constant;

(c) Less ground water from wells is being con-sumed as the industrial water supply network is ex-panded.

On the supply side, the purpose of the industrialwater supply system in Japan is to prevent subsidenceresulting from excessive use of ground water and alsoto help develop basic industrial activities. At present,there are nearly 150 water supply systems across thecountry, the majority of which are operated by localmunicipalities. As noted in table 36, supplies throughthe industrial water supply systems amount to as muchas 12 million m3/day, nearly one third of the totaldaily water supplies to industrial plants. As a resultof recent system expansion, ground subsidence alongthe highly industrialized coastal zone of Tokyo andOsaka has almost ceased.

Rationalization in the use of industrial water isindicated by the increase in the use of recycled waterfor industrial purposes.

The amount of recycled water used by the indus-trial sector in 1977 is shown in table 37. A largeportion of the water used by the chemical and steelindustries is recycled water. Some of the most modernsteel manufacturing plants can use 95 per cent re-cycled water.

The level of recycling averages more than 70 percent throughout all industrial sectors. The rationalizeduse of water at such a high rate of recycling hashad a positive effect on the reduction of the unfavour-able balance between demand and supply and thepreservation of environmental quality.

F. INTEGRATED RIVER DEVELOPMENT BYCONSTRUCTION OF MULTD7URPOSE DAMS

AND OTHER STRUCTURES

1. General outline of river development projects

The purpose of an integrated river developmentproject is to construct a dam at an upstream site onthe river, thereby controlling floods by storing flooddischarge in a reservoir and releasing the reservoirwater into the downstream during the dry period tofulfill demand for water in the dry season.


Table 36. Trends in industrial water consumption by available supply sources in Japan

Units: 1,000 m3/day

Year Public water service

Industrialwater

4 444(14.2)5 138(16.0)6 622(19.8)7 500(20.8)8 729(22.6)

9 801(23.8)

10 395(24.8)

11 491(27.0)

11 437(26.4)

11 995(28.4)

11 945(29.7)

12 237(30.7)

11 967(30.7)

11735(31.2)

Citywater

2 780(8.9)

2 899(9.1)

2 945(8.8)

3 206(8.9)

3 271(8.5)

3 491(8.5)

3 876(9.2)

3 530(8.3)

3 880(9.0)

3 351(7.9)

3 152(7.8)

2 888(7.3)

2 728(7.0)

2 677(7.1)

Surfacewater

7 281(23.2)7 831(24.5)7 496(12.4)7 753(21.5)

8 019(20.8)8 266(20.1)

8 292(19.8)8 257(19.4)8 397(19.4)8 192(19.4)7 921(19.7)

River-bedwater

3 554(113)3 329(10.4)3 227

(9.6)3016

(8.4)3 207

(8.3)3 247

(7.9)

3 188(7.6)

3 163(7.4)

3 131(7.2)

3 066(7.3)

2 925(7.3)

10 842(27.2)

10 654

1

(27.3)0313(27.4)

Well

12 679(40.5)

12 594(39.3)

12 937(38.5)

13 944(38.6)

14 473(37.4)

15 360(37.4)

14915(35.6)

15 243(35.8)

15 326(35.4)

14 646(34.7)

13 622(33.7)

13 336(33.5)

13 063(33.5)

12 338(32.8)

Others

598(1.9)

224(0.7)291(0.9)644(1-8)916(2.4)871(2.1)

1271(3.0)884(2.1)

1 086(2.5)

1 000(2.4)628(1-6)529(1.3)549(1.4)535(1.4)

Make-upwater

31 336(100.0)32 015(100.0)11 518(100.0)36 063(100.0)38 615(100.0)41 056(100.0)41 937(100.0)42 568(100.0)43 257(100.0)42 250(100.0)40 193(100.0)39 833(100.0)38 960(100.0)37 591(100.0)

Recycledwater

(percentage)

17 826(36.3)

21092(39.7)

24 180(41.9)

18 907(44.5)

35 790(48.1)

43 986(51.7)

53310(56.0)

58 889(58.1)

70 658(62.0)

77 790(64.8)

81 432(67.0)

88 030(68.8)

92 747(70.4)

95 741(71.8)

Total

49 162

53 107

57 698

64 970

74 405

85 042

95 247

101 457

113 915

120 040

121 625

127 863

131707

133 332

1965

1966

1967

1968

1969

1970

1971

1972

1973

1974

1975

1976

1977

1978

Source: Industrial statistics.

Notes: Plants which employ 30 persons or more.

Numbers in parentheses indicate percentages.

Table 37. Industrial water consumption in Japan by sector, 1977

Units: 1,000 m3/day

Non-salt water Purposes

Type oj industryTotal Ma^e-up water Recycled water

Product Cooling, airReturn rate processing, conditioning

washing water water(percentage) (percentage) (percentage)

Chemical 43 563(33.1) 9 172(23.5) 34 391(37.1) 78.9 5.4 90.7

Steel 34 017 (25.8) 4 171 (10.7) 29 846(32.2) 87.7 9.9 88.0Paper and pulp 15 890(12.1) 9 948(25.5) 5 942 (6.4) 37.4 80.7 12.7

Transport equipment . . . 7 270 (5.5) 1 005 (2.6) 6 625 (6.8) 86.2 42.7 52.5

Oil and coal 6 006 (4.6) 949 (2.4) 5 057 (5.5) 84.2 2.2 92.7Foods 5 157 (3.9) 3 800 (9.8) 1357 (1.5) 26.3 30.1 53.4

Textile 4 413 (3.4) 3 566 (9.2) 847 (0.9) 19.2 29.5 59.0

Non-ferrous 5 062 (3.8) 1342 (3.4) 3 720 (4.0) 73.5 21.4 74.3Pottery and masonry . . . . 2857 (2.2) I l i a (2.9) 1747 (1.9) 61.1 20.8 69.9

Others 7 472 (5.6) 3 897 (10.0) 3 575 (3.7) 47.9 15.8 69.6Total 131707(100.0) 38 960(100.0) 92 747(100.0) 70.4 20.3 73.7

Source: Industrial statistics.

Notes: Enterprises which employ 30 persons or more.Numbers in parentheses indicate percentages.


Projects are now being diversified to include con-struction of flood control dams, development of lakesand ponds and adjustment of the river flow regime, inaddition to construction of multipurpose dams. Fur-ther efforts are being made to tackle such problems asenvironmental improvement at dam sites, silt sedimen-tation in upstream areas and redevelopment of exist-ing dam structures for new purposes.

Certain projects under the jurisdiction of theMinistry of Construction are summarized below.

(a) Multipurpose dam construction

Not only does the discharge in the main rivers ofJapan reach an immense flow volume because of thenation's climatic and topographic features, but therivers are also affected by large fluctuations in dis-charge between wet and dry seasons. Therefore, damsare constructed under a comprehensive developmentplan throughout the river system. According to theSpecified Multipurpose Dams Act of 1957, the plan-ning, construction and maintenance of such damsshould be solely the responsibility of the Minister ofConstruction. However, the "right of dam use" hasbeen created legally for those enterprises which dealwith domestic water supply, industrial water and powergeneration, jointly share construction costs and corres-pondingly share the property rights.

In order to cope with the ever-increasing waterdemand on Japan's six main river systems, the Japan-ese Government has drawn up a basic plan for waterresources development under the Water ResourcesDevelopment Promotion Act and has assigned con-struction of certain dams and other facilities to theWater Resources Development Corporation. The Cor-poration has then taken charge of construction andmaintenance of dams and water channels in line withprinciples and basic rules for project execution andmanagement of facilities as set out by the govern-mental authorities concerned.

Under the provisions of the River Act of 1964,the Minister of Construction is authorized legally tobe river administrator. He assigns part of his au-thorization to the governor of each prefecture; theGovernor may then undertake construction of multi-purpose dams or flood control dams through govern-mental subsidies.

(b) Flood control dam construction

A dam to be exclusively used for flood controlmay be constructed to maintain the regular river dis-charge and may be used solely for this purpose by theexclusion of any other specific joint users.

(c) Development of lakes and ponds

The purpose of such a development project is tocreate new potential water resources by enlarging thefluctuation between high and low levels of water inlakes and ponds. To meet the greater fluctuation, itbecomes necessary to raise the embankment and re-model other structural facilities existing on the watersurface, such as landing platforms for boats and fish-ery facilities.

(a) Channel for adjustment of different riverflow regimes

The purpose of this type of project is to constructa water channel to connect two or more rivers, eachof different flow regime, and to develop new potentialwater resources by adjusting the different phases ofeach flow regime between the rivers.

The total number of dams completed, those underconstruction as of 1980 and the economic effect fromthe completed dams are shown respectively in tables38, 39 and 40.

Table 38. Dams in Japan, by category

Classification of dams

Dam sites completedby 1979

Project sites in 1980

Projects DamsConstruction work. Feasibility study Total

Projects Dams Projects Dams Projects Dams

Ministerial jurisdiction 44

Constructed by corporation . . . . 13

Subsidized 148

Multipurpose 115

Flood control 33

Total 205

47

13

148

115

33

208

46

13

113

77

36

172

49

13

113

77

36

175

27

2

83

53

30

112

28

2

84

54

30

111

73

15

196

130

66

284

77

' 15

197

131

. 66

289

Note: "Dams" includes estuary weirs, lakes, retarding basins, adjusting river flow works and higher water utilization works.


Table

Classification

39. List of dams

Purpose

under construction in

No. 0/ t-gectiveproject, (mT'"v

Japan in

Project cost

Joint skarc

1980

(1,000 million yen)

Public Project

Ministrial jurisdiction Specified multipurpose 73 3 423 3 221 1 510 193

Water resources corporation 15 3 385 1062 410 77

r Multipurpose . . . 130 1 562 1 648 1 145 107

Government subsidized I Flood control . . . 66 296 461 461 28

I Total 196 1 858 2 409 1 606 135

Grand total 284 8 666 6 393 3 525 406

Note: Public spending for dams under ministrial jurisdiction docs not include feasibility study expenses.

Table 40. List of economic benefits from completed dams in Japan (by 1979)

Classification Ministerialjurisdiction

Publiccorporation

Governmentsubsidized Total

Number of dams 47 13 148

Project cost (million yen) (302 723)466 989

Economic effect . Flood control Flood inflow (1 000 m3/sec) 78

Controlled discharge (1 000 m3/sec) 41

Annual average disaster control (million yen) 14 860

Power generation: Annual energy production (MWh) 7 403 987

Domestic water supply (100 million m3/ycar) 7.4

Industrial water supply (100 million m3/ycar) 5.6

208

(114 442)240 621

3314

1 483

1 533 604

19.8

12.9

(335 698)486752

11352

20 347

4 558 689

16.3

13.4

(752 863)1 194 362

224107

36 690

13 496280

43.5

31.9

Note: Figures in parentheses show public spending by Ministry of Construction.

2. Measures for reservoir area development

Unlike other public works, dam construction pro-jects have a strong influence upon the inhabitants ofthe reservoir area and its environs. Therefore, it isessential that, parallel with the construction project,effective measures be taken for reducing the impact ofdam construction on the population; this is generallycalled "measures for reservoir areas". The executingagency for the project is required to introduce improve-ments in the living environment for the inhabitants ofthe reservoir area, in addition to its obligation to com-pensate the people for loss or damage, under the 1973Act on Special Measures for Reservoir Area Develop-ment. Forty-six dams designated under this Act arenow under construction. The plan for reservoir areadevelopment with regard to those designated dams hasbeen prepared by the National Land Agency after co-ordination with other ministries and agencies concern-ed. The specific projects included in the plan areentitled to receive governmental subsidies at prefer-ential rates, if the project requires an extraordinarilylarge-scale reservoir. The same can apply to develop-ment projects for lakes or ponds on a large scale. Atpresent, one lake development project is included inthe scope of application under the Act.

To further complement the compensation orspecial measures for area development, a fund forreservoir area development has been set up in someareas by joint investment of the national governmentand the relevant prefectural authorities and localmunicipalities, and is being utilized for resettlement ofthe inhabitants in the reservoir area.

G. AGRICULTURAL WATER RESOURCES

Land improvement projects are executed in ac-cordance with the provisions of the Land ImprovementAct for improvement, development, preservation andcollective control of farmland by bettering the waterand land conditions.

The scope of such projects includes irrigation,drainage, farmland improvement, disaster prevention,road extension, arable site formation and reclamationby drainage. The programme has been in progressunder the land improvement long-term plan, which isupdated every 10 years. A total budgetary fund of13 trillion yen will be invested for execution of thisprogramme under the long-term plan of 1973 to 1982.


Land improvement projects may be undertaken bythe national Government, prefectural authorities orlocal municipalities according to the scale of the pro-ject. An application may be submitted to either thegovernmental or prefectural authority concerned joint-ly by more than 15 persons who are actually engagedin farming of the land. The total project cost is prin-cipally borne by either national government or prefec-tural authority, but partially shared by those appli-cants as beneficiaries. In any event, the rate of grant-in-aid is legally stipulated according to the scale ofthe project. Financing for the beneficiaries' share ofthe total expenses is arranged through the assistanceof the Government. With regard to the share of res-ponsibility for maintenance of the facilities after com-pletion of the project, either the national Governmentor the prefectural authority assumes responsibility forthe facilities of high public interest, and the privatebeneficiaries take charge of all the other facilities.

As of 1979, land improvement projects were beingexecuted in 363 areas under governmental manage-ment, in 6,416 areas under prefectural managementand in 8,704 areas under municipal management. Thetotal annual spending for execution of the programmereached 1,300 billion yen, ranking second to the roadimprovement programme in its share of the nation'stotal expenditure for public works.

Since then, the main objective of this undertak-ing has shifted from increased production of food toimproved productivity of agriculture, as a result ofwhich emphasis has been placed upon the farm ratherthan the paddy field. In particular, the improvementof the living environment in rural areas has been takenup as a part of the land improvement project in recentyears.

H. HYDROPOWER GENERATION

With regard to the selection of exploitable sitesfor hydropower development, a small number of pros-pective sites remain for dam construction. However,there still remain some potential hydropower resources,as follows:

(a) Exploitation of sites on a medium or smallscale;

(b) Inclusion of power generation as part of anintegrated river development scheme (multipurposedam);

(c) Abolition of existing power generating facili-ties with a low utilization factor of river discharge orre-development by improvement of flow regime;

(d) Exploitation of sites with low effective head.

With the improved living standard of people inrecent years, the general trend is that the peak loadhas risen considerably, while the load factor is declin-ing. Development projects for pumped-storage powergeneration will be further promoted to cope with suchpeak demand.

Because of its steep landscape and abundant rain-fall, Japan has favourable site conditions for hydro-power generation. For the past 100 years, concentrat-ed efforts have been made for development of hydro-power generating sources. By 1980, hydropower sta-tions were in operation at 1,500 sites, with a maximumgenerating capacity of 27,000 MW. Stations with atotal additional capacity of 10,000 MW are now underconstruction at 36 sites.

VII. NEPAL(NR.7/CRP.10)

INTRODUCTION

The Himalayan kingdom of Nepal is traditionallyan agricultural country, with nearly 90 per cent of thepeople engaged in agriculture. The present popula-tion is almost 13.6 million and is increasing annuallyby 2.02 per cent. Cultivable land is limited, amount-ing to nearly 2 million hectares in the Terai and innermountain valleys.

Population increase and lack of alternative em-ployment in the hills caused people to begin migratingto the Terai forests. Within a decade the forest areain the Terai had been reduced to 20 per cent and to40 per cent in the hills. As a result, it has been ob-served that the number of landslides has increased,

along with more severe soil erosion in the hills, caus-ing flood problems in low-lying areas of the Terai inthe south.

In the light of these multifaceted problems andtheir unfavourable impact on the ecosystems of Nepal,the Government of Nepal has adopted the followingnew measures to correct the defects: (a) control ofpopulation growth; (b) conservation of land, forestsand minerals; (c) development and conservation ofwater resources; and (d) development of alternativejobs.

To achieve these objectives, heavy investmentsare being made annually for various projects, and theresults so far appear to be favourable to the invest-ment.


A. WATER RESOURCES

Next to the land, water is the most importantnatural resource of the country. Nepal appears to befortunate in having an enormous amount of water out-flow through the Himalayan rivers. More than 6,000rivers and rivulets, with a total length of 45,000 km,discharge about 107 billion m3 annually. The annualaverage run-off coefficient inside the country is about78 per cent, which gives an average flow of about 5,360m3/sec. This flow has been found to be more thansufficient to meet the demands of agriculture, drinkingwater and industrial purposes. In addition, Nepal hasa theoretical hydropower potential of 83 million kW,which comes to 5.6 MW per capita at present.

The continuously increasing cost of petroleumproducts, and the fear generated by the fact that theworld's reserves are declining, have caused Nepal totap its own inexhaustible and renewable hydropowerresources to the maximum and to try to substitutehydropower for hydrocarbons as far as possible intransport, irrigation and other industries.

To accomplish these objectives and also to speedthe development work, Nepal has reorganized andcreated new institutions such as the Water ResourcesMinistry and the Local Development Ministry. TheWater and Power Commission has been strengthenedby adding scientific sections to its system, such ashydrology, meteorology and ground water units. Toselect economically viable projects, investigations inhydrology, geology and meteorology have been streng-thened in recent years. For hydrological studies, 60gauging stations, 32 cable ways, 16 gauge houses and16 sediment sampling centres are in operation.

For climatological records, the following stationshave been established: 25 rainfall, 16 automatic raingauge, 2 synoptic, 2 agronautical, 3 agrometeorological,3 snow gauge and 5 climatological stations. Dailyweather broadcasts have been introduced into the massmedia in order to inform the people. To smooth outthe fluctuating hydrograph of rivers, research work hasbeen carried out to determine the ground-water poten-tial on the northern edge of the Indo-Gangetic basinby drilling 200 deep tube-wells. Engineering, geolo-gical and economic studies are being carried out for10 major and numerous small projects in the field ofirrigation and power development.

It is felt that beseides the departments and minis-tries, it is essential and practicable to have autono-mous boards and corporations for successful executionand operation of projects. The Irrigation, Hydrologyand Meteorology, Electricity and Drinking Water, andSewerage Departments are working on the generationof new projects; most of the boards are busy with theexecution of the projects; finally, the corporations areproviding maintenance for the completed projects.

B. IRRIGATION

Erratic monsoons have always caused Nepal tohave alternate years of prosperity and famine. Toreduce these natural vagaries, it has become necessaryto provide year-round irrigation. Studies of the riversystems of Nepal indicate that nearly 72 per cent ofthe rainfall immediately becomes surface run-off. Thehigh to low flow ratio is 100:1 in snow-fed rivers;1,000:1 in medium-type rivers; and 10,000:1 in thecase of small rivers. Nepal has to design its irrigationprojects on the basis of these river characteristics.

Only 10 per cent of 2 million hectares cultivableland has come under irrigation. To increase the num-ber of hectares irrigated, besides the run-of-the-riverscheme, lift pumps and tube-wells — are also beingdeveloped in areas where this is economically feasible.Because of the fluctuating nature of the river flow, thecommand area varies up to 10 times between the rainyseason and the winter season. To balance the com-mand area and to control the water table, groundwater is being tapped. At present thousands of smalland large tube-wells are being sunk in the high pres-sure artesian belt of the southern plain of the Terai.

C. POWER

Though Nepal has huge hydropower potential,achievements in power development have been modest.At present only a fraction of the total power has beentapped. The major projects which have been com-pleted generate only about 35 MW of power, whilenew projects will generate an additional 130 MW ormore.

A decade ago the consumption of power was evenless than the supply of 14 MW. But in recent years,owing to the increase in oil prices and growth of in-dustries in Nepal, the demand has risen rapidly. Tomeet the unexpected demand, diesel generation hasbeen put into the circuit and implementation of newprojects is moving to meet the internal demand. Thepresent status is 37.2 MW hydropower consumptionand 22.5 MW diesel generation. Nearly 702 km oftransmission lines of 33 kV and above have been con-structed. To make development balanced, in additionto major projects, mini- and micro-power generationprogrammes catering to one or a group of villages inremote areas have been taken up. Many small pro-jects have been completed successfully by the MicroHydel Project Development Board.

D. DRINKING WATER

It has been found that the best way to help thecommon people in the villages is to provide pipedwater. In Nepal, villages are scattered, houses are farapart, and supply of piped water is costly and time-


consuming. Until now only 11 per cent of the peoplehave come under the piped-water scheme; it is plannedthat nearly 30 per cent of the population will havepotable water within the next five years. Chemicaland biological laboratories have been established toanalyse the potability of the water.

In the Terai plain of the south, water-borne diseaseare controlled to a large extent by providing potablewater, and this has also benefited the country by re-ducing imports of costly medicines.

Drainage is an important aspect of water manage-ment, with a direct impact on sanitation. Most ofthe irrigation and drinking-water projects now includedrainage as a major component. In urban areas,sewage is treated before being channelled out into theriver system. Nepal at present has limited industries,and development has not reached a stage where thereis a pollution problem. However, necessary measureshave been taken to take care of the pollution beforethe industries are established.

C. SOIL EROSION AND FLOOD CONTROL

Landslides and soil erosion have become seriousproblems, especially in mountainous regions which oc-cupy two thirds of the land surface in the north. Asa result of heavy rainfall, averaging 1800 mm annual-ly, coupled with deforestation, the landslides are fre-quent and soil erosion is common. This has createda serious silting problem in reservoirs, loss of fertilityin the hills and floods in the Terai. To correct these

problems, a Department of Soil Water Conservationhas been established. Now an afforestation program-me is being launched, which includes preservation ofexisting forests. Engineering measures have been in-troduced in areas where the landslide problem is se-rious. Integrated watershed management, torrent con-trol and land-use development projects are being ini-tiated. Such projects need strong regional co-opera-tion from adjoining countries which are facing floodand silting problems from the River Ganges. Unlesscatchment basins are managed properly, all the coun-tries in the region of the Ganges will face the doubleproblem of flood water at one time and meagre lowflow at another.

F. TECHNICAL MANPOWER

Being a developing country, Nepal is always shortof technical manpower. To train local technicians, anEngineering College and scientific institutions have beenestablished under Tribhuvan University. Students arealso being sent abroad in large numbers in order tomeet the great need.

G. REGIONAL CO-OPERATION

Nepal has always shown a keen interest in thefield of regional co-operation. His Majesty the Kingof Nepal has stated his interest in the co-operation ofAsian countries for optimal utilization of the region'swater resources. Nepal hopes that other countries willjoin it in sharing their water resources.

VIII. NEW ZEALAND

INTRODUCTION

During the last three years, New Zealand hascontinued to develop its water resources in traditionalways, for use in agriculture, hydroelectric power gen-eration, industrial and community water supplies andwaste disposal. The Water and Soil Conservation Actof 1967 and the Soil Conservation and Rivers ControlAct of 1941 still provide the legislative base for themanagement of New Zealand's water resources. How-ever, a revision and consolidation of this legislation isbeing drafted. A National Development Act was en-acted in 1979 to enable specified consents, includingwater rights, to be obtained quickly for developmentsconsidered to be in the national interest.

A. LEGISLATION

Much effort has been expended in drafting therevision and consolidation of the legislation related towater and soil conservation activities during the pastthree years. To date this legislation has not yet been

accepted in the Government's legislative programme,but it is expected to be introduced during 1981.

The main changes and purposes envisaged in thedraft legislation are:

(a) The bringing together into one piece of legis-lation of the complementary nature of land and wateruse;

(b) A closer relationship between water legisla-tion and land planning legislation;

(c) A simplified national organization;

(d) Statutory recognition of water managementplanning, including water allocation and water qualityclassification.

In 1979 the National Development Act was en-acted. The objective of the Act is to provide for theprompt consideration of proposed works of nationalimportance by the direct referral of the proposals to


the Planning Tribunal, a judicial body, for an inquiry,report and recommendation to Government and byproviding for such works to receive the necessaryconsents.

The body which would normally grant the con-sent for a water right, the local regional water boardor the National Water and Soil Conservation Authori-ty, gives a recommendation to the Planning Tribunalwhich, on inquiry and after hearing evidence, makesa report and recommendation on the consents to begranted.

It is too early to gauge what impact the Act willhave on water resource management as only oneapplication has been submitted so far. This applica-tion is for a 1,200-ton-per-day methanol plant.

B. WATER RESOURCES DEVELOPMENT

1. Irrigation and rural water supply

Between July 1977 and July 1980, five new irriga-tion schemes covering an area of 21,050 hectares werebegun, bringing the total under construction as at July1980 to 15 and covering an area of 65,500 hectares.During the same period 23 new rural water supplyschemes covering an area of 260,400 hectares werestarted, bringing the total under construction as atJuly 1980 to 45 and covering an area of 541,300 hec-tares. While most of these schemes are for pastoralfarming, one major irrigation scheme started in theperiod was for trickle irrigation for citrus and othersubtropical fruit.

2. Hydroelectric power generation

The hydroelectric power generation capacity hasincreased from 3,362 MW in 1977 to 3,786 MW, as atAugust 1980. The proposed development plan forenergy aims at an expected increase in capacity of1,184 MW in the next decade.

During the period, encouragement was given tolocal-authority hydroelectric power development forschemes of less than 50 MW capacity. As of August1980, ten schemes totalling 119 MW capacity wereunder construction.

3. Other energy requirements and development policies

In addition to the increase in hydroelectric powergeneration, a further 1,350 MW of thermal powergeneration capacity is planned for the next decade.The Government has also decided that natural gasshould be converted into liquid fuels and that thecountry's aluminium smelting capacity should be in-creased. These developments will require carefulexamination of their effects on water quality.

4. Public water supplies

The five-yearly grading of public water supplieswas carried out in 1980. This shows that 87 per centof the total population is served by public water sup-plies. Ninety-four per cent of this population havecompletely satisfactory supplies.

Approximately 161,000 people, living in 384 com-munities of more than 200 people and representing 5per cent of the population, are still without publicwater supplies. Approximately half this number, in244 communities, arc unlikely to receive a public watersupply because of the scattered nature of the com-munities.

C. WATER MANAGEMENT PLANNING

Financial assistance of approximately $NZ 2 mil-lion over the three year period 1977-1980 has beenprovided to regional water boards for the productionof water allocation plans. These are prepared in fourstages: (a) existing water resources; (b) present de-mands; (c) future likely demands; and (d) allocationof the resource.

Nearly 100 projects have been assisted and about20 have been completed. It has been found that whilethe information provides a sound framework for theallocation of the quantity of water and the issue ofwater rights, there is a need for a wider-based watermanagement document which reflects and balances thepolicies and objectives both of the National Waterand Soil Conservation Organization and allied agenciesinvolved in the wise use of natural resources. This islikely to find expression in a water management state-ment which is proposed in the new draft legislation.It was noted in the country's statement to the fourthsession of the Committee that it was proving difficultto find a satisfactory means of linking planning forthe protection of water use with adequate provisionfor water of high quality where there was little publicuse.

As part of the draft legislation, it is planned tolink water classification to the water managementstatement which will be mandatory. Water classifica-tion is to be optional, may be limited to a certain areaand will define the principal use of the water so clas-sified. Certain water quality standards will be setdown for each class, but it is expected that some flexi-bility will be allowed for further classes with appro-priate standards, to be suggested during the classifica-tion procedure.

D. TECHNICAL SUPPORT

Activities to assist in the efficient use and con-trol of water resources have included:


(a) Development of telemetric flow measurementsfor flood forecasting and routine data collection;

(b) A regional flood frequency procedure;

(c) Long-range forecasts of average annual rain-fall;

(d) Nationwide coverage of synoptic maps offrequency distribution of high intensity rainfalls;

(e) Prediction of the effects of rainfall deficits onagricultural production;

(f) Quality assurance programmes for water qua-lity and hydrological measurements and developmentof assessed physical, chemical and analytical methodsfor testing natural waters.

Studies have also been undertaken to reflect therelationships between land use and quantity and qua-lity of water run-off. A national coverage with mapsand computer stored data of land resources coveringsuch features as rock type, soil type, vegetation cover,slope and erosion has been completed.

E. INTERNATIONAL CO-OPERATION

Assistance has been given to a number of coun-tries in the South Pacific region for the financing,

design and construction of water supply and sanitationschemes. In addition, training has been given forwater supply and sewage treatment operations whereoperator training facilities have been established.Training has also been provided within New Zealandfor personnel from other countries.

Assistance has also been given to countries in thesouth-east Asian part of the region for a river basinstudy, pilot ground-water irrigation scheme, pre-feasi-bility studies for improving town water supplies, andprovision of adviser and funds for extension work forvillage water resource development as well as planningfor village water resource development. In the area ofexchange of technical information, New Zealand hasprovided lectures for seminars organized by WHO inChina and the western Pacific basin and backgroundpapers for the ESCAP Working Group Meeting onWater Data Systems. The country is also a partici-pant in the Global Environmental Monitoring Systemair and water programmes.

Under the auspices of the Environment Commit-tee of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation andDevelopment, a group of experts from a number ofcountries is at present examining New Zealand's en-vironmental management. This study is expected tobe completed by December 1980.

IX. PHILIPPINES

A. WATER RESOURCES SECTOR REVIEW

Development of water resources in the Philippinesduring 1978 and 1979 emphasized the expansion ofwater supply and irrigation services and the maximiza-tion of the yield of natural supply systems. The pro-gramme concentrated on the construction of new faci-lities and the rehabilitation of existing ones. Majorwatershed programmes were completed close to sche-duled plans.

The sector recorded positive though modest ac-complishments despite the critical problems broughtabout by the fuel crisis. Delays in the implementa-tion of projects were caused by over-all budgetary res-traint, coupled with technical difficulties.

In 1978, out of the total investment programmeof P2.584 million ($US 350 million), of which $US 155million was in foreign exchange, actual disbursementsonly amounted to PI,468 million, which was only 57per cent of the programmed outlay. Disbursementsin 1979 amounted to P2.268 million, 65 per cent of theprogrammed outlay of P3.490 million. Water resourcesinvestments accounted for 21 per cent of governmentexpenditure on infrastructure for the two-year period.

1. Policies and institutional reforms

Basic policies for the water supply sector werepromulgated on 30 March 1978 in order to achievethe sectoral objective of providing an efficient andadequate supply of water. These policies called forthe rationalization of the organizational structure ofthe sector, the formation of water districts, associa-tions or co-operatives to operate and manager watersystems and the encouragement of projects which em-phasize self-help and self-reliance.

The Metropolitan Waterworks and Sewerage Sys-tem (MWSS) took over the centralized water supplysystem in residential sub-divisions under its territorialjurisdiction. Likewise, the Local Water Utilities Ad-ministration (LWUA) reviewed its present rates andfees structure. The charter of LWUA was amendedto provide direct government support to non-viable dis-tricts.

The National Water Resources Council (NWRC),in its role as co-ordinator of policies and programmesaffecting water resources development, created a taskforce on rural water supply with the objective of evolv-ing a rural water supply programme. This culminated


in the creation of the Rural Waterworks DevelopmentCorporation (RWDC) through Executive Order 577,passed on 12 January 1980. This completed therationalization of the water supply sector by coveringcities and municipalities with less than 20,000 popula-tion, since LWUA is responsible for cities with popu-lation of over 20,000 and NWSS for Metro Manila andits contiguous areas. The same directive assignedNWRC the responsibility for formulation of frame-work plans and policies for water supply, and theMinistry of Public Works (MPW) as the agency res-ponsible for development of integrated water supplyplans and programmes consistent with the policies andplans of NWRC; the MPW serves as the principalimplementing arm of RWDC for engineering and con-struction.

(a) Flood control

A Small Water Impounding Management Com-mittee was organized at the same time, to facilitateeffective and co-ordinated implementation of the pro-gramme for small multipurpose catchment basins andimpounding reservoirs under the national infrastructureprogramme. Apart from arresting floods, these pro-jects can also be used for irrigation and hydropowergeneration.

(b) Irrigation

A national policy for irrigation was adopted,directing that the Government should bear the cost ofirrigation projects which require lower developmentcosts and have shorter gestation periods. Further-more, the integration of the field offices of the Na-tional Irrigation Administration (NIA) has brought allNIA activities under the supervision and control ofthe office of the Regional Director for an effective andefficient administration.

The Farm Systems Development Corporation(FSDC) embarked on a new programme for mobiliz-ing and developing indigenous farmer-leaders to enlistmore active participation from the Irrigation ServiceAssociation (ISA) farmer-members. The ISAs haveproved to be viable, sound and economic units forfarmer involvement in the operation and managementof the system. The FSDC programme also providesfor the production of other crops, rice-fish culture andlivestock production to augment farmers' incomes.

2. Programme implementation

(a) Irrigation

The irrigation programme has been vigorouslyimplemented and has stressed support for the foodproduction programme of the Government; the allevia-tion of water shortage; conservation; and flood controlthrough reforestation.

The total disbursement for irrigation in 1979 wasPI,929 million (about 99 per cent of the programmedinvestment), which was an improvement of 50 per centover the 1978 performance.

In terms of physical accomplishments, the totalnew area generated for irrigation was 46,408 ha in1979. This was 55 per cent of the plan target, higherthan the 48 per cent achieved in 1978. The NIAundertook rehabilitation works on existing systemscovering an aggregate area of 56,227 ha, which exceedsthe plan target by 2.2 per cent, in addition to thedirect construction of irrigation facilities. As of theend of 1979, FSDC had installed 437 pump irrigationprojects covering 48.341 ha; these had increased to 588projects covering 60,298 ha by the end of 1979.

As of the end of 1978, FSDC had organized atotal of 50, 608 farmers into 956 ISAs covering 137,161ha. By the end of 1979, there were 1,449 ISAs cover-ing 194,589 ha, with a membership of 73,826.

A shift towards communal irrigation was evidentfrom the noticeable increases in new areas generatedby communal irrigation projects, from 7,688 ha in 1978to 23,530 ha in 1979.

(b) Water supply and sewerage

The thrust of the water supply and sewerage pro-gramme was the provision of an adequate safe andlow-cost water supply complemented by proper sewer-age disposal. Activities undertaken during the periodwere the long-range improvement of the urban watersystem in the Metro Manila area, the formation ofwater districts in selected provincial urban centres andconstruction/improvement of their water supply sys-tems, and the provision of a potable water supply inthe rural areas.

The programmed investment in 1978 was P434million, of which $US 24 million was the foreign ex-change requirement. Actual disbursements reachedP284.4 million, or 66 per cent of the investment pro-gramme for the sector. A similar percentage was dis-bursed the following year, representing P324 million outof the targeted outlay of P746 million.

Construction and rehabilitation of infrastructurefacilities which support the objective of narrowing thesupply deficiencies in urban centres and rural areaswere accelerated.

(c) Flood control and drainage

Flood control projects were implemented extensive-ly to minimize the impact of floods during the rainyseason. The programme was directed towards the con-struction of protective structures and other effective


means, such as catchment basins and impounding re-servoirs, not only for a first defence against floods butalso for more productive purposes.

About 85 per cent of the programmed outlay forflood control and drainage was disbursed during theperiod, thus allowing for the completion of major drain-age outfalls, mains and laterals in Metro Manila, andspeeding up other projects in the flood-prone areas inthe countryside, notably the Agno, Pampanga, Bicoland Cotabato rivers. These extensive flood controlprojects have relieved a number of low-lying areasfrom flooding. The investments amounted to P318million in 1979, out of the programmed outlay of P372million.

B. GROUND-WATER MANAGEMENT INTHE PHILIPPINES*

Background

Although it was specified in the 1935 Constitutionof the Philippines that all waters belong to the State,the system of control of the exploitation of groundwater still hinged on the old Spanish legal conceptthat ground water is private property. In other words,it worked on the presumption that a lond owner ownsthe ground water under his land and can drill a wellwithin his property without legal limitations.

This system apparently had not considered theprinciple of hydraulic continuity of ground water,which implies that hydrogeologic stresses on one sitemay affect areas far beyond the bounds of one's landholding.

The present generation must have been aware ofthis, as evidenced by the fact that the principle thatall waters belong to the State was reiterated in the1973 Constitution. To emphasize this constitutionalprovision, the Philippines Water Code has definedmore clearly the intents of the above-mentioned basiclaw.

The Code states that water, particularly groundwater, can only be used through administrative con-cession. A person has thee right to use ground wateronly after obtaining a water permit from the NationalWater Resources Council. The granting of water per-mits shall be based on well-accepted principles ofhydrogeology, within the limits of the availability ofdata. Therefore, different sets of technical toolsshould be organized/harmonized to suit each foreseencase.

* By Simplicio T. Polinar and Solomio N. Limos, Research Fellows,National Hydraulic Research Centre, College of Engineering, Universityof the Philippines, Diliman, Quezon City.

For areas where ground-water exploitation is notso heavy and complicated, and available data arelimited, control can be achieved by prescribing wellspacing. In this method, distances between wells aredivided into four discharge categories. For wells dis-charging 2 to 10 litres per second, the minimum dis-tance between wells is 200 metres; from 10 to 20 1/sec,400 metres; from 20 to 40 1/sec, 600 metres; andmore than 40 1/sec, 1000 metres. It may be worthnoting that this rule excludes domestic water supplywells designed for single-family use, which are lessthan 30 metres deep. These spacing prescriptions maybe adjusted on the basis of the nature of land use,geologic and hydrologic data.

In areas where there are too many wells, spacingcontrol is no longer realistic. Although the spacingcriteria may still allow the construction of more wells,the regional availability of ground water may notallow it.

Thus, other criteria must be derived in order tohave a well-balanced granting of permits. One ofthese is the control of withdrawal density, which maybe derived from either the "safe yield" or the "allowedmining withdrawal" criteria for an area. It may beworth noting that ground-water mining in the Philip-pines may be allowed, provided that the life of theground-water reservoir system is maintained for atleast 50 years. The preceding may be augmented bythe well optimal discharge theory; the control of inter-ference by not more than 2 metres of additional draw-down; and the limitation of pump sizes.

1. Division of the country into comprehensible units

On the basis of certain hydrologic features, thecountry has been divided into 12 water resources re-gions. Each of these regions is divided into ground-water areas, which in turn may be sub-divided intosmaller areas so that more detailed analysis may beundertaken. This has already been done in heavily-exploited areas such as Metro Manila and centralLuzon. The ground-water areas generally have thesame boundaries as the river basins. However, insome cases these boundaries may be altered if ground-water data and the geologic nature of the site requireit. For example, in limestone formations, ground-water divides are normally not the same as those ofsurface water.

The following criteria are expected to be appliedin each of the said areas.

(a) Safe yield and mining concepts

Safe yield is understood as the net inflow of freshwater to the underground reservoir system. Therefore,if the withdrawal in an area is maintained at the safe


yield level, the expected problems arising from ground-water exploitation, such as salt water intrusion andland subsidence, may not occur. Safe yield may bedenned in many ways, depending upon data availabi-lity. In the absence of good ground-water data, thisparameter may be assumed as a percentage of annualrainfall.

As population increases and continues to concen-trate in population centres, it is extremely difficult topeg withdrawal at a safe yield level. It does not seempractical to reserve ground water for future genera-tions, when the present one needs it badly.

Along this line of reasoning, ground-water with-drawal beyond the safe yield limit or ground-water"mining" may be allowed for a certain period, untilan alternative surface water development is completed.

The 50-year ground-water "mining" limit provid-ed in the implementing rules and regulations of thePhilippine Water Code is a step in this direction.

(b) Allowed mining withdrawal

Of paramount importance is the necessity to ex-press the total amount of mining withdrawal with res-pect to the estimated period of exhaustion.

If we assume that:Qw = total mining withdrawalV = total volume of ground-water storage

Sy = safe yield, andt = estimated period of exhaustion in

years,

then the following equations hold:

Qwt V + Sy • t

V

d-a)

d-b)

20.This relationship is illustrated graphically in figure

E"e

o

—Assume 50-yearmining withdrawal

Safe yield

t estimated period of exhaustion

Figure 20. Relationship between safe yield, mining withdrawal and period of exhaustion


2. Ground-water control by withdrawaldischarge density

Along with well spacing and/or interference re-quirement, the exploitation of ground water may alsobe controlled by well discharge density. For examplein Metro Manila, a limit of 11 litres per second perkm2 may be observed.

It should be noted that the withdrawal dischargedensity (1/sec/km2) may be derived from safe yieldor allowed mining withdrawal. It might also be tiedin with the mentioned optimal withdrawal.

Using the safe yield limit,

the Withdrawal Discharge Densitytotal safe yield

(2)area

Use the allowed "mining" withdrawal limit,

the Withdrawal Discharge Density =total allowed mining withdrawal

. . . . (2a)area

If the optimal withdrawal is included in the cri-teria, the optimal total number of wells may be pre-dicted.

Using the safe yield limit,

the optimal number of wells =total safe yield

optimal withdrawal per well

Using the allowed "mining" withdrawal limit,

the optimal number of wells =total allowed mining withdrawal

(3)

optimal withdrawal per well

3. Ground-water evaluation model

. . . (4)

From the foregoing concepts, ground-watermanagement is technically achieved through the fol-lowing:

(a) Control by well discharge density or numberof wells, which might be based on safe yield, allowedground-water mining withdrawal or optimal with-drawal concepts;

(b) Limitation of interference;

(c) Specification of pump size and horsepower.

The limitations of interference concept shall makeuse of the Theis non-equilibrium formula, which canbe described as follows:

where Q = withdrawal amount;

r = distance from the point of withdrawal tothe point where interference is defined;

T = transmissivity coefficient; and

S = storage coefficient.

Specification of pump size and horsepower requiresestimates of the total dynamic head (TDH).

In this connexion,

TDH = Ho + Hr + TD (6)

Interference = f(Q, r, T, S) (5)

where H o = distance of static water level from theground surface;

Hr = initial head needed to distribute thewater; and

TD = total expected drawdown.

On the other hand, TD may be computed usingthe following relationship:

TD = S, (Q,. T,, SIf r,) + s, (Q,, T,, Si, r.) . . (7)

where Si = drawdown caused by its own withdrawal,Q.;

Si = drawdown in a well caused by a nearbyinterfering well with discharge, Qi;

T = transmissibility coefficient;

S = storage coefficient;

C = well loss constant;

Tj = distance from a well to an interferencewell;

rs = any finite but small distance from thecentre of a discharging well.

The mathematical equations and the relevant pro-visions of the implementing rules and regulations ofthe Philippine Water Code, and the estimates of safeyield and allowed mining withdrawal have been pro-grammed into a high-speed digital computer system.They constitute the ground-water evaluation model.The flow chart of the model is presented in figure 21.

4. Conclusions and recommendations

Two sets of systems to control ground-water ex-ploitation in the Philippines may be implemented, de-pending upon the critical or non-critical status of theground-water areas.


c Start

Read basin name, safe yield,allowable GW mining, durationof pumping, KW

1_J = I

Read well and aquifer charac-teristics (dimensioned)

J = J + l

DO1= I,NW.

i_Compute additional drawdown ofwell (applicant) to existing wells

Tabulate additional drawdown ofweMopplicont) to existing wells

greater than 1 metre

N W - J - 1

DO

1=1, NW

Compute aquifer loss, well losspumping well drawdown

DO

1=1,NW

Compute radius of influence,distancesbetween wells,additional drawdownof existing wells to well (applicant)

Compute maximum HP of pump

Write remarks to well (applicant)I If well gives more than 2 metres addi-

tional drawdown to existing wells.If yes, reduce Q to so much.If no, specify HP of pump tobe used.

2.If estimated safe yield of the basinis exceeded.

If yes,by how much.3.If allowable ground-water mining is

exceeded.If yes, by how much.

Tabulate additional drawdown ofexisting wells to well (applicant)

greater than I metre

Print summary of all wells in thebasin, permit nos., locations, oquifarand well characteristics,totol draw-

down and interference andHP of pumps.

Symbols:

NW Number of wells pumping or observation wells/points.NPERM..Permit/reg./application No.KW Number of wells desired to be printed.Their effects on

other wells and vice versa. KW are last wells in the inputdeck and are usually No. of applicants.

Figure 21. Flowchart: ground-water evaluation model for the Philippines


Non-critical areas can be controlled manually byusing the criteria of spacing, of interference and ofwithdrawal discharge density (say 11 litres per secondper square kilometre). The said discharge density shallbe set at the safe yield limit.

However, in critical areas where there are manywells and total withdrawal exceeds the safe yield limit,processing of applications for permits shall be facilitat-ed by the use of a high-speed digital computer, alongwith the ground-water evaluation model. This methodallows the inclusion of almost all the control criteria,such as (a) well discharge density; (b) limitation ofinterference; and (c) limitation of pump sizes.

Control by withdrawal discharge density preventsthe construction of too many wells in a small area.The interference limit avoids the sudden and consider-able effect of one well in relation to existing wells, butmutual interference may nevertheless gradually occur.

Along with the mentioned criteria, close supervi-sion for good well design and construction must be

carried out. To achieve this end, it is necessary toinitiate a two-permit system for ground water, whichwould include a permit to drill and a permit to ab-stract and use.

In this case, a ground-water user would initiallyapply for a water permit. Applications would besubject to some initial evaluations considering thearea's safe yield and/or allowed mining withdrawal.Ultimately, a permit to drill would be issued by theNational Water Resources Council or its authorizeddeputies.

The necessary data and proposed plans and speci-fications of the well would then be submitted to theCouncil, which would store the information in its databank and evaluate it.

The final amount of water withdrawal allowableon a particular well would be based upon data froma test well, and would be stipulated in the permit toabstract and use ground water.

X. SAMOA

INTRODUCTION

Western Samoa has a total area of 2,820 km2 andconsists of two large islands, Savaii (1,700 km2) andUpolu (1,115 km2); two small inhabited islands,Manono and Apolima; and a number of uninhabitedislands. The total population (1976 census) is151,982, of which 109,764 live on Upolu and 42,218on Savaii.

Apia, the capital, is located on the northern sideof Upolu Island, with a population (1976 census) of36,500. Much of the town is low-lying, and untreateddrinking water and unsanitary conditions created bythe release of sewage into the environment present ahealth hazard.

The hydrology of Samoa is affected by three fac-tors: geology, rainfall and topography. Reliable sur-face streams are only found on the eastern side of eachisland, where low permeable weathered volcanic rockspredominate, except for Savaii, where the volcanicrocks are new and so highly permeable that there areno run-off streams.

The water requirements are 200 litres per headper day for human needs, and 20 to 40 litres per headper day for cattle. Irrigation of tree crops is not neces-sary.

The total energy consumption in 1979 was:

Source MJxlO6 %

Petroleum 1,024 42

Electricity — tlicscl 285 12

hydropowcr . . . . 22 1

Firewood 1,108 45

Total 2,440 100

A. DEVELOPMENT OF WATER RESOURCES

1. Water supplies

The service to the public remains poor. Wateris untreated and insufficient at various places. While95 per cent of the population have at some time hadaccess to a piped water system, it is estimated thatonly 85 per cent of the population now receive pipedwater, only 70 per cent of these receive it regularlythroughout the year. Three factors contribute to thiscondition: breakdown of the piped system, with leaksand blockages resulting from poor construction, publicabuse and poor maintenance; excessive wastage; dryseason low flows in surface supplies.

Approximately 25 per cent of the population re-ceiving water are served by pumped supplies, principal-ly from boreholes and some coastal springs (mainly inSavaii); the remaining 75 per cent obtain their waterfrom surface supplies. There is a general lack of


storage in the older system; therefore, no water issupplied through pipelines during pump maintenanceand repairs.

Borehole water supplies give superior water whichdoes not require treatment. However, there is theproblem of high salinity, especially at boreholes locatedon the western side of Savaii. Here salinity is ap-proximately 1,000 ppm (WHO standards recommend200 to 600 ppm).

Surface water supplies, especially in the urbanareas of Apia, are often contaminated as a result ofland clearing in the water catchments. Just recently aslow sand filter treatment plant of 2 million litrescapacity a day was brought into operation to serve asector of urban Apia. A proposed new scheme forApia allows for rapid filtration and chlorination. Thetotal cost is $US 12 million. A new water scheme forApia is urgent, although some improvements havealready been made. However, with the quality ofwater supplied well below WHO international stand-ards, health risks will continue to increase.

Even though there have been significant improve-ments over the last two years, rural water supply ser-vice is still considered poor. Most of these supplieswere operated and maintained by districts, but becauseof lack of proper maintenance, material and staff,standards were low. Nearly all of these systems havenow been transferred to the Government.

2. Funding and overseas aid

New Zealand has given support to Apia waterand sewage projects since 1976. The assistanceamounts to approximately $US 250,000 every year,mainly for material, equipment and the provision ofengineers and other staff. A New Zealand consultanthas recently completed a feasibility study for the pro-posed Apia Water and Sewage Schemes. Future as-sistance after 1980 is uncertain. Australia has pro-vided nearly $US 250,000 every year for rural watersupply. This support will continue as on-going pro-jects. The Netherlands has approved a loan of $US800,000 this year for rural water supply. UNICEF hasprovided material for the programme of water-seallatrines, and UNDP and WHO have both providedtechnical and consultancy assistance. The SouthPacific Commission has provided funds for certainsmall rural water projects.

3. Sanitation

In Apia there is still no sewage system, and mostpeople use septic tanks and pit toilets. A large portionof the central town is low-lying, with a high waterlevel. The two commonly used types of toilets createserious health risks through the release of organismsinto the surface water.

A sewage system costing approximately $US 12million has now been designed for the central town,although funds are not available as yet. The systemwill collect effluent from septic tanks and transport itto a central pump station where it will be pumped toan ocean outfall. Sludge from septic tanks will bedisposed of in soaking trenches.

In rural areas the vast majority use pit latrines;however, a water seal has been incorporated into theconstruction of many of these in recent years, as aresult of a programme which started in 1970 but onlyaccelerated in 1976, when WHO provided technicalassistance and most of the imported constructionmaterials, such as cement and reinforcing steel. Targetsof 2,000 to 3,000 sealed units per year were set from1975 on. However, construction was slow, and thetargets were not achieved. Nevertheless, the ruralpopulation response to this programme was tremen-dous, and a significant improvement in sanitation hasbeen noted. The slow progress was a result of lackof materials and construction staff; the problem ofdigging through rock; and a general water shortage incertain areas, so that proper operation of these unitswas not possible.

4. Hydrogeneration

The estimated total energy used in Samoa in 1979was 2,440 million mega-joules. Approximately 93per cent of the total electricity is currently generatedby diesel and 7 per cent by hydropower. A forecastof the future electricity demand has indicated a generalincrease of approximately 12 per cent every year.

It is evident from the figures above that certainmeasures should be adopted to reduce dependence ondiesel for generation by increasing the use of hydro-electric and wood-fuelled power plants; to reduce dis-tribution line losses; to formulate an economic pricefor power in commercial, industrial and domestic areas;to educate the public in the conservation of power; toformulate policies or regulations to promote the savingof power.

B. INTERNATIONAL DRINKING WATERAND SANITATION DECADE

The introductory meeting for the Decade was heldon 30 January 1980. The Public Works and HealthDepartments were represented at the ministerial level.Other departments participating included those ofEconomics, the Attorney General, the Observatory,Agriculture, Forestry and the Pulenu'u (mayor) Com-mittee. Out of the meeting a Working Committee wasformed, comprised of the Chief Water Engineer; Chiefof Public Health; Country Liaison Officer (WHO);local UNDP Representative; and representatives fromthe Departments of Economics, Agriculture and theObservatory.


The functions of the Working Committee were setdown as follows:

(a) To review activities undertaken in the de-partments represented;

(b) To initiate programmes related to either wateror sanitation;

(c) To formulate objectives, policy, programme,proposals;

(d) To receive and study requests and proposalsfrom all sources;

(e) To refer recommendations to the appropriateDirectors and Ministers for approval.

Activities proposed or already underway included:

(a) Finalizing the proposed Action Plan for theDecade;

(b) Monitoring all water resources for quantityand quality, which involves the Health, Public Worksand Observatory Departments;

(c) Making a Samoan film for public educationand promotion purposes;

(d) Arranging for a regional seminar on waterand sanitation early next year in Apia, for which thelocal UNDP has already offered assistance funds;

(e) Launching of the Decade by incorporationinto this year's Conservation Week, for which thetheme is the conservation of water;

(f) Directing a request to the United Nations forfunds for training health inspectors;

(g) Identifying national needs and ways in whichthe International Decade programme can assist.

National needs have been identified as follows:

(a) Staffing for project preparation and publiceducation;

(b) Manpower recruitment and training;

(c) Assessment and long-term monitoring ofwater resources;

(d) Surveying existing water supply and sanitationservices to identify real needs;

(e) Formulation of a national water policy andnational sanitation policy;

(f) Revision of the Water Act and formulationof a Sewage Act;

(g) Expert advice on integration of ground waterand surface water supplies;

(h) Control and licensing of water use;

(i) Protection of watch catchments;

(j) Public education in water use to preventabuse and wastage;

(k) Improvement in standards of construction andmaintenance;

(1) New tariff structure to tie consumer rating tooperation and maintenance costs;

(m) Finance ($US 20 million) for Apia waterand sewage schemes;

(n) Finance and rural water and sanitation;

(o) Finance to construct proper operation andmaintenance facilities and material storage provisions.

The international agencies can assist Samoa in itsefforts. UNDP can assume a central role in the pro-motion and co-ordination of United Nations systeminputs. It may provide consultancy and technical as-sistance for such activities as project preparation, as-sessment of water resources and existing services andstaff training. Various United Nations agencies maypromote technical co-operation among developingcountries in the transfer of technology and experience.Finally, assistance is needed to co-ordinate and financeinternational and regional co-operation in manpowertraining.

XI. SRI LANKA(NR.7/CRP.6)

INTRODUCTION

Sri Lanka is an island republic of about 64,000square km with a population of about 14.5 million.The country can be justly proud of its hydrauliccivilization, which has flourished for a span of about20 centuries. Traditionally, all rain water was trappedby an elaborate network of reservoir systems inter-connected in a highly sophisticated delivery matrix.

The availability of remarkable engineering skills isclearly recognizable in the construction of irrigationreservoirs and channels which by reason of theirgradient evoke the admiration of modern engineers withaccess to advanced instruments. Scientific manage-ment of the land and its systematic mapping can alsobe discerned from the intricate practices adopted topreserve the central mountain region of the country,with its luxuriant tropical forest cover, and the utiliza-


tion of the lowland plains for arable and pastoral pur-poses. Over-all, the conservation of the land andwater resources and their systematic development andutilization appear to be central to the approach adoptedover the centuries. For a variety of reasons thiscivilization collapsed long ago, and it has only beenduring the past 35 years that deliberate and purposefulattempts have been made by successive governments torenovate the ancient irrigation schemes and inauguratenew projects to sustain the predominantly agrarianpopulation of Sri Lanka.

Water use in Sri Lanka can be broadly classifiedinto four categories: domestic water used by the generalpopulation; irrigation water used essentially for cropsand animal husbandry; water used for industrial pur-poses; and water needed for power generation. Thesubject of water is consequently handled by separateministeries mainly for administrative convenience.However, the conceptual approach regarding the over-all use of water nationally is that it is a single resourcewhich has to be utilized within a general and integratedplanning framework.

A. ACTIVITIES IN THE APPRAISAL,DEVELOPMENT AND MANAGEMENT

OF WATER RESOURCES

The most significant aspect of recent water re-sources development activities in Sri Lanka has beenthe decision taken by the Government in July 1977 toaccelerate the implementation of the largest and mostambitious water resources development programmeever to be undertaken in this country: the master planfor the development of the water and related land re-sources of the Mahaweli Ganga river basin, as well asof several other adjacent river basins.

The master plan, which was finalized in 1968 withtechnical assistance provided by UNDP and FAO, con-sisted of the establishment of a system of 15 multi-purpose dams and associated trans-basin diversioncanals for the provision of improved irrigation facilitiesfor double-cropping over an area of 100,000 ha oflands, and for the development of as much as 264,700ha of hitherto undeveloped lands, located in thenorthern and eastern parts of the country's dry zone.The plan of development covered the equivalent ofabout 40 per cent of the total land area of the island,while the total installed capacity of the many hydro-power plants included at the major regulation anddiversion structures amounted to 960 MW. The im-plementation of the master plan of development wasoriginally phased over a period of 30 years, com-mencing in 1970, with the various major reservoir/diversion canal components timed for completion inaccordance with the country's projected demands forfood and energy over this period. The large-scale

opening up of hitherto undeveloped lands would inturn provide an opportunity to overcome the country'smassive unemployment problem through the resettle-ment of poor families currently living in the denselypopulated wet lone areas and owning little or no land;these would be resettled on individual farming andhousing allotments in the Mahaweli Project Area.

The implementation of the first of three phases ofdevelopment had been scheduled for completion by theend of 1980, but only the first project of the firstphase had been completed by 1976. However, in ad-dition to the commissioning of a 40 MW hydropowerplant, the construction of the Polgolla Diversion Com-plex for diversion of Mahaweli Ganga water to theNorth Central Province led to the realization of signi-ficant benefits in the form of additional water fordouble-cropping of as much as 52,600 ha of previouslysingle-cropped lands, as well as for the opening up ofover 28,300 ha of hitherto undeveloped lands.

The Mahaweli Development Programme in 1977was designated as the lead project among the priorityprojects in the vanguard of the national developmenteffort, since it would not only provide much-neededcheap power and save on expensive oil imports, butalso would provide the assured water supplies essentialfor achieving higher agricultural output on an appro-priate scale. The Government decided to acceleratethe originally suggested pace of development of theMahaweli master plan so as to complete a major partof its implementation in the shortest possible time.

After a careful review of the status of projectpreparation and designs, availability and requirementof capital and manpower resources and local construc-tion capacities, and taking advantage of offers of sub-stantial financial and technical assistance extended bythe Governments of the United Kingdom, Canada,Sweden, the Federal Republic of Germany, Japan andthe United States of America as well as by the WorldBank, it was decided to proceed with the constructionof five major reservoirs and power plants together withthe associated canal systems more or less simultaneous-ly, over a period of 5 to 6 years, commencing in 1978.This accelerated development phase would allow thedevelopment and settlement of as many as 129,500 haof hitherto undeveloped lands, while the installedhydropower generating capacity that would becomeavailable in substantial blocks from about the year1983 (amounting to a revised and updated total of 610MW) would be adequate to keep pace with the recentsharp increase in national power and energy demands,which has been relying largely on hydropower alone.

The existing institutional framework was appro-priately expanded and strengthened in order to equipit to undertake this enormous task. First, a separate


Ministry of Mahaweli Development was established,followed by the setting up of a Mahaweli DevelopmentAuthority on the lines of the Tennessee Valley Au-thority in the United States. This authority not onlyoversees the implementation of the accelerated pro-gramme of development and co-ordinates the activitiesof the Mahaweli Development Board, Central Engineer-ing Consultancy Bureau, River Valleys DevelopmentBoard, State Development and Construction Corpora-tion, the Department of Irrigation and a considerablenumber of foreign consulting engineering firms, but isalso responsibe for ensuring the proper and effectivecoverage of other related matters, such as the main-tenance and preservation of the environment and ofvaluable natural resources.

Along with the work on the accelerated MahaweliDevelopment Programme, water resources activitiesundertaken in Sri Lanka since 1977 also include pro-gress made on several other major development pro-jects located outside the Mahaweli project area, as wellas considerable new development activities in the fieldof public water supply to urban and rural communities.

B. FOLLOW-UP TO THE MAR DEL PLATAACTION PLAN

The progress made in the field of water resourcesplanning and development in Sri Lanka since about1965, when detailed studies for drawing up a masterplan for the development of the water and related landresources of the Mahaweli Ganga basin were initiated,and subsequent activities connected with the imple-mentation of selected segments of this master plan,could be regarded as having been in close conformitywith several of the recommendation made many yearslater at the United Nations Water Conference, held in1977. Experience and knowledge gained from theMahaweli project studies led to general improvementsin the planning, design and implementation of similardevelopment projects in other areas of the country. Apilot project for rehabilitation and more effectiveoperation of five existing major reservoir irrigationschemes was initiated in about 1976, solely with theobjective of bringing about much needed improve-ments in land and water management.

Nevertheless, follow-up action for the imple-mentation of the recommendations made at the UnitedNations Water Conference commenced in April 1977with the formation of an Ad Hoc National Committeeon Water Resources and the appointment of severalworking groups entrusted with the task of initiatingaction connected with the more important and urgentaspects of these recommendations. The following mea-sures, which have been taken up since about the endof 1978, can be regarded as taken specifically in res-ponse to the Mar del Plata Action Plan.

1. Formulation and drafting of a comprehensivenew Water Resources Act, to be presented to Parlia-ment shortly, which provides for the establishment ofa National Water Resources Council with well-definedresponsibilities for drawing up a national water policy;co-ordinating water resources activities at the nationallevel; examining and resolving disputes relating to theownership, allocation and use of water resources; lay-ing down and enforcing water quality and effluentstandards; and estimating the demands for water fordifferent purposes and preparing long-term programmesfor satisfying these demands.

2. Drafting of a new irrigation law, also ex-pected to be enacted shortly, to repeal the old irriga-tion ordinance and to include updated and more effec-tive provisions for the control and regulation of wateruse in irrigation schemes, and dealing with abuses,control and regulation of the use of ground water forirrigation purposes.

3. Formulation and specification of appropriatepolicies for special attention to land and water manage-ment under irrigated cultivation, with a view to in-creasing agricultural production and productivitythrough the enforcement of stringent water manage-ment in all major irrigation schemes; rehabilitationand modernization of existing irrigation distributionsystems to permit the introduction of water manage-ment procedures and to facilitate more equitable dis-tribution of water; and improvement of operation andmaintenance practices, supported by the revision andupdating of the existing operation and maintenanceregulations and standing orders, in the form of acomprehensive new manual.

4. Initiation of a national water management pro-gramme funded by the United States Agency for In-ternational Development, accompanied by the establish-ment of a separate water management unit in the De-partment of Irrigation, under which work has beencommenced on the rehabilitation and modernizationof the irrigation distribution systems of the Gal OyaProject with the assistance of foreign consultants, priorto introducing effective water management procedures;similar attention will be progressively extended toseveral major irrigation projects in other parts of thecountry; and provision has been made for the trainingof future operation and maintenance and water man-agement personnel, both locally and abroad.

5. Initiation of measures for improving the exist-ing standards and procedures for the assessment ofwater resources, through the gradual and planned ex-pansion of the data-collecting network, commencingwith the installation of automatic water level recordersat important locations in selected river basins; in-stallation of additional electronic computation facilities


for the progressing, analysis, adjustment and futurestorage of hydrological and other related water-resources data; the training of personnel in the use ofisotope techniques in the field of hydrology; and recentparticipation by a senior engineer of the Departmentof Irrigation in a course in statistical computer tech-niques in hydrology and water resources, held atColorado State University.

6. Examination of the functional organization ofthe Department of Irrigation with the assistance offoreign consultants, with a view to bringing about im-provements in future activities of this important Gov-ernment agency relating to the planning, design, ap-praisal, implementation, operation and maintenance ofwater resources development projects and programmes.

Problems and constraints that have been en-countered in the course of follow-up action on the re-commendations made at the United Nations WaterConference are those that may be expected to becommon to most of the countries in the ESCAP re-gion; the more noteworthy are shortages of qualifiedmanpower, partly arising from the continued emigrationof local talent in search of more lucrative employmentabroad; institutional deficiencies caused partly by alack of qualified manpower and partly by a need forimprovements in the functional organization of theexisting institutions; and shortage of financial resources,caused primarily by oil price increases and accompany-ing world-wide inflation, which, in turn, is a constraintto obtaining needed equipment.

C TECHNICAL CO-OPERATION AMONGDEVELOPING COUNTRIES

The facilities available in the developing countriesof the ESCAP region for providing mutual support inimplementing the Mar del Plata Action Plan are wellknown, and Sri Lanka has availed itself of them fromtime to time as the need arose. Engineers from theDepartment of Irrigation have been sent to the Inter-national Rice Research Institute in the Philippines tostudy rice irrigation and water management, and ar-rangements have been finalized to send an engineer tothe Republic of Korea to participate in a course inwater management.

Furthermore, it is believed that the more recentactivities in Sri Lanka connected with the programmingand implementation of the accelerated Mahaweli de-velopment project, the on-going programme of re-habilitation and modernization of existing irrigationschemes, the national water management project, re-vision, updating and consolidation of the existing waterlegislation would be of more than ordinary interest toother developing countries in the ESCAP region.

The Government of Sri Lanka cordially welcomesrepresentatives of ESCAP member Governments tovisit Sri Lanka and acquaint themselves more fullywith the various water resources activities mentionedhere.

D. RURAL COMMUNITY WATER SUPPLY ANDRURAL SANITATION IN RELATION TO

OVER-ALL MANAGEMENT OFWATER RESOURCES

(NR.7/CRP.7)

1. The nature of die problem

A primary social objective of the Government ofSri Lanka is to improve the quality of life of its people,particularly those who are handicapped financially orby the physical conditions of their living. Equal op-portunities have ti be provided for all sections of thepopulation, so that all may benefit from economicgrowth. With this end in view, the Government willcontinue to provide special support measures to theold, the indigent and the needy, while health andeducation facilities will be available to all. In short,the Government's investment strategy seeks to achievelarge-scale expansion of employment and a high rateof over-all growth and progressive improvement in thebalance of payments, while safeguarding the livingstandards of the poor in order that an improvement inthe quality of life be available to everyone.

Provision of safe water for drinking in adequatequantity, throughout the day and the year, and withinreasonable access to homes, in areas where safe wateris not yet available, falls within the broad social ob-jective to improve the quality of life. Similarly theprovision of sanitary latrines where unsanitary methodsof excreta disposal are in use, and particularly whereno latrines at all are available, falls within this greatersocial objective. It is also directly linked to the Gov-ernment's objective of creating a house-owning de-mocracy. The provision of drinking water and sanita-tion must normally be pursued together, as otherwisethe sanitary latrines may remain unused for lack ofadequate water, particularly in rural areas deprived ofsuitable sources of water.

The magnitude of the problem can be assessedfrom the 1971 census figures. Those show that inregard to water supply in urban areas, about 16 percent of the population was supplied through houseconnections, while another 29 per cent had access toyard connection and public standposts. Therefore, 55per cent of the urban population had no access to apiped water supply and had to depend on other sources,normally unprotected wells and other unsafe sources.In rural areas the position was even worse, with only5 per cent having access to piped water supplies, leaving


95 per cent to obtain their supplies from sources whichcould be unsafe as well as unreliable. In the estatesector, about 75 per cent of the population had accessto piped water supplies. The position was even worsethan these figures depict, for piped sources themselvesoften supplied inadequate quantities, and were at timesunsafe.

As to sanitary excreta disposal, the 1971 censusfigures indicate that in urban areas 42 per cent of thehousing units had flush toilets or water seal latrines,38 per cent had bucket or pit latrines and 20 per centhad no latrines. In the rural sector, 42 per cent ofthe housing units had no latrines, while 45 per centused pit latrines. In the estate sector, 42 per cent ofthe housing units had flush or water-seal toilets, an-other 42 per cent had pit or bucket latrines, while thebalance had no latrines. Piped sewerage exists onlyin Colombo, and that system is old and heavily over-loaded.

To remedy this situation in the shortest possibletime, a co-ordinated effort is required not only for theprovision of services, but for imparting health educationand for obtaining community participation, particularlyfor the maintenance of services.

2. Goals and objectives

In water supply the ultimate goal is to provide asafe, adequate and reliable supply of water within easyaccess to the entire population. The targets for theInternational Drinking Water Supply and SanitationDecade (1981 to 1990) for the water supply sector areas follows:

(a) Urban water supply: to provide 100 per centcoverage for the population through piped water sup-plies, in order to meet the minimum safe water re-quirements.

(b) Rural water supply: to provide 60 per centcoverage for the population, the supplies being pre-dominantly through protected wells, to meet theminimum safe water requirements.

These targets will cover an urban population ofabout 4.7 million by 1990, and a rural population ofabout 8 million, so that approximately 73 per cent ofthe projected population of 17.4 million will be pro-vided with the minimum requirements of safe water.

The term "safe water" refers to water from chemi-cal and bacteriological contamination, and satisfying astipulated national minimum standard for water quality.Minimum safe water requirements would cover theamount sufficient for physiological and sanitationneeds — (drinking, cooking and washing). The supplymust also be accessible to the population covered in

terms of both cost and the effort expended by the in-dividual in obtaining water. In the case of pipedsupplies, it must also be reliable throughout the dayto provide the required supply and in the case of supplyfrom wells, the supply must be reliable throughout theyear.

As regards sanitary excreta disposal, the targetsfor the Decade are as follows:

(a) Urban areas: To provide 100 per cent ofthe population with a sanitary method of excreta dis-posal by 1990, partly through improvement and ex-pansion of piped sewerage in Colombo, partly throughthe conversion of existing unsanitary latrines intosanitary latrines, and partly through the provision ofthe required facilities where they do not exist.

(b) Rural areas: To provide 50 per cent of thepopulation with a sanitary method of excreta disposalby 1990, through the conversion of existing pit latrinesinto water-seal pit latrines or other sanitary latrines andby the provision of new facilities.

In recent years there has been an emphasis onurban water supply schemes, but this will be increasing-ly shifted to rural areas over the Decade while givingdue priority to developing areas, such as the industrialprocessing zone. In the case of sanitation, the em-phasis on urban areas will be continued during theDecade.

The targets set for the Decade in respect of watersupply will be related to minimum levels of service,namely public standpost supply in the case of pipedsupplies, or community wells in other areas. Servicelevels above this minimum will be charged for directly.Charges will be levied at a progressive rate to coveroperating and maintenance costs and a contributionto the repayment of capital, in addition to providingsome cross-subsidy for poorer consumers. However,where it is found that a community is unable togenerate income to pay for the water supply, directsubsidies will be provided to both urban and ruralcommunities so placed. In the case of urban sewerage,the tariffs are likely to be based only on operation andmaintenance costs.

3. Decade policies, strategies and investmentprogramme

The policies to be adopted for the InternationalDrinking Water Supply and Sanitation Decade are out-lined below:

(a) The population projections referred to abovemust be accepted in establishing the priority of thissector as compared to other sectors where competingdemands for investment arise.


(b) In water supply, the emphasis on urban ser-vices in recent years will be increasingly shifted to ruralareas over the Decade, while in sanitation the emphasison urban areas will continue.

(c) Where it is found that a community is unableto generate income to pay for water supply, the totalcapital investment will be borne by the Governmentand where necessary, direct subsidies will be providedto both urban and rural communities so placed.

(d) Excluding the cases noted in (c) above, rateswill be charged directly according to the amount con-sumed, the tariff system being a progressive one whereprivate connections are charged increased rates at highlevels of consumption, while supplies through stand-posts will be charged directly on the basis of propertyrates.

(e) The level of tariffs will be such as coveroperation and maintenance costs, and a contributionto capital, in addition to providing some cross-subsidyfor poorer consumers.

(f) Standards for water quality will be workedout to provide the minimum safe water requirementstargeted for the Decade.

(g) While a standard design for communitywells will be adopted and tested, necessary changeswill be made on the basis of experience gained in theiruse by the community.

(h) Measures for reducing water wastage willbe vigorously pursued in all areas.

(i) Co-ordination of sector activities at the centreas well as in the districts and divisions will be pursuedduring the Decade and necessary institutional arrange-ments made.

(j) A programme will be worked out in con-sultation with all the Ministries involved to provideadequate water storage along river basins to meet theincreasing demand for drinking water.

(k) The participation of voluntary organizationsin sector programmes and activities will be promotedand necessary institutional arrangements made for thispurpose; attempts will also be made to involve con-sumers in planning, execution and operation of pro-jects.

(1) The private sector will continue to encouragedto undertake investigations, design and construction ofprojects.

(m) While the National Water Supply and De-velopment Board (NWSDB) will increasingly take

responsibility for operation and maintenance of watersupply schemes, suitable institutional arrangements forthis purpose will be examined early, and the technical,financial and other problems related to operation andmaintenance will be studied to evolve suitable remedies.

(n) An independent institute coming under theMinistry of Health will be established for monitoringwater quality, and the regular quality control by theNWSDB will be strengthened.

(o) The immediate preparation of suitable de-signs for sanitary latrines suitable for water-scarce areaswill be undertaken.

(p) A water demand forecast will be preparedand a long-term programme for storage and supply ofwater will be worked out in consultation with the otherministries involved.

(q) The adequacy of the legal provisions for apositive approach to sector programmes will beexamined and necessary changes made.

(r) Measures will be introduced to generate anadequate supply of manpower for sector programmes.

(s) Local production of equipment and materialsrequired for sector programmes will be promoted.

(t) A continuing dialogue with donor agencieswill be maintained in order that the increased level ofaid to the sector for the Decade can be properly co-ordinated with planned activities.

The over-all strategy for the sector will involveaction in the following areas: construction of newsupplies and augmentation of existing ones; improve-ment of existing supplies; and health education andpublic information.

Need will be the criterion for the selection ofpriority schemes, and the first objective will be toprovide a basic minimum level of service, by the mostcost-effective means, to the relevant population. Toachieve the targets envisaged, it will be necessary tobuild up the capacities in the sector, especially asfollows:

(a) Construction capacities of the NWSDB aswell as of the private sector need to be strengthenedand expanded.

(b) The manpower needed to meet sector re-quirements must be trained in adequate numbers, takinginto consideration the exodus of skilled staff, whilesimultaneously making employment in sector agenciesattractive to the staff.


(c) A forecast of material requirements and as-sessment of equipment requirements for Decade pro-grammes must be made, and stocks of materials main-tained, while a scheme is worked out early for settingup a plant hire operation on a commercial basis undergovernment control.

(d) While the bulk of the rural population tobe covered will be supplied with safe water throughprotected wells operated with hand-pumps, the techni-cal feasibility of cost-effective alternatives must beexamined to meet a situation where community ac-ceptance of this level of service may not be available,e.g., providing water on tap at the community well.

(e) Information already on hand from variousagencies regarding water availability must be madereadily available, and surveys of springs and othersources undertaken on an intensive scale.

(f) Close liaison must be maintained among thedifferent agencies involved in order to conserve andstore water to supply the requirements of water supplyschemes while providing water for irrigation.

(g) Communities must be closely involved inplanning, construction, operation and maintenance inorder to maximize the health benefits of sector pro-grammes during the Decade.

(h) A study must be undertaken regarding opera-tion and maintenance of water supply schemes, withinthe framework of information on operation and main-tenance activities and their shortcomings in existingschemes, in order that effective methods may be im-plemented.

(i) A demand forecast for drinking water mustbe prepared in order that long term programmes forstorage and supply of water may be planned for earlyimplementation.

The investment programme for the Decade is basedon a total estimated investment in the sector of Rs5,600 million (at 1979 prices)1 during the Decade,with an annual investment in the region of Rs 560million and Rs 500 million in 1980. Investment in thesector will therefore account for about 5 per cent ofthe Government's total capital budget.

This level of annual investment will be used on arolling programme of 2 to 3 years, with the first year'sprogramme included in the annual budget. Projectswill be identified on the basis of selection criteria in-corporated in a questionnaire prepared by the Ministry

1 Rs 15.569 = $US 1.00 (1979 period average).

of Local Government, Housing and Construction. TheGovernment agents submit lists of completed question-naires, assisted in this process by local officials and re-presentatives of local communities. These lists extendto about 50 projects, and over 1,000 questionnaires forthe island are being processed. The country-wide listof priority water supply will be prepared by the Minis-try of Local Government, Housing and Construction.Further priority lists will be obtained over the comingyears, so that the rolling investment programme will becontinuously supplied with projects. A similar pro-cedure will be followed in the case of the communitywells programme in the rural sector.

The investment programme for operation andmaintenance of schemes has to be worked out on thebasis of information collected on material, manpowerand equipment needs for proper maintenance andoperation.

In the provision of sanitary latrines the Ministryof Health will first have to determine the appropriatedesigns for latrines in areas where water in adequatequantity is not likely to be available. In order tomaintain the level of construction required to achievethe Decade targets, approximately 76,000 latrines haveto be constructed or converted per annum, comparedto a level of about 12,000-15,000 each year at present.This calls for a radical change in approaches, whichwill have to be examined by an appropriate committeeand the methods and strategies recommended adoptedfor implementation during the Decade.

In health education, the immediate action requiredis for the Ministry of Health, with the assistance ofother agencies, to prepare a campaign for the dis-semination of information regarding environmentalhealth, based on an assessment of the appropriate mediato be used and the most effective timing of such acampaign.

As regards foreign assistance for this investmentprogramme, it is desirable that donor agencies shouldconsider financing a greater share of the costs, bothlocal and foreign, as compared to the present practicewhich is often limited to financing about two thirds ofthe cost of a project (often only the foreign exchangecomponent). The activities of donor agencies shouldbe based on the plan for the Decade and assistanceshould be geared to implementation, whether in theoperation of existing system or investigations, designsand construction of new systems. Particular attentionmust also be drawn to the rapidly changing nature ofthe situation, so that it is important that donor agenciesshould be flexible and rapid in responding to sectoralneeds.


XH. UNION OF SOVIET SOCIALIST REPUBLICS(NR.7/CRP.16)

A. DEVELOPMENT AND USE OF WATERRESOURCES*

Introduction

About three million large and small rivers runthrough the territory of the USSR. Almost as greatis the number of lakes, ponds and reservoirs. Thetotal annual river run-off exceeds 4,700 km3. Thereare huge quantities of ground water and water storedin glaciers and snowbanks.

Since only 340 km3 of water are used annually forthe needs of the national economy, it might seem thatthe water resources are sufficient even in the case of alarge increase in water use. However, the shortage ofthis valuable natural resource is growing into a highlyacute national economic, social and ecological problem,demanding great material resources for its resolution.

This is explained by the fact that the powerfulSiberian rivers, the Ob, the Yenisey and the Lena, andthe full-flowing European rivers, the Pechora, theSevernaya-Dvina, the Onega and others of the northernslope, discharge over 4,000 km3 of fresh water or 86per cent of the flow volume into the oceans of theworld annually. Moreover, they run in the northernand eastern regions of the country, where water use isnegligible. On the other hand, the southern slope,with its well-developed industry, more than 85 per centof the population and almost all the irrigated lands,possesses only 14 per cent of the water resources.

It should be pointed out that besides the unfavour-able location of (rivers in the USSR territory, flowutilization is also hampered by its uneven distributionthroughout the year. Most of the flow (60 to 70 percent of the annual volume) falls in spring.

In order to supply the population and branches ofthe national economy with water, the Soviet Union iscarrying out large-scale construction of hydraulicstructures for the regulation and territorial redistribu-tion of the river flow. More than 2,200 reservoirs havebeen built in the country, each storing over 1 millionm3. Among them, 250 store over 50 million ms. About40 km3 of water are redistributed annually among riverbasins via large canals over 4,000 km in length.

• By M. G. Chudov, Secretary General, USSR National Committee forthe International Commission on Irrigation and Drainage, and G. S.Urvantsev, Senior Engineer, All-Union Association for Water Manage-ment Planning (V/O "Soyuzvodproekt"), USSR Ministry of Land Re-clamation and Water Management.

1. Interbasin flow transfer

In recent years, the country has launched opera-tions for setting up hydraulic networks for large-scaleinterbasin flow transfer. The Irtysh-Karaganda andSevero-Krymsky canals have already been completed,while the Dnieper-Donbass, the Glavnyi-Kakhovskyand the Karakum canals are still under construction.Construction of the interbasin Volga-Ural canal hasbeen started. The Volga-Don and Danube-Dniepercanals are being designed; pre-design work is underway for the partial transfer of the flow of northern andSiberian rivers to the southern regions of the country.

The national economic, social and ecological im-portance of these projects can hardly be overestimated.A brief description of some of them can serve as con-vincing evidence of this.

Construction of the Severo-Krymsky canal hasexerted a great transformation of the natural environ-ment of steppe regions in the Crimea and KhersonDistrict, the Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic. Thispowerful waterway, which delivers the Dnieper waterat a rate of about 300 m3/sec, has permitted the grow-ing of rice in the Crimea and has ensured a sharp in-crease in the production of rice, fodder, vegetables,grapes and other fruit crops. The farms receiving theDnieper water produce on average 4.6 tons/ha ofwinter wheat, 5.4 tons/ha of rice, 18.5 tons/ha ofvegetables, 55 tons/ha of fodder root crops and a lotof other produce. The new waterway provides thetowns of Kerch, Feodosia, Simferopol, Sevastopol andYalta with water.

The Dnieper-Donbass canal is a sophisticatedhydraulic complex for interbasin flow transfer. Thismultipurpose water project is a good example of howcomplicated problems in hydraulic engineering arebeing solved. The interbasin canal will drastically im-prove the industrial water supply in Donbass and willallow irrigation of 165,000 hectares of arable lands.

The Kakhovsky main canal carrying the Dnieperwater to the steppes of the Kherson and Zaporozhyiedistricts, the Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic, isunique both in conception and implementation. Here,in the Dnieper-Molochnaya interfluve, the Kakhovskayairrigation system, the largest in the USSR and Europe,is being constructed. Lifting 530 m3/sec of water toa height of 25 m, the world's largest pumping stationdelivers water from the Kakhovskoye reservoir to the130-km long Glavnyi-Kakhovsky canal.


The Karakum canal, which transports water fromthe Aral Sea to the Caspian Sea, is the largest artificialwaterway in the world, and the largest scheme for inter-basin flow transfer in the USSR. The canal diverts465 m3/sec of the Amudarya water across 1,000 kmof one of the hottest deserts in the world. This water-way is unique not only for its extent, but also becausethe water runs hundreds of kilometres through thedesert by gravity. The socio-economic significance ofthe Karakum canal is considerable. The dream of the"great water", cherished for centuries by the Turco-man people, has come true. Irrigated areas in thecanal zone will reach one million hectares. Water willbe supplied to 7.5 million hectares of pastures. Thecanal will serve as a transport line, a basis for fisherydevelopment and a recreation zone. Around the maincanals, regions of irrigated farming will spring up.

In Povolzhye, operations have been started forthe construction of the Kuibyshevsky canal which isto enter the Orenburg District and irrigate 300,000 hain the future. The first construction stage of theSaratovsky canal stretch has been commissioned andis already irrigating more than 90,000 ha. The Komso-molskaya irrigation system is being built over an areaof over 150,000 ha. Operations are under way on theBolshaya-Volgogradskaya system, its design irrigationarea constituting 116,000 ha.

In the North Caucasus, lands are being cultivatednear the Bolshoy-Stavropolsky canal designed toirrigate 200,000 ha. The Krasnodarskoye reservoir,which stores 3.1 billion m3 of water has come intoservice. The Azov plains are being developed for ricegrowing on an area exceeding 100,000 ha.

In Central Asia, a new large cotton-growing re-gion covering over 300,000 ha has been set up in theGolodnaya Steppe. The Karshi Steppe developmentis progressing well, the irrigated area of the first andsecond stages totalling 350,000 ha. In South Kazakh-stan, rice is largely grown in the desert land develop-ment areas of the Kzyl-Orda and Chimkent Districts.Irrigation of lands under sugar beet is widespread inthe Dzhambul District.

2. Land reclamation

As to land drainage, it appears worthwhile tomention the development of the Polessiye lowland inthe Byelorussian Soviet Socialist Republic. The totalarea of lands to be reclaimed here exceeds 2.7 millionha, of which more than 1.1 million ha have beendrained.

Trends in the development of the USSR watereconomy are determined by five-year and annualplans. The year 1980 concludes the tenth five-year

plan period (1976-1980). Great attention has beenpaid in the plan to the development of land reclama-tion, which is an essential means of intensifying agri-cultural production.

In 1976 to 1978, 2.4 million ha of new irrigatedland and 2.2 million ha under drainage were put intooperation in the USSR. In 1979, irrigated and drain-ed lands, constituting about 10 per cent of the arablelands and areas under permanent crops, yielded 32per cent of the gross farming produce of collective andstate farms in monetary terms. The total area ofirrigated and drained lands in the country has reachedalmost 30 million ha. Each hectare of drained landsyields 1.5 times more produce, and each irrigated hec-tare 5.5 times more produce an average than a rain-fed one. In 1979, the average yield (in tons/ha) offarm crops under irrigation was as follows: grains, 3.2(rice, 3.92); raw cotton, 2.96; vegetables, 18.0; andsugar beet, 31.0.

The modern reclamation system comprises asophisticated set of structures including, according to1979 data, over 400 irrigation reservoirs storing morethan 20 km3 of water in total; 1.3 million km of irriga-tion and drainage canals; 1.5 million hydraulic struc-tures on canals and reclamation networks; and pump-ing stations with an installed capacity of 5.6 millionkW.

Recent years have been marked by an appreciablerise in the technical level of land reclamation. Today,92 per cent of new irrigation networks are built withlinings, concrete canals and pipelines. Sprinkling, oneof the most advanced irrigation methods, is appliedon three quarters of the irrigated lands put into ser-vice. In land drainage, subsurface systems prevail.The programme for the introduction of automationand remote control in reclamation is being implement-ed, and work is under way to promote the use of lasersand other innovations in irrigation and drainage con-struction.

Land reclamation is practised in almost all re-gions of the country, and even now about 40,000 col-lective and state farms have irrigated and drainedlands. More than 1.5 million people in the USSR areengaged in the construction and operation of reclama-tion systems. Reclamation organizations have 30,000excavators, about 37,000 bulldozers, 25,000 scrapersand a considerable amount of other machinery.

3. Water management

The high rate of economic development, growthof the population and improvement of living condi-tions have caused a marked increase in water use,bringing about the problems of water delivery overlong distances, distribution of water resources under


deficit conditions and water conservation. These cir-cumstances have called for further development andimprovement of state guidance in the field of wateruse and conservation. Therefore, in 1971 a new waterlaw was passed, "The Basic Principles of Water Legis-lation of the USSR and Union Republics". This lawcontains the most general and fundamental regulationsconcerning water use and conservation, including re-quirements for effective and multipurpose utilizationof water resources.

The Central Committee of the Communist Partyand the Soviet Government have outlined an exten-sive programme of work in environmental control.Much thought has been given to the problems of ra-tional use of water resources and their protectionagainst pollution, littering and depletion. The stepstaken so far to conserve nature and enhance controlover water management have made it possible to re-duce the pollution of rivers and improve their sanitarycondition.

Measures for water supply of the national econo-my, meeting the water demands of the population, andprevention of water pollution and depletion are de-termined by master plans for multipurpose use andconservation of water resources, drawn up for eachriver basin.

The data used for long-term planning of the watereconomy indicate that even at present, deficient waterflow is observed during dry years in some river basinsof the country's southern slope. A further steep risein water use by the national economy, and the needfor placing stringent requirements on the quality ofriver inflow to inland seas in order to maintain thehydrochemical and hydrobiological balance appro-priate for fisheries, will add greatly to the deficit ofwater resources in the southern part of the country.It is planned to solve this problem by partially trans-ferring the flow of northern and Siberian rivers to thesouthern river basins.

About 100 scientific centres in the country areengaged in studying the impact of the planned flowtransfer undertakings on the natural and anthropo-genic environment. Scientists and designers are thor-oughly investigating the possible changes in suchspheres of the natural environment as atmospheric cir-culation and precipitation, evaporation, the processesof waterlogging and salinization, the state of flood-plain and taiga lands and the structure of soils.

The accomplishment of objectives associated withinterbasin redistribution of the flow of the country'smajor rivers will play a decisive role in the dynamicdevelopment of all branches of the national economy.The great practical experience gained by the countryin the field of interbasin flow transfer points to thefeasibility of these measures.

4. Internationa] co-operation

Much importance has been attached in the SovietUnion to international co-operation in this field, andparticularly to the implementation of the Mar delPlata Action Plan of the United Nations Water Con-ference held in 1977. The USSR is actively partici-pating in the work on water problems within theCouncil for Mutual Economic Assistance, and the col-lective co-ordinated efforts are already bearing fruit.

The USSR also co-operates with many othercountries on the basis of bilateral agreement. TheUSSR Ministry of Land Reclamation and WaterManagement alone maintains contacts in the field ofwater resources use and conservation with more than50 foreign countries.

The economic, scientific and technical co-operationof the USSR with developing countries is based on theprinciples of equality, sovereignty, non-interference ininternal affairs and mutual benefit. Soviet assistanceis primarily distinguished by a comprehensive approachto the solution of water management problems. Sovietorganizations carry out designing and survey work,deliver equipment and materials and train nationalspecialists in the field of water management.

USSR co-operation with Asian countries can beexemplified by assistance in constructing water supplysystems and other projects in Mongolia, the Jalalabadirrigation system in Afghanistan, hydraulic complexeson the Euphrates River in Syria, various water pro-jects in Iraq and other countries.

The USSR takes part in the realization of pro-jects under the United Nations Development Program-me. Co-operation with the United Nations Environ-ment Programme is active. Soviet specialists maketheir contribution to the work of the United Nationsregional commissions, and particularly to ESCAP. Incompliance with the ESCAP programme, the SovietUnion has held the following seminars for specialistsof developing countries: the seminar on measures toimprove irrigation efficiency at the farm level in 1979,and the seminar on the improvement of irrigation per-formance at the project level in 1980. Soviet organi-zations take part in the water projects of UNESCO,WMO, FAO and other international organizations.

B. WATER USE IN INDUSTRY*

(NR.7/CRP.17)

The "Guidelines for the development of the na-tional economy of the USSR for 1976-1980", approvedby the USSR Government, set forth the tasks of en-vironmental control and rational use and renewal ofnatural resources, including water.

• By V. A. Sinelnikov, Head of Laboratory, Ail-Union Research Instituteof Economics and Management of Water Resources, Moscow, USSR.


Constant growth in water use and waste-waterdisposal by industrial enterprises has brought aboutthe need for a new approach to the problem of watersupply in cities and industrial centres.

Thus, it is planned to develop and promote tech-nological processes which reduce the amount of pollu-tants and ensure maximum wastes recovery, and createa system of water use on a closed cycle.

In the USSR, annual, five-year and long-termplans for the conservation and rational use of waterresources in industry have been drawn up within theframework of general state plans for social and econo-mic development of the country's national economy.The principal plan indices are water use, water re-cycling, water re-use, waste-water treatment plants inoperation, capital investment in construction of treat-ment plants and rational utilization of water.

The targets of conservation and rational use ofwater resources have evolved specifically for economicbranches, ministries (departments), Councils of Minis-ters of Union Republics, and for water managementregions. The lower level for management planning inindustry is classified as an enterprise, the higher beingrepresented by a ministry.

The USSR Ministry of Land Reclamation andWater Management works out master plans for con-servation and rational use of water resources on thebasis of plans made by industrial ministries. Whenplanning the level of water use and waste-water dis-posal in industry, it analyses the trends in the mainindices and the factors causing changes, and outlineseffective measures which permit a considerable reduc-tion in water use, in the disposal of raw waste waterand in capital investment and operational costs of waterresources systems. Master plans for the conservationand rational use of water resources submitted by theState Planning Committee of the USSR are approvedby the Soviet Government.

The water recycling factor is one of the mostessential indicators of the technical level of water usein industrial branches. The factor is determined asthe ratio of the volume of water recycled and reusedto the gross water used in production. This indicatormeasures the efficiency of water supply systems fromthe viewpoint of water conservation.

The evolution of water recycling systems has beenlargely a result of two factors. The first is the in-sufficiency with scarce water resources and those fair-ly rich in water but with a dense urban population anda high industrial potential. The second factor is thatin a number of technological processes, economic sav-ings may result from the recovery of valuable raw

materials, reagents and power resources from wastewater returned to production.

At present, the volume of recycled and reusedwater in the country constitutes about 62 per cent oftotal water use. The widest application has beenfound by water recycling systems in such water-con-suming industries as chemicals, ferrous metallurgy,coal mining and pulp and paper and in heat-powerand general engineering. In 1975 the water recyclingfactor in these branches reached 0.74 on average, andby the year 2000 it is expected to rise to 0.86.

The water recycling factor in the coal- and gas-extracting industries has stabilized at a rather highlevel, owing to the long-established production techno-logy and fairly complete utilization of water recyclingpotential, whereas other waster-consuming branches areexpected to raise this index gradually and smoothly.

For example, in heat-power engineering, the in-troduction of coolers combining convective and eva-porative cooling holds the greatest promise. When theair temperature is low, such coolers can work as air-condensing installations, having practically no waterlosses, or as conventional evaporative coolers inwarmer seasons. With the use of combined-actioncoolers, water consumption has been tentatively es-timated to be reduced annually by 40 per cent.

In the chemical industry, the capacity of waterreuse and recycling systems can be increased severaltimes by putting certain water-consuming processes onclosed water supply cycles. This applies primarily tothe production of plastics, where the recycling factorcan be raised up to 0.9 and source water used onlyto compensate for losses in recycling systems.

In the pulp and paper industry, the water recycl-ing factor averages 0.5 at present (being as high as0.75 in advanced enterprises). In the future, sourcewater use in this branch can be reduced by employingwater recycling in the production of wood pulp, aswell as in the sprinkling systems of paper machines.

In general engineering, the water recycling factoris the same as in the pulp and paper industry. Apromising way to raise the figure is to introduce waterrecycling for cooling the most water-consuming equip-ment, such as compressors, high-frequency current in-stallations, welding machines and cupolas. For suchequipment, there are various advanced water recyclingsystems which are basically suitable for enterprises ofany general engineering type.

When planning the development of water recycl-ing systems, it is essential to consider the followingmeasures for making them more efficient:


(a) Stimulating rational water use at the enter-prise level;

(b) Working out scientifically-determined qualityrequirements for source water;

(c) Making wide use of conventionally cleanwater after cooling;

(d) Utilizing municipal and industrial waste waterin industrial water supply systems after neces-sary additional treatment;

(e) Setting up closed cycles of water supply withlocal waste-water treatment;

(f) Revealing the potential for new advancedwater use systems in the most water-consum-ing technologies (e.g. evaporative cooling forfurnaces);

(g) Setting up systems of water recycling in water-deficient regions of the country.

Determination of the admissible waste-water loadon water courses is a problem of great concern inindustrial enterprises. In order to maintain river waterin good condition, it is essential that the concentra-tion of pollutants in water bodies should be kept belowthe maximum admissible level.

However, long-term planning of waste-water dis-posal with regard to the maximum admissible concen-trations is a very complicated task. Therefore, it ap-pears reasonable to set criteria for the anthropogenicload on a water course by the main pollutants.

To this end, when assessing the interactions in the"waste-water-river" system, such parameters should beanalysed as the amount of pollutants entering a watercourse from industrial sites and the average annuallevels of river flow and velocity, as well as the lengthof the stretch from the point of waste-water disposalto the nearest major water users, the self-purificationcapacity of the river, and maximum admissible concen-trations of impurities in the water body.

The standard waste-water load on a water courseis calculated for individual pollutants. The figures ob-tained for waste-water loads on water courses are usedfor ranking the relevant river stretches in watermanagement and the principal sources of water-coursepollution by industrial waste water.

Subsequently, measures for the reduction of thewaste-water load to the standard are outlined in thelong-term and current plans for the load curtailment.

One of the most effective ways of decreasing theamount of both total source water and waste waterused is to create closed water supply systems. In manycases, construction costs of such systems can be lower

than those of through-flow ones envisaging waste-waterdisposal in a water body.

However, even if direct expenditures on the crea-tion of closed water supply systems are higher thanthose needed for through-flow systems as a result ofspecific production features, the final economic effectof recycling will be better, since closed systems guardagainst damage of water bodies by waste-water pollu-tion.

The provision of closed water supply systems withzero waste-water discharge is advisable where there isa great waste-water load on water courses; where thewater body is unique in its natural significance (BaikalLake); and where the water body is of great economicimportance (the Volga, Ural rivers, etc.).

The promotion of closed water supply systemsenvisages considerable curtailment of specific water usein production by introducing low water-consuming andnon-water-consuming technologies, rating water use anddisposal, developing local systems of waste-water treat-ment and using municipal waste water after tertiarytreatment to feed industrial water supply systems.

Development of such closed systems is particular-ly urgent for the chemical, pulp-and-paper and oil-processing industries. Accomplishment of this objec-tive calls for basic changes in production technologywaste-water treatment methods and evolution of pro-cesses which result in low waste-water formation. Ex-tensive introduction of water recycling in chemicaltechnologies, substitution of air for water in cooling,improvement of technological production processes andapplication of local waste-water treatment are theprincipal measures to reduce water consumption in thechemical industry.

The Pervomaisky chemical plant project involvesthe fullest combination of these measures. An addedeconomic effect of the measures is the recovery ofvaluable substances found in the waste water.

Thus, when planning water use in industry, primaryconsideration should be given to the balanced develop-ment of water supply and disposal systems, whichwould not cause a decline in the quantitative andqualitative indices of water use.

For planning purposes, the volume of source waterwithdrawn for production purposes and the amount ofimpurities discharged with the waste water into awater course should be measured.

Long-term planning of standard indicators forsource-water use and gradual restriction of waste-waterdischarge into water courses are tasks of vital impor-tance.

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