Ramon Alikpala - Philippines

The Challenge ofThe Challenge ofIntegrated Water Resources Integrated Water Resources

Management (IWRM)Management (IWRM)

presented byExec Dir Ramon Alikpala

National Water Resources Board

Regional Conference for Southeast AsiaRainwater Harvesting in IWRM

25 November 2008

Water: A Vital Resource Under ThreatWater: A Vital Resource Under Threat

• Rapid population growth and aggressive developments pose huge threats to water

• Increasing water demand together with insufficient water infrastructure threatens to outstrip sustainable levels of supply

• Over-extraction of groundwater due to increased in water demand resulted in: decline in groundwater levels or drying up of wells or springs contamination of wells by salt water intrusion in coastal areas

• Rapid Urban development resulted to: decreasing aquifer recharge caused by land development Increasing peak flows and run-off causing flooding/inundation in

roads


• Threats from Domestic, Agricultural and Industrial Waste

• Groundwater Contamination Leaching of industrial, agrochemicals and animal

wastes in agro-industrial areas Sub-surface discharges from latrines and septic

systems and infiltration of polluted urban run-off• Surface Water Pollution

50 rivers (12%) of the 421 rivers in the country are considered biologically dead

Only one third (36%) of our river systems/ surface water areas are potential sources for drinking water

Blockage of waterways reduces the rivers’ carrying capacity


• Threats from Watershed Degradation

• Threats from Climate Change / Global Warming

• The Philippines has the lowest per capita availability of renewable freshwater in Southeast Asia

• Industrial demand is expected to increase to 13,000 MCM by 2025.

• Agricultural water usage is expected to require between 50,000 and 73,000 MCM by 2025.

What is IWRM?What is IWRM?

• What is at the basis of Integrated Water Resources Management?

The need to

consider the

different uses of water

together


Integrated management means that all the different uses of water resources are considered together. Water allocations and management decisions consider the effects of each use on the others. They are able to take account of overall social and economic goals, including the achievement of sustainable development.

IWRM & participatory decision makingAs we shall see, the basic IWRM concept has been extended to incorporate participatory decision-making.

A clear example of interdependent uses of water. Scroll the picture to view different users of water.


Deliberate management of resources is needed to ensure long term sustainable use...Management is used in its broadest sense. It emphasises that we must not only focus on development of water resources but that we must consciously manage water development in a way that ensures long term sustainable use for future generations.

IWRM is a systematic process.Integrated water resources management is a systematic process for the sustainable development, allocation and monitoring of water resource use in the context of social, economic and environmental objectives. It is different from the sectoral approach applied in many countries...

...for future generations...

Why IWRM? Why IWRM? Key issues in managementKey issues in management

Why do we need IWRM?

Urgency for action. The world’s freshwater resources are under increasing pressure. Water is vital for human survival, health and dignity and a fundamental resource for human development. The world’s freshwater resources are under increasing pressure.

Water cycle

The Facts

Global water: 97% seawater, 3% freshwater. Of the freshwater 87% not accessible, 13% accessible (0.4% of total).

Today more than 2 billion people are affected by water shortages in over 40 countries.

263 river basins are shared by two or more nations;

Half the population of the developing world are exposed to polluted sources of water that increase disease incidence.

90% of natural disasters in the 1990s were water related.

The increase in numbers of people from 6 billion to 9 billion will be the main driver of water resources management for the next 50 years.


Water governance crisis Sectoral approaches to water resources management have dominated in the past and are still prevailing. This leads to fragmented and uncoordinated development and management of the resource.

Increased competition...Increased competition for the finite resource is aggravated by inefficient governance.


Securing water for people One fifth of the world’s population is without access to safe drinking water and half of the population is without access to adequate sanitation.

Securing water for food productionOver the next 25 years food will be required for another 2-3 billion people. Water is increasingly seen as a key constraint on food production…

Protecting vital ecosystemsAquatic ecosystems depend on water flows, seasonality and water-table fluctuations and are threatened by poor water quality. Land and water resources management must ensure that vital ecosystems are maintained.


Gender disparitiesWater management is male dominated. Though their numbers are starting to grow, the representation of women in water sector institutions is still very low.

Who decides?Decisions on water supply and sanitation technologies, locations of water points and operation and maintenance systems are mostly made by men.

Water Management PrinciplesWater Management Principles

Water has an economic value in all its competing uses and should be recognised as an economic good.

Fresh water is a finite and vulnerable resource, essential to sustain life, development and the environment.

Water development and management should be based on a participatory approach, involving users, planners and policymakers at all levels.

Women play a central part in the provision, management and safeguarding of water.

A meeting in Dublin in 1992 gave rise to four principles that have been the basis for much of the subsequent water sector reform.

The International Conference on Water and Environment, Dublin, Ireland, January 1992.

Since water sustains life, effective management of water resources demands a holistic approach, linking social and economic development with protection of natural ecosystems. Effective management links land and water uses across the whole of a catchment area or groundwater aquifer.

Fresh water is a finite and vulnerable resource, essential to sustain life, development and the environment.


The participatory approach involves raising awareness of the importance of water among policy-makers and the general public. It means that decisions are taken at the lowest appropriate level, with full public consultation and involvement of users in the planning and implementation of water projects.

Water development and management should be

based on a participatory approach, involving users, planners and

policymakers at all levels.


This pivotal role of women as providers and users of water and guardians of the living environment has seldom been reflected in institutional arrangements for the development and management of water resources.

Positive policiesAcceptance and implementation of this principle requires positive policies to address women’s specific needs and to equip and empower women to participate at all levels in water resources programmes, including decision-making and implementation, in ways defined by them.

Women play a central part in the provision, management and safeguarding of water


It is vital to recognise first the basic right of all human beings to have access to clean water and sanitation at an affordable price.

Water has a value as an economic good as well as a social good. Many past failures in water resources management are attributable to the fact that the full value of water has not been recognised and has led to wasteful and environmentally damaging uses of the resource.

AllocationTreating water as an economic good is an important means for decision making on the allocation of water. This is particularly important when extending supply is no longer a feasible option.

Water has an economic value in all its competing uses and should be recognised as an economic good.


IWRM is, above all, a philosophy.

The challenge to conventional practices

The case for IWRM is strong – many would say

uncontestable. The problem for most countries is the long

history of unisectoral development.

As the Global Water Partnership puts it: “IWRM is a challenge to conventional practices, attitudes and professional certainties. It confronts entrenched sectoral interests and requires that the water resource is managed holistically for the benefits of all. No one pretends that meeting the IWRM challenge will be easy but it is vital that a start is made now to avert the burgeoning crisis.”

The Process: Implementing IWRMThe Process: Implementing IWRM

Negotiating differencesAll of this implies change, which brings threats as well as opportunities. There are threats to people’s power and position; and threats to their sense of themselves as professionals.

IWRM requires that platforms be developed to allow very different stakeholders, often with apparently irreconcilable differences to somehow work together.

Cross sectoral integrationA critically important element of IWRM is the integration of views and interests of the various water users in the management framework (see Figure).

Formal mechanisms and means of co-operation and information exchange should be established at different levels.



IWRM requires reformBecause of the existing institutional and legislative frameworks, implementing IWRM is likely to require reform at all stages in the water planning and management cycle.

This is a question of moving toward a situation with the right enabling environment, institutional framework and management instruments (see figure) for sustainable water resources development and management.

Step-by-step processImplementation of IWRM is best done in a step-by-step process, with some changes taking place immediately and others requiring several years of planning and capacity building.

The Process: Implementing IWRMThe Process: Implementing IWRMEconomicEfficiency Equity

EnvironmentalSustainability

ManagementInstruments

• Assessment• Information• Allocation Instruments

EnablingEnvironment

• Policies• Legislation

InstitutionalFramework

• Central - Local• River Basin• Public-Private

Balance ‘water for livelihood’ and ‘water as a resource’

An overall planAn overall plan is required to envisage how the transformation can be achieved and this is likely to begin with a new water policy to reflect the principles of sustainable management of water resources. To put the policy into practice is likely to require the reform of water law and water institutions. This can be a long process and needs to involve extensive consultations with affected agencies and the public.

Policy and Legal FrameworkPolicy and Legal Framework

Role of the government as facilitator and regulatorFor many reasons, developing country governments consider water resources planning and management to be a central part of government responsibility. This view is consistent with the international consensus that promotes the concept of government as a facilitator and regulator, rather than an implementer of projects.

Agreeing on the level of government involvementThe challenge is to reach mutual agreement about the level at which, in any specific instance, government responsibility should cease, or be partnered by autonomous water services management bodies and/or community-based organisations

Institutional FrameworkInstitutional Framework

What are the roles of government and institutions in IWRM?

River Basin OrganisationsThe concept of integrated water resources management has been accompanied by promotion of the river basin as the logical geographical unit for its practical realisation.

• Water resources management based on hydrological boundaries;

• Organisational structures at basin and sub-basin levels to enable decision making at the lowest appropriate level;

• Government to co-ordinate the national management of water resources across water use sectors.

Institutional FrameworkInstitutional Framework

Institutional requirements The functioning of a consortium of stakeholders involved in decision making, with representation of all sections of society, and a good gender balance;

IV: Southern TagalogIV: Southern Tagalog

I: IlocosI: Ilocos

III: Central LuzonIII: Central Luzon

II: Cagayan ValleyII: Cagayan Valley

V: BicolV: Bicol

VII: Central VisayasVII: Central Visayas

VI: Western VisayasVI: Western Visayas

VIII: Eastern VisayasVIII: Eastern Visayas

IX: Southwestern MindanaoIX: Southwestern Mindanao

XII: Southern MindanaoXII: Southern Mindanao

X: Northern MindanaoX: Northern Mindanao

XI: Southeastern MindanaoXI: Southeastern Mindanao

There are 12Water Resource Regions (WRR)in the Philippines

• Policy and Planning Demand Management Supply Management

• Mediation

• Processing of permits

• Rationalize creation of RBOs There are 421 river basins in the

Philippines

Developments in IWRMDevelopments in IWRM

• The National IWRM Plan Framework was completed in 2006 and launched in January 2007.

• LLDA shall issue water permits from Laguna Lake and its surface environs.

• Bohol has created Provincial IWRM Board• GTZ Raw Water Pricing project completed in

Manjuyod and Valencia in Negros Oriental• Water Resources Management Council created

for Tabla River in Negros Occidental• MOA signed with Quezon City; San Juan next

ChallengesChallenges

• An enabling policy is needed to have a government mandate that will translate the IWRM plan framework into a collaborative initiative of all water-related agencies, and supported by other government agencies.

• Establish an efficient and effective monitoring and evaluation system

• Continuous capacity building at the national, regional and local levels

• Sharing of lessons learned and technology options• Awareness campaign and information dissemination as a

continuous process• Continuous technical and financial support to sustain

implementation• Mainstreaming IWRM in all water related activities in regional and

local plans• To conduct water resources assessment studies in water

constrained areas to come up with decision support tools.

Technology

Ramon Alikpala - Philippines