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

The basic concepts of Integrated Water Resource Management (IWRM) and the normative, strategic, and operative dimensions of the process are explained in simple, unbiased terms in this guide. Twelve case studies illustrate the scale and scope of river basin organization in different parts of the world--from local projects such as the Gagas River Basin to larger, transboundary basin work on the Mekong and the Rhine. Environmental considerations, institutional arrangements, and implementation processes are also highlighted to increase understanding of these concepts within the context of IWRM.

The world is facing severe and growing challenges in maintainig water quality and meeting the rapidly growing demand for water resources. In addition, water used for irrigation, the largest use of water in most developing countries, will likely have to be diverted increasingly to meet the needs of urban areas and industry whilst remaining a prime engine of agricultural growth. Finally, environmental and other in-stream water demands become more important as economies develop. The river basin has been acknowledged to be the appropriate unit of analysis to address these chanllenges facing water resources management: and modeling at this scale can provide essential information for policy makers in their decisions on allication of resources. This paper reviews the state of the art of modeling approaches to integrated water resources management at the river basin scale, with particular focus on the potential of coupled economic hydrologic models, and concludes with directions for future modeling exercises.

This open access textbook provides a concise introduction to economic approaches and mathematical methods for the study of water allocation and distribution problems. Written in an accessible and straightforward style, it discusses and analyzes central issues in integrated water resource management, water tariffs, water markets, and transboundary water management. By illustrating the interplay between the hydrological cycle and the rules and institutions that govern today’s water allocation policies, the authors develop a modern perspective on water management. Moreover, the book presents an in-depth assessment of the political and ethical dimensions of water management and its institutional embeddedness, by discussing distribution issues and issues of the enforceability of human rights in managing water resources. Given its scope, the book will appeal to advanced undergraduate and graduate students of economics and engineering, as well as practitioners in the water sector, seeking a deeper understanding of economic approaches to the study of water management.

This book addresses the enormous global challenge of providing balanced and sustainable solutions to urgent water problems. The author explores our dependence on access to safe water and other water-related services and how driving forces of the human and natural worlds are degrading this access. The greatest challenges involve conflicts between people and interest groups across all countries, as well as the economic and political difficulties in finding solutions through infrastructure development. The book takes an interdisciplinary approach to Integrated Water Resources Management or IWRM, which provides a set of tools for policy development, planning and organization, assessment, systems analysis, finance, and regulation. The author suggests that IWRM is challenging because of the human element, but that no other process can reconcile the conflicting agendas involved with water management. The broad range of topics covered here, as well as 25 case summaries, will be of interest to scientists, engineers, practitioners, and advanced level students interested in the integrated management of water as a resource.

This book presents case studies that share important experiences regarding Integrated Water Resource Management (IWRM) in various countries. Following an introduction to theoretical concepts, responsibilities, and challenges, the subsequent chapters address, among other topics, an analysis of policies and regulations for water management in Brazil, the drivers that led California to adapt to the IWRM framework, and the international regulations for water markets and water banking in Australia and Chile. The implications of climate change for water resource systems in Mexico are discussed, as well as management strategies from California that could potentially serve as IWRM adaptation schemes in Mexico. Critical cases from Guanacaste (Costa Rica), and from Zayandehrud River Basin and Lake Urmia (Iran) are reviewed in terms of management practices and solutions. The book also provides an overview of the current availability and use of water resources in South Korea, and discusses the management of and international water law instruments for transboundary groundwater in Africa.