Water Conservation in the Era of Global Climate Change reviews key issues surrounding climate change and water resources. The book brings together experts from a variety of fields and perspectives, providing a comprehensive view on how climate change impacts water resources, how water pollution impacts climate change, and how to assess potential hazards and success stories on managing and addressing current issues in the field. Topics also include assessing policy impacts, innovative water reuse strategies, and information on impacts on fisheries and agriculture including food scarcity. This book is an excellent tool for researchers and professionals in Climate Change, Climate Services and Water Resources, and those trying to combat the impacts and issues related to Global and Planetary Change. Covers a wide range of theoretical and practical issues related to how climate change impacts water resources and adaptation, with extended influence on agriculture, food and water security, policymaking, etc. Reviews mathematical tools and simulations models on predicting potential hazards from climate change in such a way they can be useful to readers from a variety of levels of mathematical expertise Examines the potential impacts on agriculture and drinking water quality Includes case studies of successful management of water and pollutants that contribute to climate change

How interventions to mitigate climate-caused poverty and inequality in India came at a cost to environmental sustainability. In the monsoon regions of South Asia, the rainy season sustains life but brings with it the threat of floods, followed by a long stretch of the year when little gainful work is possible and the threat of famine looms. Beginning in the late nineteenth century, a series of interventions by Indian governments and other actors mitigated these conditions, enabling agricultural growth, encouraging urbanization, and bringing about a permanent decrease in death rates. But these actions—largely efforts to ensure wider access to water—came at a cost to environmental sustainability. In Monsoon Economies, Tirthankar Roy explores the interaction between the environment and the economy in the emergence of modern India. Roy argues that the tropical monsoon climate makes economic and population growth contingent on water security. But in a water-scarce world, the means used to increase water security not only created environmental stresses but also made political conflict more likely. Roy investigates famine relief, the framing of a seasonal “water famine,” and the concept of public trust in water; the political movements that challenged socially sanctioned forms of deprivation; water as a public good; water quality in cities; the shift from impounding river water in dams and reservoirs to exploring groundwater; the seasonality of a monsoon economy; and economic lessons from India for a world facing environmental degradation.

This open access book discusses the impact of human-induced global climate change on the regional climate and monsoons of the Indian subcontinent, adjoining Indian Ocean and the Himalayas. It documents the regional climate change projections based on the climate models used in the IPCC Fifth Assessment Report (AR5) and climate change modeling studies using the IITM Earth System Model (ESM) and CORDEX South Asia datasets. The IPCC assessment reports, published every 6–7 years, constitute important reference materials for major policy decisions on climate change, adaptation, and mitigation. While the IPCC assessment reports largely provide a global perspective on climate change, the focus on regional climate change aspects is considerably limited. The effects of climate change over the Indian subcontinent involve complex physical processes on different space and time scales, especially given that the mean climate of this region is generally shaped by the Indian monsoon and the unique high-elevation geographical features such as the Himalayas, the Western Ghats, the Tibetan Plateau and the adjoining Indian Ocean, Arabian Sea, and Bay of Bengal. This book also presents policy relevant information based on robust scientific analysis and assessments of the observed and projected future climate change over the Indian region.

When it comes to water, we flush and forget. We use, abuse and almost never recycle. Water sector in India, since the 1990s, has seen some new ideas formalised legally and institutionally, while others are still emerging and evolving. Confronting the reality of current water management strategies, this volume discusses the state of the Indian water sector to uncover solutions that can address the imminent water crises. This book: Analyses the growing water insecurity, increase in demand, inefficiency in water use, and growing inequalities in accessing clean water; Sheds light on water footprint in agricultural, industrial and urban use, pressures on river basin management, depleting groundwater resources, patterns of droughts and floods, watershed based development and waste water and sanitation management; Examines water conflicts, lack of participatory governance mechanisms, and suggests an alternative framework for water regulation and conflict transformation; Highlights the relationship between gender discourse and water governance; Presents an alternative agenda for water sector reforms. This volume, with hopes for a more water secure future, will interest scholars and researchers of development studies, environment studies, public policy, political studies, political sociology, and, NGOs, media and think tanks working in this area.

Climate change will lead to many changes in global development and security especially energy, water, food, society, job, diplomacy, culture, economy and trade. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) defines climate change as: “Any change in climate over time, whether due to natural variability or as a result of human activity.” Global climate change has emerged as a key issue in both political and economic arenas. It is an increasingly questioned phenomenon, and progressive national governments around the world have started taking action to respond to these environmental concerns. This book discusses the issue of food and water security in India under the context of climate change. It provides information to scientists and local government to help them better understand the particularities of the local climate. It offers insight into the changes to natural ecosystems which have affected the local Indian population. Climate change is one of the biggest challenges to Indian society. It can lead to serious impacts on production, life and the environment. Higher temperatures and sea level rise can lead to flooding and cause water salinity problems which bring about negative effects on agriculture and high risks to industry and socio-economic systems in the future.

How interventions to mitigate climate-caused poverty and inequality in India came at a cost to environmental sustainability. In the monsoon regions of South Asia, the rainy season sustains life but brings with it the threat of floods, followed by a long stretch of the year when little gainful work is possible and the threat of famine looms. Beginning in the late nineteenth century, a series of interventions by Indian governments and other actors mitigated these conditions, enabling agricultural growth, encouraging urbanization, and bringing about a permanent decrease in death rates. But these actions—largely efforts to ensure wider access to water—came at a cost to environmental sustainability. In Monsoon Economies, Tirthankar Roy explores the interaction between the environment and the economy in the emergence of modern India. Roy argues that the tropical monsoon climate makes economic and population growth contingent on water security. But in a water-scarce world, the means used to increase water security not only created environmental stresses but also made political conflict more likely. Roy investigates famine relief, the framing of a seasonal “water famine,” and the concept of public trust in water; the political movements that challenged socially sanctioned forms of deprivation; water as a public good; water quality in cities; the shift from impounding river water in dams and reservoirs to exploring groundwater; the seasonality of a monsoon economy; and economic lessons from India for a world facing environmental degradation.