Impact Assessment of Hydroclimatic Change on Water Stress in the Indus Basin

Impact Assessment of Hydroclimatic Change on Water Stress in the Indus Basin PDF Author: Bilhuda Rasheed
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 114

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Book Description
Ninety percent of Pakistan's agricultural output is produced in fields irrigated by the Indus basin irrigation system, the world's largest network of canals, dams, barrages and tubewells. River flows, primarily fed by snow and glacial melt, are highly seasonal and fluctuate between intense floods and droughts. Built storage is relatively small, with withdrawals averaging at 70% of annual availability. Climate change, growth in sectoral water demands, and changes in water management infrastructure could have a profound impact on water stress in the coming decades. The interplay and contribution of these influences is explored using a model of the managed Indus River basin. To account for key hydro-climate shifts, I translate temperature rise and glacier cover scenarios into river runoff in 2050. I also project sectoral water demands to 2050. I then use an optimization model to estimate dam releases and project water stress to 2050. I find that climate change will cause decreases in peak river flows, but the changes in runoff will be comparable to current interannual variability. The most significant increase in water stress is caused by a scenario of 1-2.5°C warming and 1% annual glacial retreat. However, rises in demand have a greater impact on water stress than climate-induced changes in runoff which can be either positive or negative. The stabilization of global greenhouse gas emissions checks the rise in water demand and thus lowers future water stress. Effective adaptation options to an increase in water stress include building more storage capacity, relaxation of water allocation to allow inter-provincial water trading, and adaptation of the cropping calendar to the natural hydrological cycle.

Impact Assessment of Hydroclimatic Change on Water Stress in the Indus Basin

Impact Assessment of Hydroclimatic Change on Water Stress in the Indus Basin PDF Author: Bilhuda Rasheed
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 114

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Book Description
Ninety percent of Pakistan's agricultural output is produced in fields irrigated by the Indus basin irrigation system, the world's largest network of canals, dams, barrages and tubewells. River flows, primarily fed by snow and glacial melt, are highly seasonal and fluctuate between intense floods and droughts. Built storage is relatively small, with withdrawals averaging at 70% of annual availability. Climate change, growth in sectoral water demands, and changes in water management infrastructure could have a profound impact on water stress in the coming decades. The interplay and contribution of these influences is explored using a model of the managed Indus River basin. To account for key hydro-climate shifts, I translate temperature rise and glacier cover scenarios into river runoff in 2050. I also project sectoral water demands to 2050. I then use an optimization model to estimate dam releases and project water stress to 2050. I find that climate change will cause decreases in peak river flows, but the changes in runoff will be comparable to current interannual variability. The most significant increase in water stress is caused by a scenario of 1-2.5°C warming and 1% annual glacial retreat. However, rises in demand have a greater impact on water stress than climate-induced changes in runoff which can be either positive or negative. The stabilization of global greenhouse gas emissions checks the rise in water demand and thus lowers future water stress. Effective adaptation options to an increase in water stress include building more storage capacity, relaxation of water allocation to allow inter-provincial water trading, and adaptation of the cropping calendar to the natural hydrological cycle.

Introduction to the IBMR

Introduction to the IBMR PDF Author:
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Electronic book
Languages : en
Pages :

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Imagining Industan

Imagining Industan PDF Author: Zafar Adeel
Publisher: Springer
ISBN: 331932845X
Category : Technology & Engineering
Languages : en
Pages : 224

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Book Description
This volume calls upon over a dozen Indus observers to imagine a scenario for the Indus basin in which transboundary cooperation over water resources overcomes the insecurity arising from water dependence and scarcity. From diverse perspectives, its essays examine the potential benefits to be gained from revisiting the 1960 Indus Waters Treaty, as well as from mounting joint efforts to increase water supply, to combat climate change, to develop hydroelectric power, and to improve water management. The Indus basin is shared by four countries (Afghanistan, China, India, and Pakistan). The basin’s significance stems in part simply from the importance of these countries, three of them among the planet’s most populous states, one of them boasting the world’s second largest economy, and three of them members of the exclusive nuclear weapons club. However, the basin’s significance stems also from the great importance of the Indus waters themselves – due especially to the region’s massive dependence on irrigated agriculture as well as to the menace of climate change and advancing water scarcity. The “Industan” this volume imagines is a definite departure from business as usual responses to the Indus basin’s emerging fresh water crisis. The objective is to kindle serious discussion of the cooperation needed to confront what many water experts believe is developing into one of the planet’s most gravely threatened river basins. It is thus both assessment of the current state of play in regard to water security in the Indus basin and recommendation about where to go from here.

The Indus Basin of Pakistan

The Indus Basin of Pakistan PDF Author: Winston H. Yu
Publisher: World Bank Publications
ISBN: 0821398741
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 188

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Book Description
This study, Indus basin of Pakistan: the impacts of climate risks on water and agriculture was undertaken at a pivotal time in the region. The weak summer monsoon in 2009 created drought conditions throughout the country. This followed an already tenuous situation for many rural households faced with high fuel and fertilizer costs and the impacts of rising global food prices. Then catastrophic monsoon flooding in 2010 affected over 20 million people, devastating their housing, infrastructure, and crops. Damages from this single flood event were estimated at US dollar 10 billion, half of which were losses in the agriculture sector. Notwithstanding the debate as to whether these observed extremes are evidence of climate change, an investigation is needed regarding the extent to which the country is resilient to these shocks. It is thus timely, if not critical, to focus on climate risks for water, agriculture, and food security in the Indus basin of Pakistan.

Regional Hydrological Impacts of Climatic Change: Hydroclimatic variability

Regional Hydrological Impacts of Climatic Change: Hydroclimatic variability PDF Author: Thorsten Wagener
Publisher:
ISBN: 9781901502138
Category : Nature
Languages : en
Pages : 318

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Book Description


Indus River Basin

Indus River Basin PDF Author: Sadiq I. Khan
Publisher: Elsevier
ISBN: 012812783X
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 485

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Book Description
Indus River Basin: Water Security and Sustainability provides a comprehensive treatment of water-related issues within the Indus River basin. Each chapter is written by an expert in the field, hence this book serves as a single, holistic source covering the whole region, not just a single country. Many of the challenges faced by this region are trans-boundary issues, especially within the context of climate change and water scarcity. Topics covered include extreme engineering and water resource management (one of the largest irrigation systems in dry to semi-desert conditions), social sciences (population dynamics linked to water resources) and political sciences. As such, this book is relevant and important to all researchers interested in these issues. Includes detailed chapters provided by specialists in each different field as compiled by well experienced editors Presents work from related fields across the Indus basin and makes them easily accessible on one single place Shows the Indus River as a type case and shares issues relevant to other locations across the world

Climate Change Impact on Water Resources

Climate Change Impact on Water Resources PDF Author: P. V. Timbadiya
Publisher: Springer Nature
ISBN: 9811985243
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 449

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Book Description
This book comprises the proceedings of the 26th International Conference on Hydraulics, Water Resources and Coastal Engineering (HYDRO 2021) focusing on broad spectrum of emerging opportunities and challenges on the impact of climate change on water resources. It covers a range of topics, including, but not limited to, climate change assessment and downscaling issues, climate change impact and adaptive measures, influence of climate variability on hydro-climatic variables, impact of climate change on water resources of Indian Rivers, etc. Presenting recent advances in the form of illustrations, tables, and text, the content offers readers insights for their own research. In addition, the book addresses fundamental concepts and studies on the impact of climate change on water resources, making it a valuable resource for both beginners and researchers wanting to further their understanding of hydraulics, water resources and coastal engineering.

The Impact of Climate on Indus Basin and its Agriculture. Impact of Climate and Industrialization on the Indus River

The Impact of Climate on Indus Basin and its Agriculture. Impact of Climate and Industrialization on the Indus River PDF Author: Syed Hassan
Publisher: GRIN Verlag
ISBN: 3346935949
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 18

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Book Description
Academic Paper from the year 2023 in the subject Geography / Earth Science - Physical Geography, Geomorphology, Environmental Studies, grade: 3.3, Federal Urdu University (University of Karachi), course: Environmental Science, language: English, abstract: This study came at a critical time in the area. The feeble seasonal monsoon of 2009 caused a deficiency across the Pakistan. This comes after many rural households were already in dire straits facing high fertilizer charges and the impact of increasing world food prices. To aggravate the matters, the calamitous monsoon floods of 2010 overblown more than 22 million people, their homelands, structure and harvests. It has been estimated that this single flood caused around US$10 billion in damage, about partial of which was due to fatalities in the agricultural division. Introduction: The Indus Basin has a long and lively history of growth and alteration in irrigation. The settlements of the Harappan evolution in the Indus Valley date back five millennia. During the monsoon season, traces of flood channels remain that cut through the floodplains and allowed the inundation of agricultural fuel, food and minor crops within the riparian corridor. One of the largest dams, the so-called Gabarbands, dam water in torrents and branch catchment areas. Urban toilets and manure systems which aided cities such as Mohenjo-Daro in the Pakistan, Sindh’s lower Indus River section. such smaller cities and were discovered in the 2nd millennium BC. Abandoned due to overflowing of river, salinization, and changes in riverbeds. In a large drainage basin east central Indus valley, the Ghaggar-Hakra river canal changed development during the changes due to river in Harappan era, resulting in the desertion of hundreds of settlements. Such past events raise inquiries about continual sustainability in the setting of lively hydroclimatic unpredictability. Pakistan gets most of its water from monsoon runoff, aquifers and the headwaters of glaciers and snowfields from the rivers of the Indus Basin. In the Hindu Kush-Karakorum Mountain region areas of the Himalayas, 50 to 80 percent of the average Indus flow is due to snow and glacial melt, with the remainder due to monsoonal rains on the plains. Climate transformation may result in increased unpredictability in the supply and effectiveness of snowfall, as well as variations in snow and ice melt, which would affect water resource managing in the basin.

Himalayan Glaciers

Himalayan Glaciers PDF Author: National Research Council
Publisher: National Academies Press
ISBN: 0309261015
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 218

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Book Description
Scientific evidence shows that most glaciers in South Asia's Hindu Kush Himalayan region are retreating, but the consequences for the region's water supply are unclear, this report finds. The Hindu Kush Himalayan region is the location of several of Asia's great river systems, which provide water for drinking, irrigation, and other uses for about 1.5 billion people. Recent studies show that at lower elevations, glacial retreat is unlikely to cause significant changes in water availability over the next several decades, but other factors, including groundwater depletion and increasing human water use, could have a greater impact. Higher elevation areas could experience altered water flow in some river basins if current rates of glacial retreat continue, but shifts in the location, intensity, and variability of rain and snow due to climate change will likely have a greater impact on regional water supplies. Himalayan Glaciers: Climate Change, Water Resources, and Water Security makes recommendations and sets guidelines for the future of climate change and water security in the Himalayan Region. This report emphasizes that social changes, such as changing patterns of water use and water management decisions, are likely to have at least as much of an impact on water demand as environmental factors do on water supply. Water scarcity will likely affect the rural and urban poor most severely, as these groups have the least capacity to move to new locations as needed. It is predicted that the region will become increasingly urbanized as cities expand to absorb migrants in search of economic opportunities. As living standards and populations rise, water use will likely increase-for example, as more people have diets rich in meat, more water will be needed for agricultural use. The effects of future climate change could further exacerbate water stress. Himalayan Glaciers: Climate Change, Water Resources, and Water Security explains that changes in the availability of water resources could play an increasing role in political tensions, especially if existing water management institutions do not better account for the social, economic, and ecological complexities of the region. To effectively respond to the effects of climate change, water management systems will need to take into account the social, economic, and ecological complexities of the region. This means it will be important to expand research and monitoring programs to gather more detailed, consistent, and accurate data on demographics, water supply, demand, and scarcity.

Climate Change and Water

Climate Change and Water PDF Author: Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change / Working Group Technical Support Unit
Publisher:
ISBN: 9789291691234
Category : Climatic changes
Languages : en
Pages : 200

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Book Description
The Technical Paper addresses the issue of freshwater. Sealevel rise is dealt with only insofar as it can lead to impacts on freshwater in coastal areas and beyond. Climate, freshwater, biophysical and socio-economic systems are interconnected in complex ways. Hence, a change in any one of these can induce a change in any other. Freshwater-related issues are critical in determining key regional and sectoral vulnerabilities. Therefore, the relationship between climate change and freshwater resources is of primary concern to human society and also has implications for all living species. -- page vii.