Het BUCRA-project (Building Unity for Climate Resilient Agriculture) richt zich op het versterken van de landbouwresistentie in Qahbunah, een landbouwgemeenschap in de Nijldelta van Egypte. Lokale boeren worden geconfronteerd met uitdagingen zoals waterschaarste, klimaatverandering en versnippering van landbouwgrond, en hebben innovatieve benaderingen nodig om hun levensonderhoud te behouden.

Centraal in BUCRA staan twee geavanceerde tools ontwikkeld door FutureWater: Croptimal en SOSIA, die geavanceerde technologie combineren met lokale kennis om traditionele landbouwpraktijken te transformeren.

Croptimal is een analyse-instrument voor klimaatgevoeligheid dat klimaatprojecties, geospatiale gegevens en landbouwinzichten benut om de geschiktheid van verschillende gewassen te beoordelen onder huidige en toekomstige klimaatscenario’s. Door gebieden en gewassen te identificeren die het meest bestand zijn tegen klimaatstressfactoren zoals hitte, zoutgehalte en waterschaarste, biedt Croptimal boeren datagestuurde aanbevelingen om hun gewaskeuze en plantstrategieën te optimaliseren. Deze tool levert zeer gedetailleerde kaarten en bruikbare adviezen, waardoor boeren hun praktijken kunnen aanpassen aan de uitdagingen van klimaatverandering en tegelijkertijd hun productiviteit kunnen verhogen.

SOSIA (Satellite-based Open-Source Irrigation Advisory) is een irrigatiebeheertool die is ontworpen om de efficiëntie van watergebruik te verbeteren. De tool maakt gebruik van open-source satellietgegevens, realtime weersinformatie en lokale bodemomstandigheden om nauwkeurige dagelijkse irrigatie-adviezen te geven. Boeren ontvangen via WhatsApp aanbevelingen over hoe lang zij hun gewassen dagelijks moeten irrigeren, waardoor de dienst zowel toegankelijk als kosteneffectief is. Deze innovatieve aanpak vermindert niet alleen het waterverbruik, maar verhoogt ook de gewasopbrengsten en energie-efficiëntie, en speelt zo in op de toenemende druk op watervoorraden in de Nijldelta.

Naast deze tools bevat BUCRA demonstratiepercelen waar klimaatslimme technieken worden getoond, zoals efficiënte irrigatie, bodembeheer en gewasrotatie. Boeren zullen ook deelnemen aan een blended leerprogramma dat veldgerichte training combineert met gebruiksvriendelijke digitale toepassingen om hun technische vaardigheden en kennis te verbeteren.

BUCRA legt sterke nadruk op het empoweren van jongeren en vrouwen in de landbouw, het versterken van marktverbindingen en het bevorderen van duurzame landgebruikspraktijken. Door Nederlandse expertise af te stemmen op lokale behoeften, streeft het project ernaar de productiviteit te verhogen, inkomens te stabiliseren en een duurzame agrarische toekomst op te bouwen in Qahbunah.

De langetermijnvisie is om bredere adoptie van deze tools en praktijken te inspireren, waardoor voedsel- en waterveiligheid in de regio wordt gegarandeerd en de uitdagingen van klimaatverandering effectief worden aangepakt.

The GEF / UNDP / ASEAN Project on Reducing Pollution and Preserving Environmental Flows in the East Asian Seas through the Implementation of Integrated River Basin Management (IRBM) in the ASEAN Countries is a 5-year project (2023-2027) with the goal of establishing functional IRBM mechanisms in seven priority river basins / sub-basins / watersheds in six ASEAN Member States, to reduce pollution, sustain freshwater environmental flows and adapt to climate change vulnerabilities. The Project is designed to improve governance and management arrangements in IRBM and accelerate the required changes in the six AMS in support of national priorities, objectives and commitments to global sustainable development targets using the Source to Sea (S2S) framework. The PEMSEA Resource Facility (PRF), which serves as the Project Implementing Partner, hosts the Regional Project Management Unit (RPMU). It works in collaboration with National and Local Government Partners and River Basin Organizations.

Component 1 of the Project focuses on the conduct of a baseline assessment of the S2S management continuum with a targeted outcome of improving understanding of governance, socioeconomic, ecological conditions, gaps and needs of priority river basins / sub-basins and coastal areas. This will be achieved through the establishment of the State of River Basin (SORB) reporting system to consolidate information coming from administrative, social, economic and environmental sectors. As an input to the SORB baseline reporting, it is required to complete a comprehensive assessment of competing uses and users of water as a consequence of existing and future water uses and their implications on the water / energy / food / ecosystem (WEFE) security nexus in the priority river basins.

FutureWater is providing this assessment of the WEFE security nexus through review of existing knowledge and literature, stakeholder consultations, as well as tailoring and applying its REWEFe toolkit for nexus analysis to seven river basins in six countries of Southeast Asia: Cambodia, Indonesia, Lao PDR, Malaysia, Philippines and Viet Nam.

To this end, FutureWater, in collaboration with unique land use GmbH and the Central Himalayan Rural Action Group, is conducting a training program on Springshed Management in four states, Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, and Uttar Pradesh India. The program aims to equip the local stakeholders with practical tools and best practices for managing springshed and springs in the region. The key beneficiaries of these trainings are the forest departments of these four states under the Ministry of Environment, Forestry and Climate Change (MoEF&CC). Funded by GIZ India, these trainings will covers key topics, including:

  • Concepts of springs and springshed management protocols and best practices
  • Hydro-geological data collection during a field expedition
  • Springshed mapping
  • Connecting forest ecosystem services to water resources

For the first round of training the consortium will start training with the Uttarakhand Forest Department (UKFD) in Dehradun, India. This initiative aims to strengthen sustainable water management practices and safeguard these critical water sources for future generations.

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) is considering supporting the (re)construction of four wastewater treatment plants in Stepnogorsk, Satpaev, Zhezkazgan, and Balkhash. Detailed engineering designs are being prepared by designers recruited by Vodokanals. Climate change impacts may exacerbate environmental pollution and other adverse effects of aging infrastructure on service delivery. FutureWater conducted a Climate Risk Assessment (CRA) to ensure that climate impacts are fully considered in the detailed design and construction phases.

The CRA identified the main vulnerability components for the four proposed wastewater treatment plants as: (i) extreme precipitation leading to stormwater runoff, (ii) low flows causing water quality problems, (iii) flooding of infrastructure (both fluvial and pluvial), (iv) power supply outages, and (v) heat stress. FutureWater’s risk assessment, which considered the combined effects of hazard, vulnerability, and exposure, concluded that all five major identified risks require attention. Since the draft designs already account for the current extreme climate conditions, and due to relatively modest projected climate changes (temperature, precipitation, wind), the need for additional adaptation measures will be relatively modest.

FutureWater’s assessment contributed to ensuring that the four wastewater treatment plants will be climate-resilient, thereby securing the investment.

The UNDP is implementing the project “Conservation and sustainable management of lakes, wetlands, and riparian corridors as pillars of a resilient and land degradation-neutral Aral basin landscape supporting sustainable livelihoods” to enhance the resilience of the ecosystems and livelihoods in Lower Amudarya and Aral Sea Basin (LADAB) through land degradation neutrality (LDN) compatible integrated land-water management.

This assignment contributes to water allocation analysis and the development of water supply scenarios for irrigated agriculture and biodiversity conservation reports. The services consist in:

  1. Consulting with project experts, government agencies, local communities, and other relevant stakeholders
  2. Develop a hydro-economic water allocation model for the lower Amu Darya basin using WEAP
  3. Explore different scenarios for irrigated agriculture and biodiversity conservation, considering climate change, to strike a balance between sustainable agricultural practices and conservation of biodiversity and ecosystems and (iv) build capacity and support project experts and relevant stakeholders on water allocation analysis and modelling.
Stakeholders consultation in Nukus, Uzbekistan

Currently, Pakistan’s energy mix consists of 58.8% thermal, 25.8% hydel, 8.6% nuclear, and 6.8% alternative sources, reflecting efforts to diversify from fossil fuels. Pakistan’s installed electricity generation capacity reached 41,557 MW by 2022, with significant growth in transmission line length over the past 5 years. However, the T&D system has not kept pace with the nearly 15,000 MW capacity added during 2017-2021 (ADB, 2024). Despite investments, transmission and distribution losses averaged about 18% over the last 5 years, exceeding the National Electric Power Regulatory Authority’s (NEPRA) 15.3% target. In 2020, 23.7% of generated energy was lost during transmission, distribution, and delivery (ADB, 2024). Notably, transmission and distribution losses exceed 25%, far higher than in comparable countries (GoP, 2017). Therefore, there is an urgent need to upgrade the existing distribution infrastructure to fulfill the energy demands and ensure steady socioeconomic development in the country. ADB will provide financing for four underperforming DISCOs, selected in consultation with the Ministry of Energy: Sukkur Electric Power Company (SEPCO), Hyderabad Electric Supply Company (HESCO), the Multan Electric Power Company (MEPCO), and the Lahore Electric Supply Company (LESCO) to:

  1. to upgrade the critical infrastructure of these DISCOs to reduce technical losses.
  2. to implement revenue protection measures to improve collections. Additionally, the project design includes embedded climate resilience and reform measures to enhance institutional capacity and financial sustainability.

These rehabilitation efforts will also take into account and address the growing impacts of climate change in four DISCOs. FutureWater will make use of state-of-the-art downscaled Coupled Model Intercomparison Project Phase 6 (CMIP6) ensembles, and other relevant hazards and local information to develop this CRA. Insights from the CRA will be used to devise adaptation strategies. Additionally, FutureWater will be reviewing the existing meteorological monitoring network and recommending additional potential monitoring sites for improved surveillance in the country. To further assist the Government of Pakistan, in actualizing its second Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) agenda which seeks to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions per unit of GDP by 50% (compared to the level in 2016), by the year 2030, FutureWater will also develop a GHG account and prepare a Paris Agreement alignment assessment.

Het meest recente onderzoek heeft zich gericht op het identificeren van historische megadroogtes op basis van paleo-gegevens en het begrijpen van hun klimatologische oorzaken, of op de studie van “moderne” gebeurtenissen en hun impact, meestal in laagland- en vlakke regio’s. Hooggebergteregio’s en sneeuwafhankelijke stroomgebieden zijn echter weinig bestudeerd, en er is weinig bekend over de impact van megadroogtes op de toestand en dynamiek van de cryosfeer in bergwatertorens.

Over het algemeen hebben stroomgebieden die afhankelijk zijn van hooggebergtesystemen een intrinsieke capaciteit om het gebrek aan neerslag en overmatige evapotranspiratie te bufferen, afhankelijk van de waterreserves opgeslagen in de cryosfeer (sneeuw, gletsjers en permafrost). Er wordt aangenomen dat deze buffercapaciteit beperkt is tot een kantelpunt wordt bereikt, waarna de impact van watertekorten en temperatuur-extremen kan worden versterkt en het functioneren van ecosystemen en watersystemen in gevaar kan brengen.

MegaWat heeft een dubbele doelstelling: 1) het aanpakken van kennisgebreken over de hydroklimatologische oorzaken van extreme droogtes en hun impact op de waterbalans van de bergwatertorens van Europa, met speciale nadruk op het samenvallen van samengestelde gebeurtenissen en cascade- en multischaleffecten, en 2) het ontwikkelen en voorstellen van nieuwe adaptatiestrategieën om om te gaan met de duur, omvang en ernst van toekomstige megadroogtes en hun potentiële impact op milieu- en sociaaleconomische activa.

Voor de uitvoering richt MegaWat zich op de hooggebergteregio’s van Europa en hun afhankelijke stroomgebieden. MegaWat streeft naar de ontwikkeling van drie producten:

  • Product 1. Een methodologisch kader voor de identificatie en karakterisering van historische megadroogtes tijdens de instrumentele periode, en de beoordeling van de rol van de cryosfeer bij het ondersteunen van de landschapsontwikkeling van stroomafwaartse gebieden, of bij het bufferen van klimaatveranderingseffecten. Product 1 is gebaseerd op een combinatie van klimaatregionalisatie, modellering van de oppervlakte-energiebalans, hydrologische simulatie en analyse van waterevaluatie en -toewijzing op stroomgebiedniveau (zie onderstaande figuur).
  • Product 2. Een hoog-resolutie, open-toegang, geregionaliseerde klimaatdatabase.
  • Product 3. Een lijst van potentiële adaptatiestrategieën die nuttig zijn voor de preventie en mitigatie van droogteeffecten, en voor de versterking van de waterveiligheid en veerkracht van hooggebergteregio’s en afhankelijke stroomgebieden. Deze scenario’s worden overeengekomen met regionale en lokale actoren en belanghebbenden, en hun effectiviteit wordt geëvalueerd onder extreme droogtescenario’s in drie pilotregio’s in Europa. Deze pilotregio’s worden vooraf geselecteerd op basis van criteria van representativiteit, strategisch belang en kwetsbaarheid voor droogtes.

 

Schematische weergave van een hooggebergtebekken, inclusief de belangrijkste componenten, processen en effecten gerelateerd aan droogtes.

FutureWater speelt een belangrijke rol in MegaWat door het coördineren van het werkpakket dat tot doel heeft simulatie-instrumenten te ontwikkelen en te testen die helpen bij de aanpassing aan megadroogtes en het ondersteunen van het besluitvormingsproces. Twee specifieke doelstellingen worden nagestreefd in dit werkpakket: a) de ontwikkeling van een methodologisch prototype voor het kwantificeren van impacten en het identificeren van kantelpunten voor waterveiligheid in sneeuwafhankelijke stroomafwaartse stroomgebieden, en b) de generatie en integratie van sneeuwdroogte-indicatoren in het Drought Early Warning System van FutureWater, genaamd InfoSequia (zie onderstaande figuur).

Workflow van het InfoSequia Early Warning System ontwikkeld door FutureWater en aangepast voor de detectie van kantelpunten van watertekort in sneeuwafhankelijke stroomgebieden. Meer informatie over InfoSequia.

Een one-pager kan hier worden gedownload.

Erkenningen

Dit project heeft financiering ontvangen van het Water4All-programma met cofinanciering van CDTI (Spaanse Dienst voor Wetenschap en Technologie) en het Horizon Europe-kaderprogramma van de EU voor onderzoek en innovatie.

Increasing water scarcity continues to threaten the agricultural sector in Asia. To address this critical issue, FAO and its partners have been developing a comprehensive Asia-Pacific Water Scarcity Programme (WSP) since 2019. The program aims to assess the ongoing issue of water scarcity in the region, evaluate potential management options, and assist partner countries in implementing adaptive management in the agricultural water sector using innovative tools and approaches.

Addressing the issue of water scarcity requires a sound understanding and development of water accounts to ensure evidence-based decision-making for equitable use and allocation of water resources under a changing climate. To achieve this, a comprehensive hands-on training program on water accounting will be developed and implemented across four countries: Indonesia, Lao PDR, Vietnam, and Thailand. In collaboration with the Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific (RAP) of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), FutureWater will design and deliver the water accounting training program. This program aims to not only improve participants’ understanding of water accounting but also enable them to use modern and innovative tools to develop water accounts, with a particular focus on quantifying linkages between field interventions and basin-scale hydrology.

Participants will work with tools such as REWAS and Follow the Water (developed by FutureWater in collaboration with FAO) to conduct water accounting in agricultural systems at different scales. Through the use of these tools, participants will be able to estimate real water savings at system and basin scales and analyze the impact of different irrigation schemes on the overall water availability in the system. Moreover, participants will also learn how to access and extract remotely sensed datasets to assess the status of the water resources in the Nam Ngum pilot basin.

Urban flood management in Laos is typically based on a limited, hard infrastructure approach. With the aim to shift this paradigm towards an integrated approach that enhances climate resilience, the project “Building resilience of urban populations with ecosystem-based solutions in Lao PDR” was approved by the Green Climate Fund Board in November 2019 with a GCF grant of US$10 million. United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) serves as the Accredited Entity for the project. Activities are executed by the State of Lao PDR through the Ministry of Finance and Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment (MONRE) as well as UNEP. The project is implemented across five years (2020-2025) covering four provincial capitals in the country: Vientiane, Paksan, Savannakhet, and Pakse.

One component of the project involves technical and institutional capacity building to plan, design, implement and maintain integrated urban Ecosystems-based Adaptation (EbA) interventions for the reduction of climate change induced flooding. As a part of Integrated Climate-resilient Flood Management Strategy (ICFMS) development, the project conducts hydrological, hydraulic and climate risk assessments to inform climate change adaptation solutions for risk reduction in Vientiane, Paksan, Savannakhet and Pakse.

A consortium of FutureWater, Mekong Modelling Associates (MMA) and Lao Consulting Group (LCG) was contracted by MONRE to implement the related activities. FutureWater leads and coordinates this assignment and contributes remote sensing analyses with state-of-the-art innovative tools, climate risk assessments, and training activities. To ensure sustainability and effective technology transfer, the modelling and mapping infrastructure and trained staff will be hosted within MONRE and a knowledge hub that is established within the National University of Laos.

 

Southern Spain is a highly productive agricultural region, but with huge challenges around water scarcity and environmental sustainability. There is a demand in the agricultural sector to work towards water stewardship in Spain. The Alliance for Water Stewardship has developed a Standard which helps retailers and their suppliers to cause change at scale. This approach recognizes that there are common challenges that could be more easily overcome through a collective, place-based approach.

In the Doñana region, berry farms and groundwater usage are causing a conflict with the unique ecosystems in the National Park. A catchment assessment and active stakeholder engagement is needed as a first step in this region to work towards water stewardship. The catchment assessment will provide information on the catchment context, in line with the requirements of the Standard. The purpose of the assessment is to reduce the burden on agricultural sites by providing them with a common set of information which they and others can use to inform responses to their shared water challenges.