Groundwater Governance in Lebanon for Sustainable Development. Talal Darwish, Amin Shaban and Mouin Hamze

Transcription

1 Groundwater Governance in Lebanon for Sustainable Development Talal Darwish, Amin Shaban and Mouin Hamze National Council for Scientific Research, Beirut, Lebanon

2 1. Introduction Lebanon was described as the Water Tower of the Middle East, since it has plenty water resources and receiving considerable amounts of precipitation ( mm). Meanwhile, Lebanon is witnessing an obvious water supply shortage since the last three decades (~40% in average). This shortage has been recently exacerbated by climatic variability and population growth both leading to over pumping causing GW depletion, coupled with over irrigation promoting leaching of soluble pollutants and bacterial diseases followed by increased use of phytopatological chemicals. Studies obtained are still inadequate to build a comprehensive

3 2. State of the art Lebanon Water Availability & Worldwide 149 Source: 1st World Water Development Report, WWAP, UNESCO, 2003

4 3. Water Resources in Lebanon Typically, all elements of the Water Cycle exist in Lebanon, including Surface water & Groundwater Rivers, Lakes Snow Spring s Wetlands Karstic cavities Aquiferous formations Off-shore springs

5 INCAM 1 st Training Workshop, January 2012, Beirut, Lebanon 4. Water Challenges in Lebanon Water Availability Water Shortage Supply Quantitative impact Population growth Qualitative impact Climate change Water losses Water pollution? Geology Physical setting Mismanagement Wasteful use Water loss to the sea & Unwise water use A. Shaban

6 Source: WB, 2012

7 4.1. Water challenge/availability Hail, North Lebanon 6 October 2012 Decline in the precipitation rate Torrential? rain became a common phenomenon. Obvious shifting in seasonal timing. Changing hydrologic regime.

8 4.2. Water challenge/availability Decline in water volume from different sources Typical & selective rivers and springs

9 4. Water challenge/physical setting N 3000 m Precipitation ( mm) -Snow covers ~2500 km 2 (25%) Extensive fault and fracture systems -Steep sloping terrain

10 5. Recharge conditions * Long lineament transport groundwater from at a range on-land to the sea. * Short lineament transport groundwater from the costal aquifers.

11 5.1. Natural GW recharge Role of Sinkholes in GW Recharge In Lebanon, there are tremendous sinkholes on the top mountains of the carbonate rock, where they integrally contribute in recharging groundwater reservoirs. Notably, they remain covered by snow for more than 10 months a year.

12 6. Management of GW 6.1. Groundwater Exploration More than 93% of productive wells are located within 500m from long fracture Shaban, 2010

13 6.3. Monitoring of Groundwater Discharge 6.2. Decline in water volume in all wells m drawdown in WT 5-10 m drawdown in WT

14 6.4. Groundwater Discharge to the Sea A major portion of groundwater is released to the sea along rock deformations and along the karstic conduits. There is a big number of these springs, with total discharge of about 400 Mm 3 /yr.

15 NO3-N concentration, mg.l Monitoring of Groundwater Quality Irrigation water Drinking water Wells 2008 May 2008 Nov 2008 Dec 2009 May 2009 July 2010 June 2010 Oct 2011 June 2011 Dec 2012 March 2012 June 50% of monitored wells fall within the unsuitable for any use, half of them are used for domestic purposes.

16 6.6. Groundwater Protection in view of prevailing landuse Intensive agriculture Intensive agriculture Farming Wild

17 6.8. Groundwater Protection in view of sediment

18 Proposed implementations for sustainable groundwater development in the Lebanese coastal zone. 7. Previous and recent implementations on water resources in Lebanon Level of application National level: water sector strategy District level Community level Implementation Previous Recent Large-scale lakes and dams Hydropower Treatment Plants Qaraaoun Lake Qaraaoun, Kadisha, Joun, Aalay hyderpower stations Emergency rehabilitation of wastewater network Shabrouh Dam - Wastewater treatments plants at various level of implementation Small-scale dams Qnan and Joun lakes Wadi En-Njas and Yammouna lakes Water supply systems Almost previous ones Almost maintenance implements Collective water wells - In several regions Water tanks Almost previous ones Few number of tanks Water wells Several boreholes over long period Supporting execution Local earth ponds Hill ponds of Local ponds Local supply systems Several local supply systems over long period

19 Proposed implementations for sustainable groundwater development in the Lebanese coastal zone. Until October 2011 (Source: CDR, 2012)

20 resources in Lebanon: MoEW water sector strategy 1. Baseline - Water Sector Infrastructure 1. Baseline - Water Sector Management 2. Demand-Supply Forecasts 3. Sector Enabling Environment 4. Strategic Roadmap 5. Investment Plan Control and Tarifs of Well exploitation UNDP GW Mapping Project National Center for Water Information

21 7. b. Previous and recent implementations on water resources in Lebanon National Council for Scientific Research, Remote Sensing Center Beirut, Lebanon 15/12/ /12/ /1/2011 MODIS satellite images (Bands 7-2-1), showing the changing in snow cover on the Lebanese mountains after the storm of 15 th December 2010

22 7. c. Previous and recent implementations on water resources in Lebanon Litani River Authority Water Quantity Management Spring Discharge Monitoring (All over the country) Dam and Reservoir Management (Qaraoun Dam) Irrigation Channels Building, Control and Monitoring (Canal 900, Qasmiyeh Project, Canal 800, ) Meteorological Stations Water Quality Management Continuous monitoring of water quality in the Upper Litani Basin and Qaraoun Reservoir The Central Lab and Service Center of Kherbet Kanafar (west Bekaa) Field assessment of water quality using fast, reliable and spontaneous field techniques Water Quality Index (0-100 Scale) used for simple assessment.

23 7. d. Previous and recent implementations on water resources in Lebanon Fragmented water centers at the USJ, NDU Research Center for Environment and Development Arab University of Beirut Pilot screening process for 50 wells in the project: Assessment of Agricultural Practices on Water and Soil Resources in Central Bekaa: 1. Develop a comprehensive understanding of agricultural practices and challenges facing the cultivation of major agricultural crops. 2. Develop quality and quantity assessment database and risk analysis for the current status of water and soil resources. and pest control. 3. Promote society awareness about management of natural resources. The study will involve: I. Socioeconomic and Anthropological Survey II. Hydro geological Analysis of Water Resources II. Physical, Chemical and Microbiological Assessment of Water and Soil III. Data Analysis and Interpretation IV. Knowledge Transfer and Dissemination

24 8. Proposed implementations for sustainable GW development in Lebanon Controlling systems and GW measuring Monitoring water wells GW Protection Monitoring approaches Governmental control Metering water supply New approaches Capacity building and institutional strengthening Public awareness Coordination actions & harmonized decisions Knowledge enhancement Artificial recharge Using new techniques Improved water resources efficiency

25 Thank You Freshwater