THE ROLE OF THE UNITED NATIONS IN WATER RESOURCES PLANNING AND DEVELOPMENT

WATER RESOURCES BULLETIN VOL. 8, NO. 2 AMERICAN WATER RESOURCES ASSOCIATION APRIL 1972

THE ROLE OF THE UNITED NATIONS IN WATER RESOURCES PLANNING AND DEVELOPMENT '

Enzo Fano'

Never has man been more conscious than he is today of the need for sound water management practices and of the direct relationship which exists between water resources planning and economic and social development. This applies not only to the developing countries, where economic ventures of the past have at times prejudiced for generations the possibility of obtaining water supplies at an acceptable cost; it applies equally to the industrialized countries which are becoming painfully aware of the need to revise and modify water development strategy in the light of environmental and pollution issues.

United Nations activities in water resource development have been expanding at an increasing rate both through the programs conducted at United Nations Headquarters and those of the specialized agencies of the United Nations, such as FAO, UNESCO, WHO, WMO and the International Atomic Energy Agency. In particular, since the creation of the United Nations Special Fund in 1958, field activities in water resources surveys and development have grown rapidly; this sector alone absorbs some 20 per cent of the budget, which is now in the order of almost $240 million per annum (excluding activities of the World Bank). The Administrative Committee on Co-ordination Sub-committee on Water Resources Development which meets periodically to review issues of mutual interest to all UN agencies acts as a co-ordinating body and clearing house, while the Water Resources Development Center attached to the Resources and Transport Division at UN Headquarters provides a triennial report covering all water resources activities undertaken within the UN family; an annual report is issued for internal distribution only. But whereas, the specialized agencies devote primary attention to specific fields falling within their jurisdictional competence (such as water resource development for irrigation or the provision of potable water to urban and rural communities) United Nations Headquarters, through its Resources and Transport Division, are not concerned with any one particular end user. Its activities are primarily related to water resources planning and development as a whole including its social, institutional (legal and administrative), and economic aspects as well as its actual and potential role in overall national and regional planning and development. However, possibilities for the economic utilization of the nonconventional sources of water supply (such as desalted water, geothermal steam, melted artic ice and water obtained from cloud seeding) are also kept under constant review through ad hoc field programs, publications and international meetings. Valuable support is provided for these activities in the field by the United Nations Economic Commissions which operate on a

'Paper No. 72035 of the Wafer Resources Bulletin. Discussions are open until October I , 1972. 'Associate Chief, Water Resources Section, Resources and Transport Division, United Nations, New

York.

377

378 Enzo Fano

regional basis, and whose semiautonomous programs in the water resources sector focus on ways of solving problems which are specific to the region concerned (for instance optimizing use of water in water short areas or investigating pollution control in areas where contamina- tion is a serious issue). An advantage lies in the fact that since the Resources and Transport Division bears responsibility for a broad range of natural resource activities (geology and mining, energy and transport development, in addition to water resources) cross-fertilization and complementarity of action often lead to a more rationally integrated approach to the water development problem. A typical example is the close relationship which exists between geological survey work and groundwater exploration and development.

The operations of the United Nations Resources and Transport Division may be divided into two major groups: (i) provision of technical assistance by individual experts or imple- mentation of and exploration activities relating to both surface and ground waters undertaken by teams of specialists, supported by needed equipment financed primarily by the United Nations Development Programme. In this instance the primary objective is to assist developing countries in utilizing their resources in harmony with their general social and economic development while taking measures to ensure their conservation. Analysis of water supply to different consumer categories, dam design and construction, hydrogeology in all its facets, hydropower navigation, recreation, water legislation and administration are among the broad variety of fields covered.

(ii) Research, studies, seminars and international meetings, primarily geared to introducing new concepts in such fields as integrated water resources planning, water resources administration, use of nonconventional water resources (including desalination) flood damage prevention and management, international water resources policies, law and institutions, and environmental aspects of water resources development. A journal, “The Natural Resources Forum” is issued periodically by the Division.

The staff concerned with regular program work in water resources development is currently composed of five professionals including one desalination specialist. This does not include the Chief and Associate Chief of the Section who concern themselves with both field and regular program activities.

ACTIVITIES IN THE FIELD

Thirty-four water resource development projects are currently supervised by six technical advisers in the Division (both surface and groundwater) in 25 countries. In addition five projects are of a regional nature, relating to more than one country. The total investment (including both the United Nations Development and contributions by Member Governments in whose countries the projects are being executed) is close to $70 million, but expected benefits are far in excess of this sum. The types of project being implemented may best be illustrated by giving a few examples which will illustrate briefly the variety of operations currently underway.

Two projects deal, for instance, with river regulation and management in countries at very different levels of development; one is underway on the Sava river in Yugoslavia, while the other dealing with the feasibility study of the Logone river floods in Cameroon and Chad, was concluded in 1970. The first relates to a technically advanced socialist country in southern Europe while the latter was concerned with two developing countries whose major cash income is derived from fishing and cotton. The first project, which involves flood control, hydro-power production, water supply, navigation and pollution control, hinges on establishing a rational plan for the development of water resources within the basin by conciliating and

ROLE OF UNITED NATIONS IN WATER RESOURCES PLANNING AND DEVELOPMENT 379

integrating existing and prospective plans prepared independently by the five autonomous republics (Slovenia, Croatia, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Montenegro and Serbia) whch share the 100,000 sq. kilometer basin. Rather than availability of engineering know-how, which is not at issue in Yugoslavia, the United Nations were able through their Italian-Czek subcontractors to introduce some new ideas and techniques, including the use of complex mathematical models which take into account recent Harvard findings. In this instance, project recommendations stand a good chance of being followed up and having a basin-wide authority created, in view of the important economic benefits which will ensue.

The objective of the Logone project, on the other hand, was to contribute to community growth by proposing ways of checking floods along the 400 kilometer inundated plains, thus actively promoting agricultural development. The first two solutions investigated proved to be unfeasible, since first the construction of limited embankments upstream tended to make worse the downstream flood situation (also negatively affecting the opposite river banks); second, the diversion of excess flow into an existing natural channel proved to be excessively costly. Finally, a reduction of the lower river flood discharge to a reasonably manageable 1500 m3 per second was found to be feasible through the construction of a dam (in one of two alternative sites) in the upper reaches of the catchment. An improvement of the low-water flow so created and related flood control would assist the development of the area through improved irrigation, water supply, navigation and sanitation. Unlike the Sava, where financing prospects are promising based on tangible economic return prospects, the Logone project, given the limited natural resource base, would provide immediate social benefits which would have to be offset by cash returns spread out over a much longer time horizon. Thus, investment prospects are not so attractive; yet in this case there is no way of radically changing the living conditions for the 500,000 people who live close to the river banks, without a project such as the one suggested by the United Nations team of experts.

Three examples can be given relating to groundwater exploration activities undertaken by United Nations teams of specialists: two in Africa and one in the Middle East.

In Madagascar, the UN program aimed at the assessment of the groundwater potential in selected areas of the country’s western coastal region. The training of personnel especially in water well drilling was also relevant. In Togo the similar exploration program was accompanied by demonstration tests as a premise to exploitation, while in Lebanon, apart from survey and inventory of groundwater resources in selected areas of the country, the UN was to assist in the organization and development of a groundwater service, especially through the training of engineers and other field specialists.

The Madagascar project, conducted in two phases with subcontractors, involve such operations as inventory of springs, photogeology, air reconnaissance, water analysis, ground geophysics, borehole drilling and pumping tests. Important groundwater reservoirs were dis- covered, and the drilling of proc‘.ucing wells (especially 12 artesian wells) yielded spectacular results in some instances (flows of up to 7 0 litres/second). A drilling crew was fully trained as was a Malagasy geophysicist.

In Togo, where separate subcontractors handled the geophysics on the one hand and groundwater investigations, drdling and digging on the other, a village-by-village inventory of water availability and requirements in the “Crystalline” and “Oti” zones was undertaken. A network of observation wells was established. Practically all the geological formations of the country were investigated for their water bearing properties and recommendations made, where feasible, for the supply of water to villages with requirements respectively of under 3 0 c.m./day, between 30 and 80 c.m./day, and in excess of 80 c.m./day (in certain townshps).

In Lebanon, the 1:200:000 scale map prepared by the project team for the two

3 80 Enzo Fano

hydrogeological “provinces” into which the country can be divided, synthesize results for 13 hydrogeological “basins”; water quality and availability were also indicated. I t was established that in the arid inland province, which is almost a closed basin, evapotranspiration processes led to the loss of large quantities of water. In the Mediterranean province, on the other hand, runoff into the sea or losses through submarine springs account for the most important losses.

To illustrate further the broad spectrum of activities conducted in groundwater development under this technical assistance program, the following list is indicative: resource inventory (Upper Volta); groundwater reconnaissance over broad areas (such as in Mali or Nigeria); and in island territories (Fiji, Turks and Caicos); establishment of large-scale drilling program (Sudan); establishment of groundwater bureaus (Costa Rica, Honduras, Uganda); geophysical investigations (Dahomey); establishment of a driller’s school (Sudan); finding solutions to overpumping and salt water intrusion problems (Republic of China, Lebanon).

Passing now to an example of assistance being rendered in the institutional field, the project dealing with assistance to the National Institute for Water Resource Economics, Legisla- tion and Administration (INELA) in Argentina may be mentioned. This project is just getting underway, and it is hoped that the comprehensive training program that is being set up in conjunction with national staff may become a model for a water resource training institute which other countries will wish to imitate.

Finally, reference may be made to two projects dealing with water resource development utilizing nonconventional sources: these relate to water desalination and are respectively in Israel and in Kuwait. At present, the high cost of desalted water restricts its use to arid regions with mineral, industrial, tourist or strategic potential. Its use for domestic consumers can generally only be justified economically if supply is channelled to one or more of these other user categories as well. Kuwait represents an exception to the rule since the relatively high per capita income of the state makes it possible to provide desalted water to the local population free of charge, as a social service. In Israel, on the other hand, the existence of a national water grid provides a means for integrating desalted water within the conventional (surface and ground) supply system, at an acceptable cost.

In Israel, the United Nations project hinges on the testing of an electrodialysis plant, the construction of which was completed recently. Since this type of installation is geared to the treatment of brackish water, it appears to be particularly suited to marginal desalting; for instance, in deltaic areas where sea-water intrusion transforms fresh water into brackish.

The Kuwait project has a primary training function, to enable local personnel to undertake the operation and maintenance of existing plants, of which Kuwait has the largest concentra- tion in the world.

Both projects are presently progressing satisfactorily.

RESEARCH STUDIES AND INTERNATIONAL MEETINGS

Since February 1971, activities of the Resources and Transport Division have been governed to a considerable extent by the deliberations of the Committee on Natural Re- sources, established by the Economic and Social Council of the United Nations by a Resolu- tion of 27 July 1970. This Committee, made up of 38 Member Countries in its first meeting will increase to 54 at its next session in Kenya beginning on 31 January 1972. Its debate on various issues in the field of natural resources development was designed to assist the Secretary-General in selecting and furthering priority questions of world-wide significance in the field of natural resources including water. The issues specifically dwelt upon by the first meeting of the Natural Resources Committee relate to (a) water resources planning and in


particular, the need for developing more adequate methods of forecasting water requirements; (b) water resources administration management and law, with emphasis laid upon the impor- tance of modern water management and law, administration and water rights systems, and the new and increasing role of governmental agencies in water resources development; (c) water pollution and water quality management; (d) flood and drought damage prevention, with attention paid to the preparation of a manual on the subject; (e) new sources of water supply and new technologies with specific reference to continuing studies in desalination technology (including marginal desalination) and the use of contaminated or untreated saline water for various purposes (cooling and other industrial uses). There were also indications of positive expectations with regard to the application of cloud-seeding and hail suppression techniques; ( f ) international water resources, and the need for increasing efforts to achieving a more co-ordinated and rational development through formal international agreements.

The Division has been and plans to be active in a number of the fields touched upon by the Commit tee.

INTERNATIONAL MEETINGS

International meetings have been held recently or are planned as follows: (i) First and Second Panel of Experts on Water Resources Development Policies held

respectively in Buenos Aires, Argentina and Delft, Netherlands in June 1970 and August 1971. A draft report on the issues dealt with by the first panel was discussed in Delft. This report presented a brief appraisal of world experience in water development and reviewed the princi- pal problems which key officials should help in solving. It was a plea for the vigorous promo- tion of water resources policies not only by country but by region, and underscored the important role of water management within the framework of economic development planning at all levels. It is expected that a United Nations document will be published in due course dealing with specific policy issues stemming from the discussions.

(ii) A comparative study of the national systems of water administration, recently completed will serve as useful background material for the interregional seminar on Water Resources Planning and Administration to be held in New Delhi, India, in December 1971.

The papers to be submitted by the Resources and Transport Division to the meetings will range over numerous topics including pollution and river management aspects, the role of local water organizations in water administration and management and other broad institutional issues affecting both surface and groundwater regimes.

(iii) Reference may also be made to the panel of experts on legal and institutional implica- tions of international water resources development, held consecutively in Vienna, Austria, and at UN Headquarters in New York in December 1968 and December 1969.

A review of legal instruments applicable to the development of international water resources, the types of institutional arrangements which have evolved and the related functional stages in the development of international water resources are among the issues dealt with. A report on the meeting is in an advanced stage of preparation.

(iv) World-wide attention is increasingly being focused on the 1972 United Nations Confer- ence on the Human Environment. The Water Resources Section of the Resources and Trans- port Division will be participating in and presenting a number of papers dealing with environmental, management, and flood control aspects of water resources.

(v) In May 1972, a panel of experts will be convened in Budapest, Hungary to discuss water demands and water demand forecasting. This issue is particularly relevant to developing countries where demands for water is expected to rise much more sharply over the next

382 Enzo Fano

decade than in some of the more developed countries. In the northeastern region of the US, for instance, consumption has shown a decreasing tendency over the last ten years while the rapid demographic growth rate coupled with intensified irrigation and industrial use, will lead to an opposite tendency in many other countries.

(vi) Among other technical meetings at which the United Nations has participated actively, providing information on its field and research programs are: (a) meeting of fissured rocks of the International Association of Scientific Hydrology (Dubrovnik-Yugoslavia, 1965); (b) UN seminar for integrated utilization of water resources (Fergana, USSR, 1966); (c) Water for Peace Congress (Washington, USA, 1967); (d) study group on planning of water resources in Africa and the Hydrological and Hydrometeorological Conference (held in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, respectively in 1970 and 1971).

(vii) I t is also hoped to hold in 1972 a symposium on the application of desalination in conventional water systems, which is expected to be of interest to specialists from many water-short countries. The ways by which water price may be reduced through blending of different cost waters and criteria for establishing rate structures may be expected to be relevant issues in this instance.

(viii) Plans for 1973 include the convening of a panel of experts on the use of contaminated waters, as well as an interregional seminar on water resources administration, as a follow up to the India meeting of 197 1.

(ix) A United Nations Water Resources Conference tentatively planned for 1975, is under consideration by the Natural Resources Committee, and a decision on its future will be taken at the next meeting of the Committee, early in 1972.

STUDIES

The following studies are a representative sample of documents recently or soon to be issued:

(1 ) “Solar Distillation as a Means of Meeting Small-Scale Water Demands” was issued as a sales document in 1970. This continues the series of UN publications on water desalination, which will be enriched further in 1972 by the “Second United Nations Desalination Plant Opera tion Survey .” (3) “Integrated River Basin Development” is an up-dated version of an earlier document

bearing the same title whose concepts continue to have validity and relevance for approaches to water resource development programs of developing countries.

(3) An up-dated version of a 1958 document entitled “Water for lndustrial Use” is to be issued in an updated form in 1972. In this instance also, the title is self-explanatory. The document is being re-issued at a time when both industrialized and developing countries increasingly are being made aware of the need to regulate consumptive and nonconsumptive use aspects and qualitative characteristics of waters for industrial use.

(4) The study on abstraction and use of water with specific reference to legal regimes, which is to be published shortly, is a comprehensive document which reviews systems of administrative disposition of water in a number of key areas of the world; reference is also made to new water codes in arid regions. Water supply organizations and different types of water rights are reviewed. Experience gathered in the study relates to water resources development in six countries, all of them with an extensive experience in water administration and each of them reflecting the economic, social and climatic differences existing in five different regions of the world.

( 5 ) The report of the United Nations Inter-Regional Seminar on Flood Damage Prevention


(held in October 1969 in Tbilisi, USSR) is expected to be published early in 1972. ( 6 ) The comparative study of the national systems of water administration for Algeria,

Hungary, India, Israel, Mexico and Spain, already referred to earlier, is expected to be in print in 1972. Experience gathered in the study relates to water resources development in six countries, all of them with an extensive experience in water administration, and each one of them reflecting the economic, social and climatic differences existing in five different regions of the world.

NEW BREAKTHROUGHS IN TECHNOLOGY AND ADMINISTRATION

One of the objectives of United Nations activities is to pursue all enquiries and investigations which may result in technological innovations or institutional changes likely to benefit the developing countries and, by analogy, the industrialized nations.

Examples are the investigations or research into new fields which it is planned to conduct including such varied topics as water desalination using geothermal steam, rain-making, exploitation of sea-water temperature differences for energy production and air conditioning; survey of flood losses in the world; re-use potential of contaminated waters; possible effects of water management activities on climatic changes; and global evaluation of water resources and needs. The emphasis given to improvements of the institutional base (water resource organization, legislation and administration) is a result of the observations of the many instances in which outdated water administration structures have hampered or slowed the development process.

In the case of desalination using geothermal steam, for instance, it is planned to try to take advantage of one of the United Nations projects now under way in geothermal energy development in an arid area, to test possibilities for using geothermal steam as an energy source in a conventional desalination pilot plant. Should the experiment prove successful, its impact on providing small-scale water supplies at reasonable cost in water-short areas where geothermal steam is available could be significant.

Current progress being made in the other technical fields indicated would appear to warrant a watchful vigil and possibly consideration of future application on a pilot scale as and when feasible.

CONCLUSION

In the very brief review of activities of the United Nations Secretariat in water resources development, conducted through its Resources and Transport Division, emphasis has been laid on the close interrelationship which exists between field and Headquarters operations. In particular, the advantage of being able to look at natural resource problems in a unified manner and to call upon expertise anywhere in the world is reflected in the utilization of the most advanced, and sometimes totally new, concepts, both in field operations and in Head- quarters research activities. There is thus a cross-fertilization of ideas which finds an echo in the publications and in the international meetings sponsored by the United Nations. The Organization maintains close contact with technical and scientific organizations throughout the world, both inside and outside the government; by so doing it can keep abreast of the water resource development problems which exist and of the means being studied or implemented to solve them, be they of an institutional, technical, economic or social nature. It can act as a clearinghouse for information on successful achievements and as a sounding board for new technologies or approaches. In this way an effective technical assistance service can continue to be provided to its member countries as a constructive contribution to their natural resource development efforts.

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PROJECTS IN THE WATER RESOURCES FIELD CURRENTLY MANAGED BY THE UNITED NATIONS RESOURCES AND TRANSPORT DIVISION

Total lnvestment (United Nations Development

Region Title Programme and Government

AFRICA Africa Regional: Gambia & Senegal

Burundi, Rwanda

Guinea, Mali,

Guinea, Mali,

Cameroon

and Tanzania

Mauritania, Senegal

Mauritania, Senegal

Mali

Mali

Mauritania Somalia Togo Togo Tunisia

Upper Volta

EUROPE AND MIDDLE EAST Europe Regional

Greece Israel Kuwait Lebanon Poland

Yugoslavia

ASIA Afghanistan Burma Burma lndia lndia

lndia lndia

lndia

Indonesia Philippines

Hydrological & Topographical Studies of the Gambia River Basin

Planning the Development of the Kagera River Basin Design of a System of Water Management in the

Feasibility Survey for the Regulation of the Senegal

Groundwater lnvestment and Pilot Development Strengthening Government Service for Groundwater

Investigation of the Selingue Dam Site on the

Strengthening of the Groundwater Service Mineral and Groundwater Survey (Phase 11) Survey of Mineral and Groundwater Resources Groundwater Exploration in the Coastal Region Intensification of Groundwater Exploitation in

Hydrological & Railway Studies in Connection with

Upper Senegal River Catchment

River

Exploration and Development

Sankarani River

Northern & Central Tunisia

Mineral Development in the Northeast

Integrated Development of the Vardar/Axios River

Power Development Planning Electrodialysis Pilot Plant, Mashabei Sade Water Resources Center Groundwater Survey Planning the Comprehensive Development of the

Regulation and Management of the Sava River

Basin

Vistula River System

Establishment of a Water Management Department Mu River Irrigation Survey Development of the Sittang River Valley Cavitation Research Center, Poona Groundwater Surveys in Rajasthan and Uttah

Groundwater Surveys in Rahasthan and Gujarat Coastal Engineering Research Center and Develop-

ment of Hydraulic Instrumentation Groundwater Investigation in Madras State

(Phase 11) Institute of Hydraulic Engineering Feasibility Survey for the Hydraulic Control of the

Radesh

Laguna de Bay Complex and Related Develop- ment Activities

604,400

1,365,700

2,3 12,400

1,264,400 1,501,200

1,4 7 2,700

6 86,000 1,400,900 1,753,600 1,793,500

6 59,200

940,300

1,635,800

3,63 8,100 2,443,900 1,974,900 2,018,400 2,4 27,600

2,338,500 1,571,800

2.4 36,200 1,542,800 3,275,200

574,100

1,877,600 2,133,900

1,874,300

1,3 19,900 3,010,600

1.05 5,400


Projects in the Water Resources Field (Continued )

Region Title

LATIN AMERICA

Argentina Argentina

Bolivia Chile Costa Rica El Salvador

Nicaragua

Paraguay

Paraguay

Surinam

Improvement of Navigation on the Parana River Water Economy, Law and Administration, Research

Groundwater Development in the Altiplano Water Resources Development in the Norte Grande Groundwater Surveys in Three Selected Areas Groundwater Survey of the Metropolitan Area

Groundwater Investigation in the Central Pacific

hvestigation of Groundwater Resources in Central

Navigation Study of the Paraguay River South

Public Water Supplies and Sewerage

and Training Institute

of San Salvador

Coastal Region

and Northwestern Chaco

of Asuncion

Total Investment (United Nations Development Programme and Government)

2,082,000

2,286,200 2,638,800 2,579,800 1,354,700

1,176,000

1,375,400

1 3 6 1,700

1,675,300

LIST OF PUBLICATIONS ISSUED BY THE WATER RESOURCES SECTION

Water for Industrial Use, New York, 1958 (E/3058-ST/ECA/50, Sales No. 58.II.B.l) E,F,S Integrated River Basin Development, New York, 1958 (E/3066, Sales No. 58.II.B.3) E,F,S Large Scale Ground Water Development, New York, 1960 (E/3424-ST/ECA/65, Sales No. 60.11.B.3) E,F,S Water Desalination in Developing Countries, New York, 1964 (ST/ECA/82, Sales No. 64.II.B.5) E (French

Water Desalination: Proposals for a Costing Procedure and Related Technical and Economic Considerations,

Proceedings of the Inter-Regional Seminar on the Economic Application of Water Desalination, New York,

The Design of Water Supply Systems Based on Desalination, New York, 1968 (ST/ECA/106, Sales No.

First United Nations Desalination Plant Operation Survey, New York, 1967 (ST/ECA/ll2, Sales NO.

and Spanish, mimeographed)

New York, 1965 (ST/ECA/86, Sales No. 65.II.B.5) E,F,S

22 September-2 October 1965, New York, 1967 (ST/TAL/SER. C/90, Sales No. 66.11.B.30) E

68.11.B.20) E,F,S

69.11.B.17) E,F,S

No. E.70.II.B.l) E Solar Distillation as a Means of Meeting Small Scale Water Demands, New York, 1970 (ST/ECA/121, Sales

Integrated River Basin Development, New York, 1970 (E/3066/Rev. 1, Sales No. 70.Il.A.4) First Biennial Report of the Water Resources Development Centre, Official Records of the Economic and

Second Biennial Report of the United Nations Water Resources Development Centre, Official Records of

Third Biennial Report of the United Nations Water Resources Development Centre, Official Records of the

Fourth Biennial Report on Water Resources Development, Official Records of the Economic and Social

Fifth Biennial Report on Water Resources Development, Official Records of the Economic and Social

Social Council, Twenty-ninth session Special Supplement (E/33 19)

the Economic and Social Council, Thirty-third session, Special Supplement (E/3587)

Economic and Social Council, Supplement No. 13 (E/3881)

Council, Fortieth session, Supplement No. 3 (E/4138)

Council, Forty-fourth session, Supplement No. 3 (E/4447)

Documents

THE ROLE OF THE UNITED NATIONS IN WATER RESOURCES PLANNING AND DEVELOPMENT