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Qanat cooperationLecture 14Environment and sustainable development in the Middle East MOS N06 2016

Dr. Joshka Wessels

Introduction to Qanats

Qanats are ancient underground water tunnels that tap the groundwater and bring it to the surface through gravity. Many disciplines are involved in the research on qanats worldwide. Technology is over 3000 years old.

Bridging the Physical and the Social

Wilkinson (1977) : The study of water provides a logical link between an understanding of physical and social environments.

QanatologyFor the study of qanats in general and in particular the West Mediterranean region, we have to enter the fields of the archeologist, Arabist, the Islamic historian, and the social anthropologist, as well as those of the hydrologist, architect and geographer.

InterdisciplinarityThe interdisciplinary approach in which both social and physical spheres are studied is the best way of researching the complex subject of qanats and their utilization in modern times.

DocumentationIt also means that the collection of literature from which to draw our sources is wide; as a qanat scientist you need to approach your subject holistically and as such search for literature in most unexpected disciplines. Literature on qanats is considerable.

Water from the Dawn of Civilization

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HistoryTreatises were written on Qanats as early as the 11th century and British administrators studied them in Northwest India in the 19th century. Western geographers and hydrologists began to investigate them in Iran since the 1960s (Spooner, 1989).

HistoryFirst millennium B.C., Persians invention for extracting groundwater in the dry mountain basins of present-day IranA recently discovered book by Mohammed Karaj, a Persian scholar of the 10th Century AD, has a chapter on qanat constructionDuring the period 550-331 BC: Persian rule extended

Construction

Qanat countriesIran (Qanat)Afghanistan (Karez)North-Iraq (Kurdistan) (Karez)Azerbaijan (Karez)Oman (Falaj)Yemen (Ghayls)Uzbekistan (Karez)China (Karez)Algeria (Foggara)Morocco (Khettara)Tunisia (Foggara)Italy (Roman)Switzerland (Roman)Germany (Roman)Luxemburg (Roman)Spain (Galleria)Mexico (Spanish)

Problem Tree

Qanats are being abandoned

Qanats fall dryQanats do not giveenough revenue

Qanats cannot provide enough water and foodPopulation explosionChangingsocio-economicenvironmentOverexploitationgroundwater resourcesClimate changeLack of collective actionfor maintenanceQanats are destroyedEarthquakes, floods and warsIntroduction of newerextractiontechnologesSocio-politicalchanges In landuseLandreform andredivision of land

14

Traditional Knowledge

Qanat as a Human Ecosystem

Complex Systems A complex system is a system with a large number of elements, building blocks or agents, capable of interacting with each other and with their environment () New ecology proposes theory and methods to address the dynamics of ecosystems as complex systems (Able & Stepp, 2003).

Including humans into ecosystemsMany biophysical scientists regard humans as disturbances to the ecosystem, focusing on the negative effects. In this view, humans are not natural ecological entities but stand outside the ecosystem(Pavao- Zuckerman, 2000).

Machlis et al, 2005

Qanats as Human EcosystemsThe human ecosystem approach is useful for qanat studies since it encompasses relationships between both biotic and non-biotic elements within the context of human society (Honari, 1989).

Qanats as Human Ecosystems

Qanats as Human Ecosystems Willingness to take action Power relations and agency Conflict management CommunicationGovernance & government supportKnowledge, worldviewMarketsDemographyWater use and resource allocation

Customary Water RightsWater RightsRotation systemSeasons & Dry PeriodsLand and WaterWater committeesWakils, Water Guards, Disputes

The importance of processWater Rights change over timeRotation systems are not static Seasons & Dry Periods vary Land and Water physical systems evolvePopulation growth & changeSocietal changes & RevolutionsGlobal political economyConflicts & Wars on Water & Resources

Little WaterfallAnthropological Fieldwork 1999-2002Qanat rehabilitation in Summer 2000Return trips in 2004, 2007 and 2010In 2010 there was khobz wa millah Last contact in 2012 (by phone)

Little WaterfallSmall village at edge of the desert North SyriaDescendants of one man: Musa Hariri with 5 sons (Patronymic).Approx. 125 people (2000)Extended family spread out (Aleppo, Raqqa, Lebanon, Hauran)Agricultural baseHistory of feuds and revengeWeak leadership since 1980sDivision of village community (Hasoun/Ahmed)One qanat to share, five haqoun and five turns.

Little Waterfall

Little Waterfall

Little Waterfall

Little Waterfall

Little Waterfall