the experience of preserving (ecological) flows in india ... · in 2050, we live well, within the...

The experience of preserving (ecological) flows in India and EU: Legislation and implementation. Case studies,

achievements and remaining gaps. Strategies forimprovement

India-EU Water Partnership (IEWP)New Delhi

14-15 September 2016

Dr. Rafael Sánchez NavarroSenior Expert on Eflows

[email protected]

mailto:[email protected]

‘In 2050, we live well, within the planet's ecological limits. Our prosperity and healthy environment stem from an innovative, circular economy where nothing is wasted and where natural resources are managed sustainably, and biodiversity is protected, valued and restored in ways that enhance our society's resilience. Our low carbon growth has long been decoupled from resource use, setting the pace for a global safe and sustainable society.’

Source: 7th EU Environment Action Programme

The European policy context : the 2050 vision

New Delhi 14-15 September 2016

This vision is at the heart of

European environmental policy and

is inseparable from its broader

economic and societal context.

Current situation and trends


SOURCE: European Environment Agency. SOER 2015 Synthesis report.

We need relevant changes!


SOURCE: European Environment Agency. SOER 2015 Synthesis report.

Hydromorphological pressures affecting ecosystems


SOURCE: European Environment Agency. 2012. European waters — assessment of status and pressures, EEA Report No 8/2012. European Environment Agency, Copenhagen.

Conservation measures proposed by Member States


Top five conservation measures ranked High for species and habitats associated with wetlands ecosystems

Source: EEA report on Art. 17 and Art. 12 of the H&B Directives

Minimum flows in the RBMP (2009-2015)


SOURCE: Benítez, C. and Schmidt, G. 2012. Analysis of the implementation of Environmental Flows in the wider context of the river basin management plans (Report drafted in the framework of the Comparative Study of Pressures and Measures in the Major River Basin Management Plans. Task 3d: Water Abstraction and Water Use).

There is a need in many EU river basins to put quantitative water management on a much more solid foundation: namely the identification of the ecological flow

There is no EU definition of ecological flow, nor a common understanding of how it should be calculated, even though these are preconditions for its consistent application.

The second most common pressure on EU ecological status stems from over-abstraction of water.

The status of EU waters is not doing well enough!


THE BLUEPRINT: The Blueprint to safeguard Europe’s water resources sets out to strengthen and fill the gaps in EU water policy.

Aims

This document aims to be guidance to stimulate a common uptake of ecological flows in order to support the achievement of the Water Framework Directive’s environmental objectives.

Covering the whole WFD implementation process, it develops the steps where consideration for ecological flows is critically needed.

The European Guidance on Eflows

https://circabc.europa.eu/sd/a/4063d635-957b-4b6f-bfd4-b51b0acb2570/Guidance%20No%2031%20-%20Ecological%20flows%20(final%20version).pdf


https://circabc.europa.eu/sd/a/4063d635-957b-4b6f-bfd4-b51b0acb2570/Guidance No 31 - Ecological flows (final version).pdf


Working definition

Ecological flows are considered within the context of the WFD as “an hydrological regime consistent with the achievement of the environmental objectives of the WFD in natural surface water bodies as mentioned in Article 4(1)”.

Considering Article 4(1) WFD, the environmental objectives refer to:

- non deterioration of the existing status - achievement of good ecological status in a natural surface water body, - compliance with standards and objectives for protected areas




Structure


Let’s go to Spain!!

Mean annual runoff (mm)

Mean annual water demand (mm)

Population: 46 Millions

64 Millions of tourists.

3,5 Millions Ha of irrigated areas


Understanding the Spanish case study

Map of reservoirs with a capacity over 10 hm3

Legal basis of Eflows in Spain


Creation of the “Hydrological Union Confederation of the Ebro river “ in 1926.

Long tradition in basin management


Ecological flows

The Spanish legislation establishes ecological flow requirements as a restrictionto water uses.

Ecological flows are determined in the RBMPs: minimum seasonal flows,maximum seasonal flows, flow change rate and flood flows.

Importance of the harmonisation process.


Legal basis of Eflows in Spain

Water planning

Objectives: environmental objectives of water bodies and water demand satisfaction.

Water planning is carried out through River Basin Management Plans.

Plans are mandatory (approved by Law-National- and Decrees-River Basins-) andrepresent basic rules for the protection of water and for providing water use rights.

Related sub-plans: Drought Management Plans and Flood Risk Management Plans

% waterbodies withmínimum ecological flows


Eflows in the Spanish River Basin Management Plans

Eflows in the Spanish River Basin Management Plans


How has it been possible?

Very solid legal basis, political will, gradually and with a large number of specialists

Eflows and Hydropower in the Upper Ter River


98 hydroelectric plants identified

in 131 km of river (85 in use today)

Environmental groups, fishermen Users: hydropower, irrigation

-No reduction of environmental flows in protected areas

- Max 60% reduction HPU

- Greater control over concessions

- Implementation without compensation for the loss of production

- Reduction of environmental requirements

- Flexible exploitation regime

- extension of concessions

- compensation for lost production



Abandoned uses. Art 66.2 water low

Uses with infringements of the concession title and repeated

disciplinary files (Art 66.1 water low)

Use flexibillitation with no investment required

Uses currently compatible with environmental flows

Uses that have changed the essential character of the concession title

administrative modification file

Concessions in which the title reads concession allows the

implementation of environmental flows

Uses in protected areas

Use flexibillitation. Moderate investment and production increase in

return on investment

Extension of concesion

Use flexibillitation with high investment, in which the production does

not compensate the investment

Concession partial expropriation

Expiration of the

concession (Art 66

water low)

Administrative

modification file (art

144.4 RD 84986)

Review concession

without the right to

compensation

Review concession

with prejudice to the

owner

Review concession

without prejudice to

the owner


Tools for trading New Delhi 14-15 September 2016

Existing uses impact analysis

1st Analysis of possible costs of implementing environmental flows in the upper Ter (85active hydropower plants, 131 km of river, 118,000 inhabitants)

Implementation cost costs per person

(€/hab. year)

Replacement of electricity

costs (0,075 €/kWh)

1,02 M€/year

(13,6 GWh/year) 9

Investment cost in

performance improvement4,45 M€ -

Compensation cost 70,198 M€ (52 year)

1,35 M€/year11

TOTAL 9 - 20



FINAL REMARKS


It’s posible a common understanding of Eflows

Not easy!!

The legal bases are fundamental and sometimes the level of ambition must be reduced


Efforts to create a suitable Policy and Legal Framework

Flow regime for proper structure and functioning

Patterns Extreme conditions

Flow variability

0

500

1000

1500

2000

2500

1-e

ne

1-f

eb

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ar

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ay

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go

1-s

ep

1-o

ct

1-n

ov

1-d

ic

Ca

ud

al (m

3/s

)

0

500

1000

1500

2000

2500

1-e

ne

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1-m

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ct

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al (m

3/s

)


Evolution of e-flow components

Invariable minimum flow vs. natural flows

1970-90 1990-00

2000-102010-13

Intra-annual variability and one flood

Intra-annual variability considering drought periods and one flood

Intra & inter annual variability (wet-normal-dry years) considering different flood types (flood regime)


BAD

DEFICIENT

MODERATE

GOOD ECOLOGICAL STATUS

HIGH ECOLOGICAL STATUS1. River in natural conditions

2. Minimum loss of species

3. Rare and sensitive species can disappear

4. Co dominancy of sensitive and tolerant species

5. Tolerant species are dominant, sensitive ones are rare

Stress factor gradient

Biological

condition

Natural

Degraded

Low High

1. River in natural conditions

2. Minimum loss of species

3. Rare and sensitive species can disappear

4. Co dominancy of sensitive and tolerant species

5. Tolerant species are dominant, sensitive ones are rare

Stress factor gradient

Biological

condition

Natural

Degraded

Low High

6. Severe structure and function alteration

Eflow consistent with different levels of protection

2. The Directive includes a number of

provisions that allow Member

States to set lower environmental

standards for specific water bodies

where there are legitimate

technical, economic,

environmental or recovery

constraints

1. The core objective for surface

waters is to improve waters where

necessary in order to achieve at

least good status.

3. Heavily modified and artificial waters are expected to achieve good ecological

potential, which recognizes their important uses while making sure that ecology is

protected or improved as far as possible

THE BIOLOGICAL CONDITION GRADIENT


Eflow consistent with level of protection

LLAVORSILLAVORSI

SPECIAL AREAS OF CONSERVATION

HEAVILY MODIFIED WATER BODY

NATURAL WATER BODIES

GES

GEP

PA

SPECIAL AREAS OF CONSERVATION

PA


Estimating e-flows

More than 200 methods in the world !!!!!

Existing methods for the estimation of environmental flows differ in input information

requirements, types of ecosystems they are designed for, time which is needed for their

application, and the level of confidence in the final estimates.

From the International Water Management Institute web page


APPLICATIONS OBSERVATIONS TYPE EFLOW PROMISING METHODS INFORMATION REQUIRED

LEV

EL 1

Pre

limin

ary

asse

ssm

ent

- Regional planning

- Preliminary standard setting

- Screening at basin scale planning, organizing and pre-analyzing information for a Level 2 approach

This approach could be appropriate for setting preliminary targets in any situation or as part of a screening process at basin scale. Credible and comprehensive initial flow recommendations can be provided when hydrologic desktop methods are combined with a review of available information for a given river system and augmented by basic understanding of river functions. Initial targets based on Level 1 analysis should be precautionary, in line with their level of confidence. Furthermore, such standards could play a strategic monitoring role, and could provide advance warning of situations where further investigation is required.

Comprehensive hydrologic desktop methods

- Range of Variability Approach (RVA): Yet probably the most advanced hydrological methodology used at this level. A simplified version of RVA reducing the number of variables might be sufficient to address screening or preliminary eflow assessment at catchment scale (e.g. Initially consider only monthly minimum flows applying 10-25 percentiles on a monthly basis).

- ELOHA. The Ecological Limits of Hydrologic Alteration (ELOHA), is a flexible, scientific framework for assessing and managing environmental flows across large regions, when limited time and resources preclude evaluating individual rivers. ELOHA combines desktop hydrologic analysis with a review of existing ecological databases and literature.

A comprehensive hydrologic desktop approach synthesizes two primary sources of information: (1) a hydrological analysis tool that is capable of assessing a range of flow levels; and (2) a literature review of the linkages between the flow regime and key riverine resources. This review should incorporate all the available relevant information for the specific river or basin augmented by broader literature on riverine processes.

LEV

EL 2

Inte

rmed

iate

ass

essm

ent

- Basin scale planning

- Organizing and pre-analyzing information for a Level 3 approach

It might apply to selected sites where more detailed environmental flow specifications are required. These circumstances require a greater level of detail in the application of eflow approaches. Basin scale planning involves the assessment of environmental flows through an entire basin. In this case assessment may begin with use of comprehensive hydrological desktop models to home-in on important sites. Then a holistic methodology would be most appropiate.

Holistic methodologies

- Building Block Methodology (BBM): Perhaps the best known holistic approach. Its basic premise is that riverine species are reliant on basic elements (building blocks) of the flow regime. The BBM revolves around a team of experts. They follow a series of structured stages, assess available data and model outputs and use their combined professional experience to come to a consensus on the building blocks of the flow regime.

- The Downstream Response to Imposed Flow Transformation (DRIFT), offers promising and innovative advances to interactive eflow assessment. The DRIFT Methodology is an interactive, top-down holistic approach based on the same conceptual tenets and multidisciplinary, workshop-based interaction as the BBM.

Eflow recommendations at Level 2 require new data collection or basic modelling. Synthesis of information and articulation of expert judgment into flow recommendations occurs within the framework of a flow workshop with diverse participants. At this second level of assessment, some aspects of environmental flow recommendations will be based on limited data and professional judgement, and will amount to hypotheses about flow-geomorphology and flow-ecology relationships.

LEV

EL 3

Com

pre

hen

sive

ass

essm

ent

- Examining Tradeoffs and Predicting Results of Operational Changes (e.g. designation and management of HMWB)

- Impact assessment processes

- Restoration/re-habilitation of aquatic ecosystems;

A Level-3 process is appropriate for situations that require a high degree of certainty before any operational changes can made. Such situations may include those where water is over-allocated and heavily contested (e.g. Heavily Modified Water Bodies), affected Protected Areas, presence of endangered species which limits operational flexibility, defined policies dictate processes, etc. In these situations, decision makers will require a higher threshold of rigorous analysis before initiating an environmental flow program. Analyses of a Level 3 approach can incorporate both typical environmental flow assessment techniques as well as diverse approaches for studying socio-economical impacts (e.g. on water users) and others.

Holistic methodologies with advanced modelling approaches

- Holistic methodologies: BBM / DRIFT as recommended above.

- Advanced modelling approaches: Habitat modelling is considered by many ecologists to be the most sophisticated and scientifically and legally defensible methodology available for quantitatively assessing environmental flows for rivers. In the European context, COST Action 626 “European Aquatic Modelling Network” defined and developed integrated methods and models of assessing the interactions between aquatic flora and fauna and riverine habitats on reach scale and provide transferability to a catchments scale.

Level 3 require intensive data collection and advanced modelling approaches (species/component-oriented). The research and modelling program of a Level 3 approach can be incorporated into a wider assessment framework that identifies the problem, uses the best methods and presents results to decision-makers. Assessment of technical feasibility, significant adverse effects and economic assessment methods can be applied.

Implementing methods: phased hierarchical approach

From simple hydrological estimates through to a highly sophisticated programme of research and modelling to refine environmental flow targets

Risk-based approach: for flow decisions with greater environmental, social or economic risks more sophisticated methods shall be applied


When implementing the participation process is vital!!!

Convincing the community; Communicating the right message; Involving the interest groups; Gathering support


Economy…. a great ally we expect great advances

One of the primary reasons for the growing shift in perceptions regarding the use of Eflowsis the growing understanding of the scale of their real and potential economic benefits.

Numerous studies have looked at the economic value of ecosystem services provided by flows, including habitat creation, recreational opportunities, contribution to housing prices, groundwater recharge, contribution to water quality, and so on

SOURCE: NPS 2001; Emerton and Boss 2004.


Big challenges in knowledge….


… BUT THE BIGGEST ONE IS IMPLEMENTATION!!!!


Thank you very much!!!

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