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search.filters.applied.f.access: openAccess × Subject: Water scarcity ×

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Now showing 1 - 6 of 6
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    Aerial river management by smart cross-border reforestation
    (Amsterdam [u.a.] : Elsevier Science, 2019) Weng, Wei; Costa, Luís; Lüdeke, Matthias K.B.; Zemp, Delphine C.
    In the face of increasing socio-economic and climatic pressures in growing cities, it is rational for managers to consider multiple approaches for securing water availability. One often disregarded option is the promotion of reforestation in source regions supplying important quantities of atmospheric moisture transported over long distances through aerial rivers, affecting water resources of a city via precipitation and runoff (‘smart reforestation’). Here we present a case demonstrating smart reforestation's potential as a water management option. Using numerical moisture back-tracking models, we identify important upwind regions contributing to the aerial river of Santa Cruz de la Sierra (Bolivia). Simulating the effect of reforestation in the identified regions, annual precipitation and runoff reception in the city was found to increase by 1.25% and 2.30% respectively, while runoff gain during the dry season reached 26.93%. Given the city's population growth scenarios, the increase of the renewable water resource by smart reforestation could cover 22–59% of the additional demand by 2030. Building on the findings, we argue for a more systematic consideration of aerial river connections between regions in reforestation and land planning for future challenges. © 2019 The Authors
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    The theory of virtual water: Why it can help to understand local water scarcity
    (München : Oekom - Gesellschaft fuer Oekologische Kommunikation mbH, 2012) Biewald, A.; Rolinski, S.
    [No abstract available]
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    Give virtual water a chance! An attempt to rehabilitate the concept
    (München : Oekom - Gesellschaft fuer Oekologische Kommunikation mbH, 2011) Biewald, A.
    [No abstract available]
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    Climate-driven or human-induced: Indicating severe water scarcity in the Moulouya river basin (Morocco)
    (Basel : MDPI AG, 2012) Tekken, V.; Kropp, J.P.
    Many agriculture-based economies are increasingly under stress from climate change and socio-economic pressures. The excessive exploitation of natural resources still represents the standard procedure to achieve socio-economic development. In the area of the Moulouya river basin, Morocco, natural water availability represents a key resource for all economic activities. Agriculture represents the most important sector, and frequently occurring water deficits are aggravated by climate change. On the basis of historical trends taken from CRU TS 2.1, this paper analyses the impact of climate change on the per capita water availability under inclusion of population trends. The Climatic Water Balance (CWB) shows a significant decrease for the winter period, causing adverse effects for the main agricultural season. Further, moisture losses due to increasing evapotranspiration rates indicate problems for the annual water budget and groundwater recharge. The per capita blue water availability falls below a minimum threshold of 500 m3 per year, denoting a high regional vulnerability to increasing water scarcity assuming a no-response scenario. Regional development focusing on the water-intense sectors of agriculture and tourism appears to be at risk. Institutional capacities and policies need to address the problem, and the prompt implementation of innovative water production and efficiency measures is recommended.
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    System complexity and policy integration challenges: The Brazilian Energy- Water-Food Nexus
    (Amsterdam [u.a.] : Elsevier Science, 2019) Mercure, J.-F.; Paim, M.A.; Bocquillon, P.; Lindner, S.; Salas, P.; Martinelli, P.; Berchin, I.I.; de Andrade Guerra, J.B.S.O; Derani, C.; de Albuquerque Junior, C.L.; Ribeiro, J.M.P.; Knobloch, F.; Pollitt, H.; Edwards, N.R.; Holden, P.B.; Foley, A.; Schaphoff, S.; Faraco, R.A.; Vinuales, J.E.
    The Energy-Water-Food Nexus is one of the most complex sustainability challenges faced by the world. This is particularly true in Brazil, where insufficiently understood interactions within the Nexus are contributing to large-scale deforestation and land-use change, water and energy scarcity, and increased vulnerability to climate change. The reason is a combination of global environmental change and global economic change, putting unprecedented pressures on the Brazilian environment and ecosystems. In this paper, we identify and discuss the main Nexus challenges faced by Brazil across sectors (e.g. energy, agriculture, water) and scales (e.g. federal, state, municipal). We use four case studies to explore all nodes of the Nexus. For each, we analyse data from economic and biophysical modelling sources in combination with an overview of the legislative and policy landscape, in order to identify governance shortcomings in the context of growing challenges. We analyse the complex interdependence of developments at the global and local (Brazilian) levels, highlighting the impact of global environmental and economic change on Brazil and, conversely, that of developments in Brazil for other countries and the world. We conclude that there is a need to adjust the scientific approach to these challenges as an enabling condition for stronger science-policy bridges for sustainability policy-making. © 2019 The Author(s)
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    Towards adaptation of agriculture to climate change in the Mediterranean
    (Heidelberg : Springer Verlag, 2011) Iglesias, A.; Mougou, R.; Moneo, M.; Quiroga, S.
    This study links climate change impacts to the development of adaptation strategies for agriculture on the Mediterranean region. Climate change is expected to intensify the existing risks, particularly in regions with current water scarcity, and create new opportunities for improving land and water management. These risks and opportunities are characterised and interpreted across Mediterranean areas by analysing water scarcity pressures and potential impacts on crop productivity over the next decades. The need to respond to these risks and opportunities is addressed by evaluating an adaptive capacity index that represents the ability of Mediterranean agriculture to respond to climate change. We propose an adaptive capacity index with three major components that characterise the economic capacity, human and civic resources, and agricultural innovation. These results aim to assist stakeholders as they take up the adaptation challenge and develop measures to reduce the vulnerability of the sector to climate change.