Integration of Information for Environmental Security : Environmental Security - Information Security - Disaster Forecast and Prevention - Water Resources Management
Currently the necessary information exists in a multitude of forms and formats geographically and physically scattered over different countries, institutes and organisations, and are subject to widely different data policies and management schemes. Moreover, there is no complete and updated overview of the existing information, e.g. in the form of a metadata catalogue. As a result, integration of this information in case of emergencies has proven to be extremely difficult, if not impossible. Although in some cases, interesting and impressive "demonstrations" have been shown of the possibilities of the integration of information, for a number of reasons these have reached the "operational" stage.
Integrated Water Management : Practical Experiences and Case Studies
This book introduced a whole range of specific definitions, objectives and constraints regarding the various aspects of water management, including water quality management, policies, economic aspects, ecology, price, and sustainable development. These issues all require the formulation of common, integrated, sustainable approaches for managing the water system from a multidisciplinary perspective, and the definition of new professional skills, requirements which become even more evident where transboundary areas are concerned.
Integrated Groundwater Management : Concepts, Approaches and Challenges
The aim of this book is to document for the first time the dimensions and requirements of effective integrated groundwater management (IGM). Groundwater management is a formidable challenge, one that remains one of humanity’s foremost priorities. It has become a largely non-renewable resource that is overexploited in many parts of the world. In the 21st century, the issue moves from how to simply obtain the water we need to how we manage it sustainably for future generations, future economies, and future ecosystems. The focus then becomes one of understanding the drivers and current state of the groundwater resource, and restoring equilibrium to at-risk aquifers. Many interrelated dimensions, however, come to bear when trying to manage groundwater effectively. An integrated approach to groundwater necessarily involves many factors beyond the aquifer itself, such as surface water, water use, water quality, and ecohydrology.
Groundwater Management in Asian Cities : Technology and Policy for Sustainability
The number of city dwellers who do not have access to piped water and rely on groundwater is also increasing. In many Asian cities, groundwater is not only the source of domestic water but also an important resource for industrial development, making better management of groundwater resources essential for sustainable development. Because groundwater is easier to access and costs less than water from piped systems, groundwater abstraction cannot be easily regulated. Policies for groundwater management adopted in Japan and other Asian countries are compared, and technologies for efficient use of groundwater are elucidated. Groundwater contamination is also a serious problem that exacerbates water scarcity in Asian cities. Case studies illustrate the cause and consequences of naturally occurring contaminants such as arsenic and fluoride, and groundwater contamination due to anthropogenic contaminants is described. Also discussed are technologies for treating contaminated groundwater to reduce the health risks of drinking contaminated groundwater.
Governance for drought resilience : Land and water drought management in Europe
This book will aid regional water authorities and other relevant stakeholders interested in governance assessment, whether that context is about water, more specifically about drought or flooding events, or other environmental issues. Further, the GAT can and has also been applied more broadly to a range of governance contexts for water management and beyond.
Freshwater Governance for the 21st Century
The objective of this book is to broadly illustrate the key aspects of water governance, mapping the spectrum of decision-making from techno-centric and eco-centric approaches, to hybrid concepts and people-centric approaches. Topics covered include the challenges for water-governance models, the polycentric model, the integration challenge, water in the decision-making hierarchy, and the rise of water-sensitive design, while also taking into account interdependencies between stakeholders, as well as the issue of scale.
European water law and hydropolitics : An inquiry into the resilience of transboundary water governance in the European Union
provides the first comprehensive assessment of the various issues faced by countries in the European Union, where progressing climate change and urbanization pose significant cooperative challenges in a large number of river basins. Conducting a thorough analysis of the intricate web of EU water governance, it reveals that the hydropolitical stability of the European Union is already at risk. Further, given the structural nature of the shortcomings in EU water policy—e.g. the rigidity of the EU’s founding treaties or the institutional complacency of the European Commission— argues that these risks are likely to turn into sources of prolonged conflict, unless EU decision-making bodies take steps to address the new hydrological realities early on.
Environmental Governance of the Baltic Sea
This edited volume presents a comprehensive and coherent interdisciplinary analysis of challenges and possibilities for sustainable governance of the Baltic Sea ecosystem by combining knowledge and approaches from natural and social sciences. Focusing on the Ecosystem Approach to Management (EAM) and associated multi-level, multi-sector and multi-actor challenges, the book provides up-to-date descriptions and analyses of environmental governance structures and processes at the macro-regional Baltic Sea level.
Eating, Drinking: Surviving : The International Year of Global Understanding - IYGU
This publication addresses the global challenges of food and water security in a rapidly changing and complex world. The essays highlight the links between bio-physical and socio-cultural processes, making connections between local and global scales, and focusing on the everyday practices of eating and drinking, essential for human survival. Written by international experts, each contribution is research-based but accessible to the general public.
Knowing the Salween River : Resource Politics of a Contested Transboundary River
Focuses on the Salween River, shared by China, Myanmar, and Thailand, that is increasingly at the heart of pressing regional development debates. The basin supports the livelihoods of over 10 million people, and within it there is great socio-economic, cultural and political diversity. The basin is witnessing intensifying dynamics of resource extraction, alongside large dam construction, conservation and development intervention, that is unfolding within a complex terrain of local, national and transnational governance. With a focus on the contested politics of water and associated resources in the Salween basin, this book offers a collection of empirical case studies that highlights local knowledge and perspectives. Given the paucity of grounded social science studies in this contested basin, this book provides conceptual insights at the intersection of resource governance, development, and politics of knowledge relevant to researchers, policy-makers and practitioners at a time when rapid change is underway.
Chinese water systems ; Vol.4 : Applied water management in China
This book addresses latest Sino-German results of the joint research efforts within Major Water Program of the Chinese Government supported by German research funding. The Major Water Program aims at the restoration of polluted water environments and sustainable management of water resources in China.
A City in Blue and Green : The Singapore Story
Highlights Singapore’s development into a city in which water and greenery, along with associated environmental, technical, social and political aspects have been harnessed and cultivated into a liveable sustainable way of life. It is also a story about a unique and thoroughgoing approach to large-scale and potentially transferable water sustainability, within largely urbanized circumstances, which can be achieved, along with complementary roles of environmental conservation, ecology, public open-space management and the greening of buildings, together with infrastructural improvements.











