Integrated water resources management approach and tools needed to influence sustainable development
1- Sari University of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources
Abstract: (261 Views)
Introduction and objectives: The crisis of water shortage on the one hand and the lack of proper management of water resources on the other hand make it necessary to implement the integrated management of water resources to achieve the goals of sustainable development. Achieving this goal requires providing the necessary tools to create the necessary infrastructure for the correct implementation of integrated management of water resources and achieving sustainable development goals.
Materials and methods: In the present study, the comprehensive concept of integrated management of water resources was selected by reviewing different international viewpoints and the results of world water meetings and conferences. Then by referring to international sources such as World Bank reports, FAO documents and meetings, the United Nations Development Program, documents related to the perspectives of the Technical Committee of the Global Water Partnership Program, documents of the United Nations Global Water Assessment Program, the United Nations 2030 document and also upstream documents. Approved water management of the country, including major water policies, eighteen water policies of the country, the twenty-year vision document in the water sector and the fourth development plan, documents and reports related to national and international conferences focusing on the integrated management of water resources and sustainable development, as well as the researches of researchers Identifying the principles, structure, challenges and goals of integrated management of water resources and the relationship with sustainable development were also investigated. In order to identify the tools needed for the integrated resource management approach to facilitate the process of sustainable development, the effectiveness of 4 criteria including: 1) water resources protection and exploitation criteria, 2) policy making, 3) social and 4) economic on the implementation of the integrated water resources management approach in the Tajen catchment basin They were evaluated by distributing 15 questionnaires among professors and students of water engineering department of Sari University of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources. For each component, 13 items and 5 subcategories with numerical scores including very low (1), low (2), medium (3), high (4) and very high (5) were considered. Finally, by using the ratio of the total scores of each component to the number of distributed questionnaires, the effectiveness of each of these components on the implementation of the integrated water resources management approach was determined based on percentage.
Findings: Based on the evaluations, the component of protection and exploitation of water resources has the most effectiveness (60.64%) on the implementation of integrated management of water resources in the Tajen catchment basin. On the other hand, the policy-making levers with (52.40%) are the second priority in terms of effectiveness, and the social and economic sectors are also the third (52.40%) and fourth (43.30%) priorities respectively. The results show that the successful implementation of an integrated approach to water resources and achieving sustainable development depends on comprehensive attention to all managerial, economic, social and environmental sectors. Because these tools are complementary to each other and the disruption in the availability of each of them leads to limitations in achieving the goals and perspectives of sustainable development in a region.
Conclusion: In general and according to the studies conducted in the current research, the integrated management of water resources and sustainable development in the Tajen watershed and other areas are two inseparable components for the continued survival of a region. Therefore, providing the necessary infrastructure for this matter should be considered as the main pillars of watershed management planning. This will not be possible except with the participation and coordination of all bodies, organizations, stakeholders and users of water resources.
Materials and methods: In the present study, the comprehensive concept of integrated management of water resources was selected by reviewing different international viewpoints and the results of world water meetings and conferences. Then by referring to international sources such as World Bank reports, FAO documents and meetings, the United Nations Development Program, documents related to the perspectives of the Technical Committee of the Global Water Partnership Program, documents of the United Nations Global Water Assessment Program, the United Nations 2030 document and also upstream documents. Approved water management of the country, including major water policies, eighteen water policies of the country, the twenty-year vision document in the water sector and the fourth development plan, documents and reports related to national and international conferences focusing on the integrated management of water resources and sustainable development, as well as the researches of researchers Identifying the principles, structure, challenges and goals of integrated management of water resources and the relationship with sustainable development were also investigated. In order to identify the tools needed for the integrated resource management approach to facilitate the process of sustainable development, the effectiveness of 4 criteria including: 1) water resources protection and exploitation criteria, 2) policy making, 3) social and 4) economic on the implementation of the integrated water resources management approach in the Tajen catchment basin They were evaluated by distributing 15 questionnaires among professors and students of water engineering department of Sari University of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources. For each component, 13 items and 5 subcategories with numerical scores including very low (1), low (2), medium (3), high (4) and very high (5) were considered. Finally, by using the ratio of the total scores of each component to the number of distributed questionnaires, the effectiveness of each of these components on the implementation of the integrated water resources management approach was determined based on percentage.
Findings: Based on the evaluations, the component of protection and exploitation of water resources has the most effectiveness (60.64%) on the implementation of integrated management of water resources in the Tajen catchment basin. On the other hand, the policy-making levers with (52.40%) are the second priority in terms of effectiveness, and the social and economic sectors are also the third (52.40%) and fourth (43.30%) priorities respectively. The results show that the successful implementation of an integrated approach to water resources and achieving sustainable development depends on comprehensive attention to all managerial, economic, social and environmental sectors. Because these tools are complementary to each other and the disruption in the availability of each of them leads to limitations in achieving the goals and perspectives of sustainable development in a region.
Conclusion: In general and according to the studies conducted in the current research, the integrated management of water resources and sustainable development in the Tajen watershed and other areas are two inseparable components for the continued survival of a region. Therefore, providing the necessary infrastructure for this matter should be considered as the main pillars of watershed management planning. This will not be possible except with the participation and coordination of all bodies, organizations, stakeholders and users of water resources.
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