| Environment


achieve the necessary pace and scale of traditional grant-based financing. This innovative financing strategy provides upfront implementation funding and eliminates long payment delays with grants that often exclude local contractors from participating due to cash flow needs. NHA says that the Yuba Water Agency’s US$7.5 million investment in the first two Forest Resilience Bonds in California demonstrates keen fiscal responsibility, as the cost of a catastrophic wildfire within the watershed would result in higher clean-up costs, hydropower revenue loss, and devastation to natural resources and communities. Indeed, NHA awarded Yuba Water Agency’s Watershed Resilience Programme with one of its Outstanding Stewards of America’s Waters awards in 2021. “By developing relationships with other stakeholders, devising plans and strategies to address external dangers, identifying new funding opportunities, and promoting shared work,” Chase-Israel says, “hydropower operators can protect investments and communities for generations to come.”


Drought crisis Drought is not just a concern for the US. It is becoming


a global problem. According to a new report by the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) [3]


, the number and duration of droughts


has increased by 29% since 2000, while more than 2.3billion people worldwide currently face water stress. “We are standing at a crossroads, on top of a


watershed, where we need to gain a new awareness and consciousness. We need to steer towards the solutions rather than continuing with destructive actions, believing that marginal change can heal systemic failure,” says Ibrahim Thiaw, Executive Secretary of the UNCCD. “We must deal with drought urgently, using every tool we can.” A new publication called Drought and Water Scarcity [4] was launched on 11 May 2022 by


the UNCCD, along with the Integrated Drought Management Programme (a joint programme of the Global Water Partnership and the World Meteorological Organisation), and the Food and


Agriculture Organisation. Its aim is to help countries implement effective risk strategies. “Unfortunately, it often takes a crisis to get people’s


attention,” says Darío Soto-Abril, Executive Secretary of the Global Water Partnership (GWP). “Droughts often get less media attention because they develop slowly over time. But we often know months if not years in advance that water shortages are coming because we can measure rainfall and dam and groundwater levels. Their impacts can be severe. At their worst, they cost lives. They also exacerbate poverty and adversely affect economic growth, health and well-being, political stability, and the environment.” Drought and Water Scarcity notes that drought is a natural climatic feature of below-average precipitation, which can last for months or years, while water scarcity results from a long-term imbalance between water demand and supply. Droughts can trigger or amplify water scarcity, while water scarcity can aggravate droughts. The impacts of both are often the same, with agriculture and food security usually the most severely affected. Valentin Aich of GWP, who served on the publication’s editorial board and was one of its scientific editors, said: “There are no quick fixes. Proactive approaches are needed such as strengthening monitoring and early warning systems, risk mitigation measures, and long-term adaptation strategies to build resilience.” ●


References


[1] Short-Term Energy Outlook Supplement: Drought Effects on California Electricity Generation and Western Power Markets. US Energy Information Administration. May 2022. www.eia.gov/ outlooks/steo/special/supplements/2022/2022_sp_02.pdf


[2] www.hydro.org/powerhouse/article/how-california-hydropower-operators-are- innovating-to-prevent-wildfires/?utm_medium=email&utm_source=rasa_io How California Hydropower Operators are Innovating to Prevent Wildfires by Jeremy Chase-Israel, Content Development Specialist, NHA, 27 June 2022.


[3] www.unccd.int/resources/publications/drought-numbers


[4] https://gwp.org/globalassets/global/toolbox/publications/idmp_water_scarcity_ report.pdf IDMP, 2022. Drought and Water Scarcity. WMO No. 1284. Global Water Partnership, Stockholm, Sweden and World Meteorological Organization, Geneva, Switzerland.


Above: Chile is experiencing its record-breaking 13th year of drought


Severe situations


● In April 2022 Chile announced an unprecedented plan to ration water for the capital of Santiago, as the country entered a record-breaking 13th year of drought. By the end of 2021, the fourth driest year on record, more than half of Chile’s 19 million population lived in an area suffering from “severe water scarcity”.


● Severe droughts are occurring in Eastern Africa and particularly in Madagascar, causing a severe famine with over one million people affected. In Cameroon, conflict has broken out over access to water.


● Severe water shortages have also affected communities in the Nelson Mandela Bay Metro in South Africa. Although the Algoa Water Supply System, which provides water to five dams in the vicinity, received a minimal boost from rainfall at the end of June 2022, hydrologists say that the marginal increase from 12% to 13.4% had done very little to improve low dam levels. They expressed concern that water levels are likely to remain low for the remainder of the year unless it pours for 24 hours,


with 50mm of rain received to get runoff to the dams. In June 2021 the system had stood at 33.8%.


● In March 2022, the World Bank announced funding to improve water supply and strengthen water resource management for greater climate resilience in Angola. Between November 2020 and January 2021, the country experienced its worst drought for 40 years. Water resources development measures will include the rehabilitation and construction of sand dams, small reservoirs and piped water supply, along with water conservation.


● World Bank funding is also being used to support the water sector in the Kyrgyz Republic. In April 2022 the bank announced it will support the country’s Climate Resilient Water Services Project. This will strengthen the operations of 21 water user associations, as well as river basin and dam management, and reduce the risk of water shortages and droughts, improve water quality and enhance overall resilience.


www.waterpowermagazine.com | Yearbook 2022 | 23


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