Accounting, Planning of Integrated Use of Water Resources Essay Example

The discussion ultimately provides an overall analysis.

The natural groundwater system

Earth's freshwater supply comes from various forms of precipitation, including rain, snowfall, and melting ice. This precipitation can either flow into rivers and eventually reach the sea or penetrate the soil through subsurface pathways. It accumulates as aquifers or underground water above impermeable layers in the Earth's crust. The water stored in these aquifers also contributes to base flow in rivers, wetlands, and oceans.

Groundwater is a crucial component of the hydrological cycle as it effectively filters rainwater, eliminating particles, bugs, and chemicals. Consequently, in numerous parts of the world, groundwater can be safely consumed and used for household purposes. Often referred to as the "hidden sea," groundwater's vast quantity and invisibility make it challenging to observe pollution pathways and processes (Chapelle, 1997; Schmoll et.al, 2006).

The replenishment of groundwater happens at a slow pace and varies in different areas, leading to significant concerns regarding its quality when overused (Schmoll et.al, 2006). Once an aquifer is extensively contaminated, it can be challenging, expensive, or even technically impossible to reverse or rectify the situation. Therefore, it is crucial to implement preventive measures promptly (Scheumann, 2008). The general lack of awareness among people about the transportation and flow of pollutants into groundwater, due to its natural occurrence beneath the Earth's surface, results in severe health issues for those who rely on groundwater as their source of drinking water. The global population heavily relies on groundwater for drinking purposes, and this dependence is continuously increasing.

The Use of Groundwater and Its Deductions

Groundwater is regarded as a common pool resource with significant value and vulnerability, according to Myint

(1999). The difficulty in managing groundwater arises from the intricate flow patterns, limited knowledge about its quality, quantity, and contamination levels. Individual users tend to undervalue this resource due to easy exploitation through wells and pumps without having to pay for the water extracted from underground reserves on their property. Moreover, the lack of understanding about groundwater aquifers exposes this resource to substantial risks of vulnerability and pollution originating from various contaminants.

Approximately 20% of the world's water usage comes from groundwater, which is relied upon by over 60% of people worldwide for drinking and domestic water needs (Upadhyay, 2008). The agriculture sector, responsible for over 80% of total water consumption, is increasingly dependent on groundwater resources. Groundwater serves multiple purposes including drinking and household use, irrigation, industrial activities, preserving delicate ecosystems such as wetlands, various domestic uses, and recreational activities. The utilization of groundwater in irrigation is rapidly rising to improve agricultural output and meet the increasing global demand for food.

Groundwater is a convenient and cost-effective source of fresh water for many people. Simple drilling techniques make it easier and cheaper to extract water from groundwater reservoirs compared to using surface water. This is particularly advantageous for individuals living in rural areas who depend on groundwater for drinking, irrigation, and household activities. The reliance on groundwater is widespread in South-Asian countries, especially in rural towns. In fact, around 1.5 billion people rely on groundwater for their drinking water needs.

According to Durant et. al. („w.y.“), approximately 1.2 billion individuals worldwide lack access to safe and clean water, resulting in roughly 5 million deaths annually due to waterborne illnesses. The need for water is rising at

a rate three times faster than population growth. Groundwater can be polluted by dangerous pathogens such as bacteria and viruses, which may originate from infected systems, landfills, and different sources of pollutants like pesticides, chemicals, fertilizers, industrial wastewaters, road salts, gasoline, mining sites, motor oil, and hazardous waste sites.

To prevent health risks and maintain the suitability of groundwater for human consumption, it is crucial to protect it from contamination. One method smaller communities can use is creating a contaminant source inventory (CSI). This involves using geographic information systems (GIS) and global positioning systems (GPS) tools to gather accurate data and identify potential sources of contamination within specified water protection areas (www.groundwater.org).
In addition, effective implementation of groundwater policies and institutions, along with proper groundwater management practices, are vital. It's also important to ensure that when extracting groundwater, the natural environment remains undisturbed by maintaining balanced wetlands and groundwater levels.

The quality and quantity of water in wells, watercourses, lakes, rivers, springs, etc. must be maintained together. Municipal boundaries do not impact the flow of groundwater, so it is important for the state to regulate or limit groundwater usage through effective groundwater acts (Anonymous, 2007).

Governance challenges regarding groundwater resources

Water administration involves the political, economic, and social processes and institutions that govern decision-making about the best use, development, and management of water resources (www.undp.org).

Proper management infrastructure is crucial for addressing present and future water problems. Unfortunately, governments, the public, donors, and development agencies have frequently overlooked water management challenges because they consider them to be difficult (Bucknall et. Al. 2006). The way water is managed in a country or local area depends on its administrative situation. Dealing

with groundwater's intricate features presents significant difficulties for any organization or public service involved in water management.

It is necessary to systematically cover the issues of institutional aims, inducements and motive, accomplishments, tools and partnerships, staff public presentation direction, corruptness and political intervention, fiscal liberty, answerability, and benchmarking in order to complement the focus on investments. Instead of waiting for improvement in the administration environment, the water directors have the potential to make significant progress in groundwater administration through local and small-scale enterprises. By addressing water administration at any scale, it can address the aspirations and challenges of the emerging world and allow water resources and related services to meet the challenges of the next century (Bucknall et. al).

2006). According to Kulkarni („w.y.“), groundwater administration encompasses elements such as recharge augmentation, energy links, micro irrigation efficiency measures, integration of rainwater harvesting-surface-groundwater, and responses to groundwater quality impairment. Due to its distinct characteristics, groundwater administration presents greater challenges compared to surface water administration. These challenges vary depending on the level of development in different areas, differences in land-topography, and the water-table depth beneath the Earth's surface. The state's existing administration structures, such as property right stabilization, current policies, and regulations, could also contribute to strengthening groundwater administration.

Case study- groundwater administration in Nepal

This section of the paper focuses on the evaluation of groundwater resources in Nepal and the management issues associated with it.

The text presents a case study from the South-Asian region that examines the management, effective allocation, and sustainable development of groundwater. The study explores various topics such as construction, establishment, economics, policies, and key elements of groundwater administration.

The focus of this case study is Nepal, a

landlocked country in South-Asia with abundant water resources. Situated between India (in the South, East, and West) and China (Tibet) in the North, Nepal spans an area of 147,181 square kilometers (56,827 square miles) and has a population of approximately 30 million people (Wikipedia.org).

Nepal's topography is diverse, ranging from over 8000 meters in the North to 70 meters above sea level in the South. The country can be categorized into three regions: the Himalayan region (4,877 to 8,848 meters), the Hilly region (600 to 4,877 meters), and the Terai region (70 to 300 meters). In the North lies the Himalayan region which houses eight of the world's ten highest mountains including Mount Everest. These snow-covered mountains serve as origins for numerous fast-flowing rivers that move towards the southern plains.

Nepal has a variety of water sources including rainfall, snow covered mountains, glaciers, rivers, springs, and groundwater. It also encompasses a significant part of the Ganges river basin. The ecological belts in Nepal extend from east to west but are vertically intersected by a swift flowing river system that runs north to south (Wikipedia.org). Furthermore, Nepal boasts more than 6000 rivers and 600 lakes with an area larger than 1 hectare.

Across the world, annual rainfall varies greatly, ranging from 500 mm/year in certain western countries to over 4,000 mm/year in the southern slopes of the Himalayas. This significant rainfall occurs mainly during the monsoon season from June to September (Tuinhof; A; Nanni, 2004). However, despite Nepal's abundance of freshwater resources, a majority of its population lacks access to safe drinking water due to ineffective management and governance systems. Currently, Nepal has a groundwater potential of approximately

2,000 billion with a per capita availability of 11,000m? for today's population (Myint, 1999). The availability of water differs across different regions within Nepal due to seasonal variations. Most rivers rely heavily on monsoon rains and experience substantial decreases in water levels during dry seasons. In hilly and mountainous areas, there is limited information regarding both the quantity and quality of groundwater resources.

The Terai region in Nepal has a plentiful supply of groundwater resources, estimated at least 1,713 MCM (Kansakar, 2001, Upadhyay, 2008). These resources could be utilized to meet the water needs of local people at a low cost. Groundwater has the potential to provide irrigation all year round for about 75% of cultivated land in the Terai. However, the availability of water varies in different areas and seasons which leads to water scarcity for many people. In Nepal, groundwater is mainly found in unconsolidated sedimentary deposits in tectonic valleys such as Kathmandu and Dang, as well as in river basins (Tars) and fractured rocks in the Hills and Mountains.

Groundwater in Nepal is stored temporarily in hilly areas and then released as springs and hot water springs. In mountain valleys, groundwater is stored for longer periods and used for various purposes. Around 50% of people in the Terai region depend on groundwater for their domestic water supply, while those living in hills and mountains also rely on natural spring sources. Groundwater has multiple uses in Nepal, including drinking, domestic, industrial, and irrigation purposes.

There are currently several types of wells being used for drinking water supply: over 800,000 shallow drinking water wells (DWSS), 70,000 government-assisted shallow irrigation tubing wells (STWs), 30,000 STWs in the private

sector, about 20,000 Treadle/Rower pumps, and approximately 1,000 deep tube wells (DTWs). These wells serve both irrigation needs and drinking water supply.

The agricultural sector is the largest consumer of water in Nepal with irrigation accounting for 75% of total usage. Tube-well systems utilizing groundwater resources support more than 20% of irrigated land throughout Nepal and over 30% within the Terai region (CBS 2001 and DoI 2008).

Groundwater is a significant source of water for animal farming and poultry in hilly and Terai regions, as well as for most industries in Terai (Upadhyay, 2008). Individual farmers owning shallow tube wells (STWs) have relied on groundwater for irrigation in the region. However, most farmers have limited and uneven land ownership, which hampers the effective use of groundwater for irrigation using STWs. The Nepali tradition of collective irrigation development and private groundwater irrigation development through group-owned and managed approaches offers great potential for expanding both shallow and deep tube wells (Myint, 1999). The development of an equitable groundwater irrigation system holds great promise for the rural population to benefit greatly.

Nepal, along with Bangladesh, India, and Pakistan, is a member of the Indo-Gangetic basin. There have been only a few studies on the potential groundwater resource and its development in Nepal. Because there is poor understanding of the characteristics, quality, and quantity of groundwater, users, technicians, and policy makers are unable to effectively address issues related to groundwater management strategies, policy formulation, and implementation. The main institutions involved in groundwater development and management for irrigation in Nepal are the Department of Irrigation (DOI) and Agricultural Development of Nepal (ADB/N), along with numerous NGOs, private companies, workshop owners, individual farmers, and

equipment providers.

Although there are numerous authorities establishments dealing with groundwater, none of them have authorization to cover issues such as resource inventory, planning, and allocation (Tuinhof; A; Nanni, 2004). Groundwater resource is typically extracted individually without any regulatory body overseeing its usage. The groundwater development board, which was formed to regulate groundwater usage, does not have a distinct mandate. In South Asia, including Nepal, government policies encourage groundwater development without considering the potential long-term effects of overuse. Pump irrigation and energy sources receive substantial subsidies, and various expansion programs are launched to increase the number of tube wells without proper resource planning and consideration. Additionally, organizations focus more on promoting resource development rather than management (Bhandari and Shivakoti, 2005).

On receiving subsidies, the installation of tubing wells was reduced as resource-poor farmers were unable to fully utilize the capacity of the tubing well. To address this issue, Bhandari and Shivakoti (2005) suggest the use of "groundwater markets" where tube well owners can sell water to neighboring farmers with small farms. Activists argue that groundwater in Terai is constantly replenished by rivers and rainfall. However, it is important to recognize that excessive use of groundwater can lead to severe water scarcity, as observed in many parts of South Asia. Overexploitation of groundwater has significant and irreversible consequences, including increased pumping costs, decreased agricultural output due to declining water tables, land subsidence, waterlogging, saltwater intrusion in coastal areas, pollution from agricultural, industrial, and human activities, and degradation of land quality (Foster et al.).

, 2000 ; Bhandari and Shivakoti, 2005). Groundwater resource development is a flexible, dependable, cost-effective, fair, productive, and important tool for poverty relief. However, it also

has negative aspects such as depleting water quality and quantity due to overuse and unrestricted usage. Groundwater overuse is primarily caused by energy and capital subsidies, open access without licensing, and lack of regulatory mechanisms. The positive and negative aspects of groundwater development and management are the two areas of debate (Bhandari and Shivakoti, 2005).

The potential development of groundwater in many areas can offer opportunities for the less fortunate, however, its depletion, contamination, and excessive use can serve as a serious warning to all living beings. Therefore, it is crucial to ensure the sustainable utilization of groundwater in a manner that meets the needs of all individuals, including impoverished farmers, without posing any threats to the environment or people. In order to achieve this, it is imperative to implement effective institutions and policies that guarantee the equitable utilization of groundwater, while also allowing for periodic recharge in a sustainable manner. Policy instruments are categorized as regulatory, economic, and voluntary/advisory.

These are different types of instruments for policy options, without relying solely on one type (Stone, 2005; Theesfeld, 2008):

1. Regulatory policy instruments, such as tubing good listing, ordinances, and user right allotment, are necessary when managing a large number of small groundwater users since top-down management becomes difficult and costly.
2. Economic policy instruments utilize financial incentives like taxation, subsidies, cost of groundwater, and pollution allowance.
3. Voluntary/advisory policy instruments encourage voluntary actions or behavioral changes without requiring any financial incentives. Corporate action, a specific hybrid form of organization structures, is particularly interesting in managing a common-pool resource like groundwater

(Ostrom 1990; Theesfeld, 2008). Voluntary/advisory policy instruments typically support corporate action by providing systematic information, practical experience, and convincing information to participants.

According to Theesfeld (2008), the following policy instruments are relevant and significant for groundwater management. Continuous monitoring of groundwater users is expensive due to the characteristics of the groundwater resource system and large number of water users.

Therefore, voluntary compliance is a significant issue, particularly when water users disregard or ignore imposed limitations (Pistor, 2002). Using groundwater management in California as an example, the adherence rate to regulations was found to be high due to a) water users themselves developing the groundwater management agenda and rules, and b) effective monitoring of management programs making each user's actions transparent to fellow users in the entire user group (Blomquist, 1992, 302). Traditional local action implementation, along with modern scientific management systems and techniques, often play an important role in groundwater administration. For instance, in Eritrea, the traditional system of sharing and protecting water resources is highly beneficial for locals in conserving water during drought seasons. Clear, logical, and robust institutional arrangements that align with the characteristics of existing aquifer systems are crucial for the successful implementation of decentralized water resource management.

Ill defined boundaries can hinder corporate decision making by including non-stakeholders or excluding interested parties in resource systems (Ostrom, 1990; Theesfeld, 2008). Armed conflicts related to aquifer management must be resolved through dialogue. When cultural groups are involved in aquifer management, effective negotiations become a challenge. The implementation of newly introduced or restructured legislation is difficult due to social pressures and political influences on water users. In developing countries, this negatively impacts groundwater resource management

when control is in the hands of rent-seeking stakeholders. Well-organized special interests in these cases foster self-serving policies in the absence of transparent government and information systems that could allow other stakeholders to exert their influence (Burke et al.

The available scientific data and information on groundwater resources and human impact on it are uncertain, unreliable, or inaccessible. The understanding of the groundwater system is limited and complicated. Consequently, actions to safeguard this aquifer from pollution caused by urbanization, industrialization, and excavation have been neglected by local water users (Burke et al., 1999, 52).

The economic sciences and impact of groundwater irrigation on the productivity and income level of farmers were examined in a study based on statistics from 324 families (Bhandari and Pandey, 2006). It was found that the choice to have shallow tubing wells (STWs) for groundwater irrigation was mainly influenced by factors such as farm size, land ownership, access to credit, and electricity. The groundwater market was discovered to be beneficial for poor farmers, although it was small and monopolistic. To ensure the availability of groundwater to all, including the poor, there is a need for reforms in existing policies through investments in rural electrification, credit schemes, and appropriate groundwater extraction technologies.

According to numerous studies and findings, equal irrigation plays a crucial role in enhancing agricultural growth. In Nepal, surface irrigation accounts for approximately 40% of cultivated land, while the remaining agricultural land relies on rainfall. Groundwater irrigation offers a viable alternative to surface irrigation due to its low investment requirements and better control over groundwater usage. Among various methods of groundwater extraction, such as deep tube wells (DTWs), artesian wells, shallow tube wells

(STWs), and dug wells, STWs are the most efficient tools in areas with a shallow water table. Consequently, the government is supporting the development of STWs in the Terai region of Nepal, which has significant potential for groundwater development in irrigation and other purposes. However, limited studies have been conducted to understand the economics of groundwater usage and identify constraints that hinder its expansion in Nepal (Bhandari and Pandey, 2006).

When farmers are unable to build their own water storage tanks (STW) due to limited resources or other commitments, they have the option to purchase water from neighboring farmers who already have it. This allows a farmer to become the owner of a STW. However, the owner of the STW will only sell water when their personal water needs are fully satisfied. During times of drought, the owners will prioritize watering their crops before selling any leftover water. This creates a "residual market" for water, where the owners benefit greatly while the buyers are left uncertain and reliant on an unreliable water supply.

However, both owners and groundwater buyers have been found to benefit from the use of STWs for irrigation to improve crop strength and overall agricultural production output, as shown in a case study. Despite having significant potential to use groundwater irrigation to increase agricultural production, improve income levels, and reduce rural poverty, Nepal has faced issues with inadequate irrigation facilities and heavy reliance on rainfall, resulting in low agricultural productivity (Kayastha, 2001). This trend is also seen in other South Asian countries like Bangladesh and Pakistan. Despite the high potential and government emphasis on groundwater development and its use for irrigation, only 19% of

the irrigated area is accounted for by groundwater irrigation (Bhandari, 1999 and Bhandari and Pandey 2006).

There is much more to be done in order to effectively utilize the abundant groundwater resources for improving the irrigation system in Nepal. According to a survey conducted by Bhandari and Pandey in 2006, the STW irrigation system has shown significant positive effects on input productivity, overall output, and income levels for farmers. Additionally, the emerging water markets in Nepal could also play an important role in benefiting small-holder farmers who have limited farm sizes and cannot afford to operate pumps cost-effectively. Furthermore, groundwater has been a vital source of water for various human needs, whether directly or indirectly.

In rural countries of South-Asia, groundwater is relied upon for drinking, household uses, and irrigation. However, it is difficult to assess the quality and quantity of groundwater due to its unique characteristics. Unlike surface water, which can be easily observed, groundwater flows underground and cannot be directly monitored. As a result, people are unaware of the contamination and pollution that can enter the groundwater reserves. This lack of awareness and knowledge about groundwater features has made the management of groundwater resources complex.

The lack of effective groundwater management is leading to inadequate construction in several countries, such as Nepal and other South-Asian nations. Even in regions experiencing water scarcity, there is a lack of control over groundwater development. With many areas already facing water scarcity due to declining groundwater levels and pollution, addressing the issues surrounding groundwater usage and administration is crucial. However, the potential of groundwater resources in certain locations remains untapped due to a lack of appropriate technologies, limited resources, and

poor administrative structures.

To illustrate, the Terai (field) belt of Nepal has a significant groundwater reserve that has great potential for irrigating agricultural land and increasing its productivity. This could help improve the living standards of rural people and reduce poverty by increasing their income. Several studies have suggested that water privatization could solve the problem of water scarcity and prevent overuse of groundwater resources. The study conducted by Bhandari and Pandey in 2006 also highlighted that privately owned small-scale tube wells (STWs) and water markets could address the issue of limited availability of groundwater for small-holder farmers.

The depletion of groundwater tables in various parts of South-Asia highlights the need to avoid excessive groundwater extraction that can further lower the water table. In order to meet the demands of all people and sustain the groundwater table, it is crucial to efficiently utilize groundwater and actively implement effective governance policies. This requires a deeper understanding of local groundwater characteristics and the implementation of strong and efficient management policies.

Bibliography

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