IWG-Env International Work Session on Water Statistics Vienna

IWG-Env International Work Session on Water Statistics Vienna, June 20 -22, 2005 Water Statistics in the Mekong River Basin Ulf Hedlund, MRC Secretariat IWG-Env International Work Session on Water Statistics, Vienna, June 2022, 2005

Presentation outline l About the Mekong River and the MRC l Water statistics at MRC l Sustainability issues l Conclusions IWG-Env International Work Session on Water Statistics, Vienna, June 20 -22, 2005 Ulf Hedlund, MRC Secretariat 2

The Mekong River Basin Six Riparian Nations in South East Asia IWG-Env International Work Session on Water Statistics, Vienna, June 20 -22, 2005 Ulf Hedlund, MRC Secretariat 3

The Mekong River from source to delta Average flow contribution Upper Mekong (18%) l China – 16% l Myanmar – 2% Lower Mekong (82%) l Cambodia – 18% l Lao PDR– 35% l Thailand – 18% l Viet Nam – 11% IWG-Env International Work Session on Water Statistics, Vienna, June 20 -22, 2005 Ulf Hedlund, MRC Secretariat 4

The Lower Mekong Basin l l l IWG-Env International Work Session on Water Statistics, Vienna, June 20 -22, 2005 Four riparian countries Population of 60 million, with rapid increase to 100 million in 2025 Cambodia, Lao PDR, and Viet Nam are among the poorest countries in Asia and the World Water is an essential resource for livelihoods: fisheries, agriculture, energy… One of the most productive and diverse ecosystems in the world Ulf Hedlund, MRC Secretariat 5

The 1995 Agreement Cooperation in all fields of sustainable development, utilisation, management and conservation of the water and related resources of the Lower Mekong Basin IWG-Env International Work Session on Water Statistics, Vienna, June 20 -22, 2005 Ulf Hedlund, MRC Secretariat 6

MRC Organizational Structure Government of Cambodia Government of Lao PDR Government of Thailand Government of Vietnam COUNCIL (Members at Ministerial and Cabinet Level) DONOR CONSULTATIVE GROUP (Donor countries and cooperating institutions) NATIONAL MEKONG COMMITTEES (NMC) (Member Agencies) JOINT COMMITTEE (Members at level of Head of Department or higher) Mekong River Commission Secretariat Operational arm providing Technical and Administrative Support IWG-Env International Work Session on Water Statistics, Vienna, June 20 -22, 2005 Ulf Hedlund, MRC Secretariat 7

To make optimal use of water in the various sectors Irrigated Agriculture Fisheries Hydropower Navigation Watershed Management Flood Management Water Supply and Sanitation Tourism IWG-Env International Work Session on Water Statistics, Vienna, June 20 -22, 2005 Ulf Hedlund, MRC Secretariat 8

MRC is data hungry! Some examples of current data holdings… • Administration • Climate • Culture • Fisheries • Forestry • Inundation (flooding) • Irrigation • Population & Human settlements • Socio-economics IWG-Env International Work Session on Water Statistics, Vienna, June 20 -22, 2005 • Soils • Topography • Transportation • Water • Hydro-meteo time series • Water Quality • Water use Ulf Hedlund, MRC Secretariat 10

Historical HM time series data Data type Water level & discharge Rainfall Meteorology No. of stations 242 503 44 Sediment 60 > 16, 000 station yrs More WL than Discharge l Quality control ongoing l Used for many purposes l Published yearly l IWG-Env International Work Session on Water Statistics, Vienna, June 20 -22, 2005 Ulf Hedlund, MRC Secretariat 11

Operational HM time series data Forecasting time-series data Item Flood season Dry season Water level Data 44 19 Rainfall Data 44 19 Delivery interval Daily Weekly Near real-time data (telemetric) Item AHNIP M-HYCOS Water Level 18 < 50 Rainfall Data 2 < 50 Delivery interval Daily Hourly? 2 stations from China IWG-Env International Work Session on Water Statistics, Vienna, June 20 -22, 2005 Ulf Hedlund, MRC Secretariat 12

Use of operational HM data Flood forecasting l Flash flood forecasting l Navigation l More about this on Wednesday! IWG-Env International Work Session on Water Statistics, Vienna, June 20 -22, 2005 Ulf Hedlund, MRC Secretariat 13

Water Quality Statistics l l l 100 sites Monthly samples Delivered yearly/quarterly 20 parameters Analysis by designated labs QA procedures in place – Round robin analysis – Standard samples l IWG-Env International Work Session on Water Statistics, Vienna, June 20 -22, 2005 Used to examine spatial patterns and trends in WQ Ulf Hedlund, MRC Secretariat 14

Water Use Data l l l ~ 80% of water abstracted is used in agriculture Measurement of direct water use quite limited in LMB Estimations calculated (estimated) on secondary data Secondary data not always available, complete or accurate Current water use estimations could usefully be improved IWG-Env International Work Session on Water Statistics, Vienna, June 20 -22, 2005 Ulf Hedlund, MRC Secretariat 15

Sustainability issues l Technical l Quantity, and institutional mechanisms reliability and timeliness l Continuity: management of data collection networks l Availability of resources and capacity l These issues applies to all MRC data collection (and other organizations…? ) IWG-Env International Work Session on Water Statistics, Vienna, June 20 -22, 2005 Ulf Hedlund, MRC Secretariat 16

Institutional and technical mechanisms l Improving conditions for data exchange and sharing – Regional forum for D&I exchange and – – l sharing issues (TACT) Build trust and change attitudes National data custodianship Develop procedures, guidelines etc Support to national agencies The MRC Information System – – Integrated databases Models Institutional and technical mechanisms Capacity enhancements IWG-Env International Work Session on Water Statistics, Vienna, June 20 -22, 2005 Ulf Hedlund, MRC Secretariat 17

Quantity, reliability, timeliness l Improvement of HM network density – Climate data especially l Quality Assessment and Assurance – Database review – SOPs, QA procedures, … l Timeliness – Delays in validation and delivery to MRC – Data Delivery Schedule & support to countries – Real-time telemetry networks IWG-Env International Work Session on Water Statistics, Vienna, June 20 -22, 2005 Ulf Hedlund, MRC Secretariat 18

Continuity: management of networks l O&M closely related to sustainability of financial and human resources l O&M cost can be quite substantial – Some national budgets very limited – Limited lasting effect of projects l Situation not unique to LMB… l Gradual improvements expected l Support to countries required in foreseeable future IWG-Env International Work Session on Water Statistics, Vienna, June 20 -22, 2005 Ulf Hedlund, MRC Secretariat 19

Limitations in resources and capacity l Access to skilled staff and sufficient funds two critical elements – Present limitations in both is a challenge l Regional HM capacity/skills are in shortage – Big differences between MRC member countries l Clear need to build regional capacity – Long-term commitment required l In recognition of current limitations… – MRC seeks to establish new DSIM Programme – Donor funding sought – 5 year implementation phase IWG-Env International Work Session on Water Statistics, Vienna, June 20 -22, 2005 Ulf Hedlund, MRC Secretariat 20

Access to MRC data Internal – LAN/GIS software – Web External Portal l Interactive maps – Requests to MRCS l Metadata catalog – Data publications (Atlas CDs, Yearbooks…) – Online (www. mrcmekong. org) l l Flood forecasting/river monitoring Web Portal IWG-Env International Work Session on Water Statistics, Vienna, June 20 -22, 2005 Ulf Hedlund, MRC Secretariat 21

Conclusions l l l MRC holds substantial amounts of data Improvements needed to provide data required in the future MRC data collection depends on regional and national capacity and resources Lack of resources a limiting factor Sustainability in management of data collection networks a tough challenge Implementation of Decision Support and Information Management Programme will be a good step forward IWG-Env International Work Session on Water Statistics, Vienna, June 20 -22, 2005 Ulf Hedlund, MRC Secretariat 22

IWG-Env International Work Session on Water Statistics, Vienna, June 20 -22, 2005 Ulf Hedlund, MRC Secretariat 23