This document discusses water and environment issues in China and proposes a new strategic approach. Nearly half of China's population lives in water-scarce areas in the north. China has only 6% of the world's water resources but feeds 21% of the global population. Previously, increasing water use efficiency was seen as "saving" water to expand use, but this degraded ecosystems over time. The new approach targets environmental flows and pollution levels based on river basin carrying capacity. It promotes integrated water resource management and increasing water productivity over consumption. Case studies show projects reducing water use while increasing incomes through improved irrigation and other measures. Remote sensing now monitors actual evapotranspiration against targets. The approach aims to ensure green growth and sustainability in water

1. Water and Environment Issues and
Strategic Approach on Integrated
Water and Environment
Management
LIPING JIANG
WORLD BANK OFFICE BEIJING CHINA
September 16, 2013

2. Nearly half of China's population lives in water-shortage areas in the
north, where most of the country’s grain is produced, and where the
capital and other big cities are located.

4. Per Capita Water Resources
World: 10,700 m3/person
China: 2,700 m3/person; and Beijing: 248 m3/person;
International Warning Line: < 1,000 m3/person
Precipitation for the other
eight months
30%
70%
Precipitation in June, July,
August and September

5. China feeds its people about 21% of the world’s total
population depending on 6% of water resources and
9% of total arable land in the world !

8. To address water scarcity and pollution issues
Traditional Approach
1.For irrigated agricultural water use:
To increase irrigation water use efficiency to “save” water and
then to consume “saved” water to expand irrigated area or to
increase irrigation reliability for the same irrigated areas!
2. For industrial and domestic water uses:
To increase water use efficiency to “save” water , and then to
use “saved” water to expand production scales or to water
flowers or to create water surfaces for recreation!
3. For water pollution discharge control:
The pollution discharge permit is disconnected with the
environment carrying capacity, which requires the minimum
environment flows to meet requirement of water function
zones!

9. Increased water use efficiencies by sprinklers

10. Increased water use efficiencies by canal linings
Part A / 6-3

11. Created water surface for recreation !
Part A / 6-3

12. Outcomes of Traditional Approach
The statistics show that the over-exploitation of groundwater
has reached up to 22 billion cubic meters, and over-use of
surface water has made rivers and lakes drying up. As a result,
the ecosystem in these areas, particularly in northern part of
China, has seriously degraded, although the approach
contributed to rapid economic development;
The increased water use efficiencies without restrictive
conditions have substantially reduced return flows to the rivers,
and lowered the groundwater table, which in turn decreased
environment carrying capacity of the rivers and lakes, and
finally damaged ecosystems;
This happens particularly in the river basins around the Bohai
Sea. The reduced fresh flows in local river systems greatly
reduced fresh outflows to the Bohai Sea, which has been
damaging its offshore ecosystems together with the increasing
large amount of pollution discharges to the Sea.

13. Lakes are drying up !

14. A mother on her way to fetch water !

15. Trees are dying !

16. Pollution discharges directly to the rivers!

17. Pollution discharges directly to the sea !

18. To address water scarcity and pollution issues
New Approach
Targets-based Integrated Water and Environment
Management (target ET and target EC)
Guiding Principles:
The Bank would support Integrated Water
Resources
Management (IWRM) at the river basin level, and
further down to the administrative and water-user
levels to address various water issues, particularly
to
facilitate a shift from current resources-intensive
development patterns to more resources-efficient

19. Two Major Types of Water Scarcity in China
 Economic water scarcity area - where there are
relatively abundant water resources and water
scarcity occurs when there is a lack of
investment in water infrastructure or a lack of
human, institutional or financial capacity to
satisfy demand; and
 Physical water scarcity area - where surface
and groundwater resources have already been
overused and water scarcity occurs when there
are insufficient water resources available to
meet all water demands.

20. Strategies for Sustainability
 Strategy for economic water scarcity - to
increase irrigation efficiency and expand
irrigated areas for higher agricultural
production, with strengthened agricultural
measures;
 Strategy for physical water scarcity - to increase
water productivity for higher agricultural value
per unit of evapotranspiration (ET) with
integrated measures, meanwhile reducing actual
ET to be less than target ET and actual pollution
discharges to be lower than target EC;
 Difference of strategies - the former is to
consume more water for higher yield; the latter
is to consume less water for higher productivity.

21. Keys of the Strategy in Physical Scarcity Areas
 The only water truly lost in a hydrologic system is
through Evapotranspiration or ET, which is water
evaporated from water surface or transpired from
plant leaves into the atmosphere;
 Increase of irrigation efficiency in order to grow
more crops over a wider irrigated area or to increase
cropping intensity in the same irrigation area would
raise the level of ET !
 Increase of water use efficiency should be
encouraged under the target ET to ensure that water
is released to protect ecosystems;
 Given the fixed average amount of water available
in the river basin, the higher the target ET, the
lower the target EC. So the ET and EC should be
determined together .

22. ET is the Only Water Truly Lost in a Hydrologic System !

23. How can we measure and monitor ET ?
 By the Latest Remote Sensing (RS) Technology,
which is being developed very fast in China !
 Remote sensing by satellites can now provide ET
readings for pixels of 10 by 10 meters with a good
accuracy. This tells farmers how much water they
can consume without adversely affecting the
ecosystems around them.

24. The Latest RS-based ET Measuring Technology

25. Water Productivity
China’s average water productivity in
irrigated areas range from 0.6 to 1.0 kg per
cubic meter of consumptive use of water,
compared to 1.5 to 2.0 kg in some other
countries. Low water productivity has
resulted in waste of water in irrigated
areas.

26. There has been potential to increase water
productivity in the Hai Basin

27. Water Productivity is expected to increase (Hai Basin Data)
105 105 mm

28. How to increase water productivity?
Integration of Measures to Increase Water Productivity
AGRONOMIC MEASURES
deep ploughing
straw and plastic mulching
drought resistant crops and technology
seeds improvements for higher yield or value
Soil fertility improvements
High value cropping pattern adjustment
ENGINEERING MEASURES
Increase of upstream storage capacity
Low-pressure distribution pipes
drip and micro-sprinkler application technology
land levelling
MANAGEMENT MEASURES
Improving irrigation by irrigation scheduling
refining soil moisture control

29. Case study on Water Conservation Project
(2000-2006) with the new approach
 The farmers' per capita income increased by
193 percent, while consumptive use of water or
ET over the irrigated areas fell by 27 percent;
and
 Water productivity was increased from 0.85
kg/m3 to 1.20 kg/m3 for wheat and from 1.30
kg/m3 to 2.2 kg/m3 for maize with integration
of engineering, agronomic and irrigation
management measures.

30. Case study on Turpan Water Conservation
Project (2000-2006) with the new approach
 The farmers' per capita income increased
by 130 percent, while consumptive use of
water or ET over the irrigated areas fell by
10 percent; and
 Water productivity was increased
substantially.

31. Water Consumption Balance at Turpan Basin
1. Based on the water balance, the agricultural ET will have to be reduced by
255.66 million m3 by 2025 to reach the sustainable level of water use, which
means that the irrigated areas will need to be reduced by 47,127 ha by 2025.
2. However, the area to be reduced could be less if water productivity is
increased.

32. Women Participation in the Project

33. Farmers Learn How to Operate ET Management !

34. ET Reduction in TongZhou District of Beijing, China
Before Project
After Project

35. Zhang-Jia-Wan Township Tongzhou District of Being
Before Project
After Project

36. The way to increase farmer incomes ...

37. The rural poor has had an access to tap water !

38. Beauty of offshore to be returned!

39. Beauty of natural ecological environment
returned!
Tarim River, the largest inland river in China

40. Concluding Remarks
 Different strategies should be taken in different water
scarcity areas to ensure green growth and sustainability;
 In physical water scarcity and pollution areas, Target ET
and target EC should be jointly determined to ensure that
the actual ET is less than target ET and actual pollution
discharge is less than target EC;
 In physical water scarcity and pollution areas, the strategy
is to increase of water productivity or reduction of
consumptive use of water or ET, while increasing farmer
incomes;
 Remote Sensing technology can be used to monitor the
actual ET or water productivity and to identify areas for
improvements; and
 The case studies for the Bank projects in China showed
good outcomes with the proposed new approach in physical
water scarcity areas in China.

41. Thanks
Welcome Questions
12