Plan T8: Testing Water Tenure "The experience in Spain"

Plan T8

• Presentations:– The VGGT Voluntary Guidelines– Water Tenure: defining the concept– Water Tenure: testing the concept

• Questions:– Q and A: VGGT Voluntary Guidelines on the

Responsible tenure for Land, Forests and Fisheries– Exercise: Health check on water tenure– Discussion- Is Water Tenure a useful concept?

Testing Water Tenure: The experience in Spain

Dr Elena Lopez-Gunn

PRESENTATION PLAN

1. WHY 2. WHAT3. WHERE 4. WHAT5. … and SO WHAT?

WHY water tenure?• Era of increased scarcity (population growth, demand

from other sectors, climate change) (e.g. Presentation of Prof. Abu Zeid)

• Next frontier (cheapest?): Tools for improved management (e.g. World Bank recent report)

• Demands increased but supply is fixed… (even after desalination, recycling and technical efficiency…)- ….Scarcity 2.0

LOOKING FOR INNOVATIVE TOOLSWater Tenure as a tool for management (bottom up) and

for planning (top down)

WHAT is water tenure? • Water Tenure offers a diagnostic frame to

document “real” (de facto) water uses• “All inclusive” (gives non-judgamental space for

all uses)• Formal water rights, de minimis, customary and local uses,

informal, environmental and future generations• Benchmarking “good” water tenure on a series of

key criteria (security, sustainability and equity) • Allows to move up and down scales : Macro

level- strategic planning and vision all the way down to the micro level- individual farmer /irrigation community

WHAT makes it distinct?

• = ‘the relationship, whether formally or customarily defined between people, as individuals or groups, with respect to water resources’.

reality on the ground- bottom up approach mapping the existing relationships No a priori normative judgements.

HOW did we “test” water tenure• Proof of concept = real application • Three case studies: – South Africa– India– Spain

water tenure

water accounting

India so far…. Potential/anticipated benefits of a water tenure approach in India

• A (new) means of internalising or taking more explicit account of informal laws, informal regulatory instruments and procedures;

• A practical regulatory instrument to protect water rights on the ground, which could only improve equity of water allocation but also lead to increased willingness to invest in land

• Better alignment of land and water tenure, that could open up new opportunities (or perspectives) for tackling priority challenges of the water, WASH, agriculture, rural development sectors

• A practical methodology to track progress (or at least changes) in water tenure and its impact on water stress

• A way of identifying actual and potential conflicts – and an organizing principle for local (up to district level) government action or plan for future water stress situations (e.g., through a District Water Committee, including elected representatives, bureaucrats & engineers; or a local branch of higher-level regulatory institutions already in place), etc.

Spain so far…

Spain so far…

WATER ACCOUNTING ANALYSIS

• “Official “ water accounting+

• Water balances e.g. remote sensing

WATER TENURE ANALYSIS

• “Official” water rights registers

+ • Water use on the ground

e.g. via WUA inventories on use

2X2 ANALYSIS

Mixed Methodology: Quantitative: official data, remote

sensing,Qualitative: desk review, water registers, Interviews and workshops

WHEREDUERO: IRRIGATION MODERNISATION PROJECT

GUADIANA: INTENSIVE GROUNDWATER USE

Duero Tenure of uses

Guadiana tenure of uses

Duero Basin

• Focus: Look at an Irrigation Modernisation project which affected 95% of consumptive use from a water tenure perspective

• Main Lessons- water tenure as an inroad for :– improved /efficient management (2.5

Mm3/yr “left” in the river)– WUA reorganisation and infrastructure– Shed light very quickly on

discrepancies between use and water rights BUT non-judgamental

– .. Thus allow for a constructive dialogue among water users (e.g. nature reserve and farmers) and with the water authority (non-confrontational, contructive)

Table *.

Use Water rights (m3) Percentage Energy 204,123 0,51%

Environmental 50 0,00%

Industry 54,053 0,14% Irrigation 39,342,099 98,42% Livestock 204,810 0,51%

Public supply 296,580 0,42%

Upper Guadiana basin• Focus: a closed basin with

strong competition for intensively used groundwater

• Main Lessons- water tenure as an inroad for– Quickly diagnose where are

the “knots” in the system– Bottom up: need for

flexibility and control– Identify points of more

difficult agreement – Top down: misalignment

between uses and water rights

1956

2006

Table *. Imbalance in water supply/demand

Demands (Mm3)

Public supply Livestock Industry Environment Irrigation Overall demand

7.52 0.09 4.11 10.0 129.8 151.52

Supply [available renewable resources - according to RBMP] (Mm3) 91.20 Imbalance in water supply/demand (Mm3) 60.32

WATER RIGHTS VS WATER USE

WATER TENURE AND ALLOCATIVE EFFICIENCY: UNBUNDLING LAND FROM WATER (Part 1)

WATER PRODUCTIVITY (MORE EUROS WITH LESS M3)•vineyards (1.0-3.0 €/m3), •cereals (0.1-0.2 €/m3)•thermo-solar power (10.0-20.0 €/m3). •1.5-15.0 €/m3 for vegetables,

WATER TENURE AND ALLOCATIVE EFFICIENCY: UNBUNDLING LAND FROM WATER (Part II)

“More jobs and euro per illegal drop..”

A - C -B -

Figure. Water footprint (A) in millions cubic meter, gross revenue (B) in millions of € and employment (C) in number of jobs by category of crop for the legal and non-authorized groundwater use in the WMA (Dumont et al IN PRESS).

WATER TENURE AND WATER GOVERNANCE

• “Water tenure also has an important role to play in terms of the promotion of effective water governance particular in terms of conferring the security on

water users necessary for genuine participation in decision making processes as well as in terms of promoting accountability. At the same time, though, effective

governance is essential for secure and effective water tenure” (Hogson, p.4, 2013)

EFFECTIVE WATER TENURE

MECHANISMS

EFFECTIVE WATER

GOVERNANCE

effectiv

e

Benchmarking: Security of tenure

Sustainabililty (stewardship)

WATER RIGHTS INFRASTRUCTURE RESOURCE BASEHave an administrative concessionLegislationSave as far as possible within the water concession you haveRegularise water considerablyHave all water concessions in orderMake our exploitations legalTransparent administrationThat each farmers uses the water right allocated Legality of Water concessions

That the equipment has got waterEnough water supplyUse water correctlyAdequate Water distributionUse adequate irrigation methods Good irrigation installations and equipment

RainfallDepending on the terrainKeep the resource among all of usWith wet years consumptions is less important Correct use of resources

RESULTS

Benchmarking: Equity of tenure PRIORITY BETWEEN USES

SOCIAL NEEDS CONTROL ACCESS TO WATER RIGHTS

EFFICIENCY AND GOOD STEWARDSHIP

Proportional allocation according to first/priority needsPreference for public water supplyReasonable water allocations to keep the socio-economic balancePriorities should not be subjected to different powers/interestWater use must be correlated with the utility of the resource

Water as a social goodSocialWater has to meet priority needsWater and land have to be tied togetherEconomic, keep areas populatedRelationship well and farmer are linked, even if it is a community

Control on the water reservesWater meters for all water abstractionsControl via water meters

How is the water issued: you either have rights or you cannot access water any other wayClear and legal concessions

Adapt the farm for responsible useMake rational use at all timesKeep the water reserve to produce “products” Cultural, protect fauna and flora, tourismAdjustment of m3 per plot

RESULTS

Benchmarking: Sustainability for tenure AUTONOMY AND CARE FOR OTHERS

EFFICIENT AND CAREFUL USE (GOOD HUSBRANDY)

RESOURCE BASE

Look out so that others do not feel affected by our use (damaged parties)Reasonable useLegitimization and regularisationFarmers must be an agent to better his/her environment in the long termSocial awarenessDo everything possible so that no one is forbidden from its (his/her) use

Make all farmers aware on good managementEfficient water useWater meters to control usePrecise and effective regulationirrigate with moderation according to the crop needs Not consume more water than the water rights be have been assignedControl of plot consumptionTake into account your water concession

Consumption according to resourcesSow crops according to the allocated quotas The aquifer is very big, and it will not run out if it is used well and it rains now and againIncentivise innovative use to keep uses without impacting on water allocations and rentability/profitabilityUse according to different uses e.g. recycling of waterSave water when it rains

RESULTS

So what?- Conclusion

What does water tenure have to do with a key hole, a spotlight, a ladder

or a video?

THE KEYHOLEAn inroad into some of the thorniest, most difficult problems in water management and planning

A SPOT LIGHTA spotlight into these thorniest issues together with possible identification of potential options or solutions or root causes (diagnostic tool)

A LADDERA ladder because it can go all the way from the bottom at farmer level and all the way to the top, to water planners and strategists

From a still photo to a moving videoAn incorporation on the nature of water as a dynamic resource; where needs are changing and both fleibility and control are key

Thank You! Gracias! شكراContact: elopezgunn@gmail.com

From the ground up..defining “water tenure”

WATER TENURE WORKSHOPSPART 2:…NENA REGION!

WATER TENURE: UPSCALING• Could a water tenure approach address some of the

KEY CHALLENGES in the NENA region?• Examples:

– water priority allocation challenges e.g. under water scarcity? (e.g. growing conflicts between water users? – policy-dilemmas such as allocating water to rural communities for

poverty-alleviation versus high-value uses such as industry? – measuring, valuing and controlling water? – How to deal with climate variability and exposure to risk? – Would secure tenure help reduce vulnerability? – How does water tenure link to sustainable water use? – Can tenure help lead to a more efficient and equitable use of scarce

resources?)

MAPPING WATER TENURE + 2 Handouts + 1 Exercise

MAPPING of water tenure

A. FORMAL RIGHTSB. DE MINIMIS OR UN-REGULATED USESC. CUSTOMARY/LOCAL LAW RIGHTS D. IRRIGATION RIGHTSE. COMMUNITY DRINKING WATER SUPPLYF. NON-CONSUMPTIVE WATER USE FOR FISHING AND

OTHER LIVELIHOOD ACTIVITIES G. THE ENVIRONMENT/RIGHTS OF FUTURE GENERATIONSH. INFORMAL USES

WATER TENURE HEALTH CHECK: Please assess each type of tenure arrangement in terms of security, equity and sustainability Formal water rights Factors to be taken into account. Use Examples if needed SCORE Security

Score 0 1 2 3 4 5 (0 unsecure and 5 highly secure)

Equity

Score 0 1 2 3 4 5 (0 unequitable and 5 highly equitable)

Sustainability Score 0 1 2 3 4 5 (0 unsustainable and 5 highly sustainable)