Title

Australia: Managing salinity risks associated with importing irrigation water into Clare

Argentina: Rural planning and sustainable water resources use in Pillahuinco basin

Albania and Montenegro: Creating an Integrated Water Resources Plan for the Buna/Bojana Watershed
Country
Australia
Argentina
Albania Montenegro
Summary

In Australia, a new approach to water management was needed to allow imported water to be used for irrigation without increasing the salinity of the soils or groundwater. Action was taken to develop a framework to enable irrigators to manage the environmental risks associated with the use of River Murray water for irrigation. The key lesson is that a salt management strategy is relevant for land irrigation.

The Pillahuinco basin is located in one of the most productive regions of Argentina. The major problem in the basin is surface water erosion causing a loss of soil productivity in the upper catchment of the basin. Therefore, there was a need to design a planning program aimed to reduce soil loss by surface water erosion and thus increase soil productivity, strengthening the hydrological dynamics in the Pillahuinco basin.

The transboundary Buna/Bojana Watershed is shared by Albania and Montenegro, facing multiple pressures, including unsustainable agricultural methods, active tourism, altered hydrological regimes from hydropower generation and flood control measures. Albania and Montenegro share some social and economic similarities but differ in legal and institutional frameworks. Thus, both countries recognized the need to strengthen their cross-border cooperation through the development of an integrated water resource plan for the watershed.
Related IWRM Tools
  • Training Water Professionals (
    B4.02
    )
  • Geographic Information System (
    C2.01
    )
  • The Rights of Rivers (
    A2.04
    )
  • Multi-Stakeholder Partnerships (
    B3.05
    )
  • Information Gathering and Sharing Networks (
    B4.01
    )
  • Geographic Information System (
    C2.01
    )
  • Transboundary Organisations (
    B3.01
    )
  • Water Markets (
    C4.02
    )
  • Pollution Charges (
    C4.04
    )
Keywords
Food and Nutrition Murray-Darling
Water Pollution Climate Change Erosion
Buna (Bojana) River Basin Agriculture tourism Hydropower
Lessons Learned

The water licensing policies determine the locations at which salt will accumulate and the number of years that will pass before salt becomes the major issue.

A single source of regular, clear, consistent communication is essential to avoid confusion and to win support for any innovative strategy.

History shows that salt accumulation has caused the eventual failure of most irrigation schemes.

A salt management strategy is highly relevant wherever there are plans to irrigate land that has not previously been irrigated.

The sustainable use of water resources and rural planning in basin was an important experience for IWRM. It involved different stakeholders in basin, implementing sustainable farming practices that aim to address surface water erosion, and to recover productivity of soil.

The joint action of the project participants (researchers, producers, public and private institutions as well as other stakeholders) made it possible to collect field data on biological, productive, environmental and social features of the basin under study.

Transboundary IWRM requires political stability and institutional will from all relevant players to be successful.

External actors can play an integral role in building momentum towards the development of an integrated water resource plan, especially in a transboundary context.

The IMF, developed specifically for integrated management of Mediterranean ecosystems, was piloted for this watershed. It proved to be a useful and thorough framework, recommended to be utilized in other transboundary and coastal watersheds to support RBMP development.

Multi-stakeholder partnerships formed during the development of the Plan are key in strengthening local ownership, building trust, and promoting visibility of the partners in the area. These should be supported and continued during Plan implementation stages.
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