Your search found 25 records
1 Closas, Alvar. 2014. Norias, boreholes and the role of the state during the groundwater ‘silent revolution’ in La Mancha, Spain. Hydrogeology Journal, 22(5):1179-1192. [doi: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10040-014-1118-0]
Groundwater extraction ; Groundwater development ; Boreholes ; Farmers ; Environmental degradation ; Semiarid zones ; Irrigation ; Aquifers ; Wells ; Subsidies ; Wetlands ; Case studies / Spain / La Mancha / Las Tablas de Daimiel Wetland
(Location: IWMI HQ Call no: e-copy only Record No: H046369)
(3.53 MB)
The ‘silent revolution’ is a phenomenon describing the individualistic behaviour of farmers in the adoption of intensive groundwater abstraction technologies, which in some cases has led to groundwater over-abstraction and environmental degradation in semiarid areas such as La Mancha, Spain. However, a lacuna exists as to the extent to which state politics have affected the development of groundwater abstraction technologies in Spain. With new quantitative and qualitative data from the irrigation community of Manzanares and public irrigation and colonisation plans, this report studies the adoption of groundwater abstraction technology and investigates the historical role of the state in the development of modern groundwater-fed irrigation socio-ecologies in the semiarid area of La Mancha in Spain.
2 Molle, Francois; Closas, Alvar. 2015. State regulations in groundwater management: they bark but do they bite? Paper presented at the ICID 26th Euro-Mediterranean Regional Conference and Workshops on Innovate to Improve Irrigation Performances. Theme 3: What Governance for Groundwater and Surface Water Use in Agriculture?, Montpellier, France, 12-15 October 2015. 4p.
Groundwater management ; State intervention ; Regulations ; Water governance ; Water use ; Water policy ; Groundwater extraction ; Aquifers ; Wells ; Water users ; Water rights ; Licences
(Location: IWMI HQ Call no: e-copy only Record No: H047396)
(0.45 MB) (460 KB)
Because of the logics of both colonization or de-colonization, the need to counter the anarchy of groundwater use, or the dissemination of global 'best practices' of IWRM, states have often assumed full ownership or custody of groundwater. Regulating groundwater use includes giving drilling and abstraction authorizations/licenses, establishing an inventory of wells and reducing use in existing wells. Although laws and regulations look neat and straightforward on paper, registration, regularization, and metering have been bedeviled by a host of logistical nightmares, policy contradictions, legal challenges, and vested private interests. The overall outlook is bleak and questions the overstating of state power in reordering groundwater use. Co-management with users, while in itself not sufficient to ensure success, often arises as a possible way out of the failure of state control.
3 Closas, Alvar; Villholth, Karen G. 2016. Aquifer contracts: a means to solving groundwater over-exploitation in Morocco? Colombo, Sri Lanka: International Water Management Institute (IWMI). 20p. (Groundwater Solutions Initiative for Policy and Practice (GRIPP) Case Profile Series 01) [doi: https://doi.org/10.5337/2016.211]
Aquifers ; Groundwater management ; Groundwater depletion ; Water policy ; Legislation ; Regulations ; Farmers ; Cultivated land ; Irrigated farming ; Sustainability ; Subsidies ; Participation ; Wells / Morocco
(Location: IWMI HQ Call no: IWMI Record No: H047676)
(1015 KB)
4 Fragaszy, S.; Closas, Alvar. 2016. Cultivating the desert: irrigation expansion and groundwater abstraction in northern state, Sudan. Water Alternatives, 9(1):139-161.
Groundwater extraction ; Groundwater irrigation ; Water resources ; Water use ; Water policy ; Water allocation ; Cultivated land ; Deserts ; Irrigation ; Surface irrigation ; Agriculture ; Irrigated farming ; Land tenure ; Land ownership ; Socioeconomic environment ; Infrastructure ; Hydrogeology ; State intervention ; Wheats / Sudan / Dongola Region
(Location: IWMI HQ Call no: e-copy only Record No: H047657)
http://www.water-alternatives.org/index.php/alldoc/articles/vol9/v9issue1/308-a9-1-7/file
https://vlibrary.iwmi.org/pdf/H047657.pdf
https://vlibrary.iwmi.org/pdf/H047657.pdf
(1.03 MB)
This study examines the socioeconomic features that underpin the expansion of groundwater-dependent irrigation in Northern State, Sudan. Groundwater development in the region serves as an economic lifeline given the poor Nile-based irrigation infrastructure and future changes in Nile hydrology. Groundwater-dependent irrigation is found to be expanding in previously uncultivated regions increasingly distant from the Nile. The study finds these historically marginal lands are targeted for capital-intensive agricultural projects because landholding patterns in traditionally cultivated areas preclude new large developments and improved infrastructure has lowered farming costs in distant terraces. Private companies and large landholders have a history of successful agricultural ventures in Northern State and are reliant on easily accessible and reliable groundwater resources for these new farms.
5 Closas, Alvar; Rap. E. 2017. Solar-based groundwater pumping for irrigation: Sustainability, policies, and limitations. Energy Policy, 104:33-37. [doi: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.enpol.2017.01.035]
Solar energy ; Energy generation ; Groundwater irrigation ; Groundwater extraction ; Pumping ; Sustainability ; Irrigation systems ; Agriculture ; Food security ; Food production ; Farmers ; Living standards ; Subsidies ; Water resources ; Irrigated farming
(Location: IWMI HQ Call no: e-copy only Record No: H047986)
The increasing demand for solar-powered irrigation systems in agriculture has spurred a race for projects as it potentially offers a cost-effective and sustainable energy solution to off-grid farmers while helping food production and sustaining livelihoods. As a result, countries such as Morocco and Yemen have been promoting this technology for farmers and national plans with variable finance and subsidy schemes like in India have been put forward. By focusing on the application of solar photovoltaic (PV) pumping systems in groundwater-fed agriculture, this paper highlights the need to further study the impacts, opportunities and limitations of this technology within the Water-Energy-Food (WEF) nexus. It shows how most policies and projects promoting solar-based groundwater pumping for irrigation through subsidies and other incentives overlook the real financial and economic costs of this solution as well as the availability of water resources and the potential negative impacts on the environment caused by groundwater over-abstraction. There is a need to monitor groundwater abstraction, targeting subsidies and improving the knowledge and monitoring of resource use. Failing to address these issues could lead to further groundwater depletion, which could threaten the sustainability of this technology and dependent livelihoods in the future.
6 El-Agha, Doaa E.; Closas, Alvar; Molle, Francois. 2017. Below the radar: the boom of groundwater use in the central part of the Nile Delta in Egypt. Hydrogeology Journal, 25(6):1621-1631. [doi: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10040-017-1570-8]
Socioeconomic environment ; Legislation ; Groundwater extraction ; Groundwater irrigation ; Groundwater development ; Water use ; Domestic water ; Industrial uses ; Radar ; Deltas ; Water drilling ; Wells ; Irrigated land ; Farmers ; Surface water ; Aquifers ; Economic aspects ; Spatial distribution ; Salinity / Egypt / Nile Delta
(Location: IWMI HQ Call no: e-copy only Record No: H048137)
The Nile Delta of Egypt is known for its large irrigated area supplied with water diverted from the Nile River, with a limited use of groundwater, largely for domestic and industrial use. Official statistics for the whole delta indicate that there are a few thousand individual wells used for agriculture by a population of over 2 million farmers. This study, however, shows that a phenomenon of groundwater development for irrigation has been unfolding over the last few years, largely below the radar of managers and researchers. A survey was carried out in the central part of the delta with the objective of (1) uncovering the actual situation of groundwater use in this part of the delta and (2) speculating on its implications. The results of the survey pointed to a recent and booming tube-well drilling industry, with well densities in some parts reaching one well every 2 ha. The development of groundwater abstraction in the central delta is strongly linked to inadequate and/or untimely availability of surface water in the canals. A technical, economic, and management characterization of wells complements the study, showing a continuum between purely private/individual ownership of wells and collective investments and management. Lastly, the article explores the implications of unchecked abstraction at the farm, local and delta scales.
7 Mekki, I.; Ghazouani, Wafa; Closas, Alvar; Molle, Francois. 2017. Perceptions of groundwater degradation and mitigation responses in the Haouaria region in Tunisia. Groundwater for Sustainable Development, 5:101-110. [doi: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gsd.2017.05.001]
Groundwater management ; Groundwater extraction ; Groundwater development ; Water resources ; Resource depletion ; Environmental degradation ; Aquifers ; Water users ; Agricultural practices ; Collective action ; Wells ; Tube wells ; Stakeholders ; Socioeconomic environment ; Land ownership ; Land tenure / Tunisia / Haouaria Region
(Location: IWMI HQ Call no: e-copy only Record No: H048138)
Avoiding the negative effects of intensive groundwater resource use is challenging, especially when the interactions and causal pathways between biophysical and socioeconomic processes are complex, and when users, management, and regulatory bodies are spatially dispersed. The plain of Haouaria, in north-eastern Tunisia, has witnessed an important development of groundwater abstraction, fueled by the multiplication of wells tapping the underlying shallow and deep aquifers. As the economic activities linked to such development are threatened by the degradation of groundwater quantity and quality, the aim of this paper is to investigate actors’ perceptions of these processes and to emphasize the undertaken mitigation measures. The study builds on semi-directive surveys with the different groundwater users and archive data in order to understand the technical, institutional and agricultural practices driving groundwater development. The paper starts by investigating the historical context of groundwater development and the progressive degradation of the resource. Then, the paper identifies the main constraints and adaptation strategies of the various users (public and private), before examining the challenges faced by groundwater users. Results show varied patterns of actors' behavior, interest, and perception of the groundwater resource. This analysis show that farmers' lack of collective action, land tenure insecurity, labor shortage, the monopoly of production inputs by suppliers, and the cost of energy for pumping are the main challenges faced by groundwater users. The study finally explores different management and policy options that can lead to a more environmentally and socioeconomically sustainable socio-hydrological system.
8 Closas, Alvar; Molle, Francois; Hernandez-Mora, N. 2017. Sticks and carrots: managing groundwater overabstraction in La Mancha, Spain. Colombo, Sri Lanka: International Water Management Institute (IWMI). 42p. (IWMI Working Paper 177) [doi: https://doi.org/10.5337/2017.218]
Groundwater development ; Groundwater management ; Groundwater extraction ; Groundwater irrigation ; Aquifers ; Wetlands ; Ecosystems ; Water law ; Water rights ; Water governance ; Water rates ; Water policy ; Water users ; Environmental management ; Agricultural policy ; Public participation ; Socioeconomic development ; Decision making ; Incentives ; Legal aspects ; Regulations ; River basins ; Resource depletion ; Wells / Spain / La Mancha
(Location: IWMI HQ Call no: IWMI Record No: H048364)
(869 MB)
This paper presents a historical analysis of the different policy tools used to manage and regulate groundwater abstraction in the Western Mancha aquifer. Without much initial regulation and control, groundwater resources and aquifer levels decreased dramatically, threatening agriculture and also highly valuable groundwater-dependent wetland ecosystems. The interplay between sticks and carrots used in La Mancha shows the necessity for regulatory bodies to complement soft management approaches based on incentives with the threat of sanctions and limitations. However, as this case study shows, each policy modality has its legal, administrative and practical loopholes, which can be negotiated and exploited by groundwater users to their own advantage. The paper also studies the distribution of decision-making power and how local dynamics and individual behaviors are linked to higher level policies and their impacts on groundwater management, with an emphasis on the effectiveness and limitations of these tools.
9 Al-Agha, D. E.; Closas, Alvar; Molle, Francois. 2015. Survey of groundwater use in the central part of the Nile Delta. Colombo, Sri Lanka: International Water Management Institute (IWMI) 50p.
Groundwater management ; Groundwater recharge ; Groundwater extraction ; Water levels ; Water use ; Water quality ; Drinking water ; Salinity ; Deltas ; Discharges ; Wells ; Irrigation practices ; Irrigation water / Egypt / Nile Delta
(Location: IWMI HQ Call no: e-copy only Record No: H048365)
(2.85 MB)
10 Molle, Francois; Closas, Alvar. 2016. Groundwater governance: a synthesis. [Project report of the Groundwater Governance in the Arab World - Taking Stock and Addressing the Challenges] Colombo, Sri Lanka: International Water Management Institute (IWMI). 187p. (Groundwater Governance in the Arab World - Report 6)
Groundwater extraction ; Groundwater management ; Groundwater irrigation ; Groundwater depletion ; Groundwater development ; Water governance ; Water resources ; Water use ; Water quality ; Water users ; Water rates ; Pumping ; Aquifers ; Wells ; State intervention ; Irrigated land ; Community management / Arab
(Location: IWMI HQ Call no: e-copy only Record No: H048392)
(3.07 MB)
11 Molle, Francois; Nassif, M.-H.; Jaber, B.; Closas, Alvar; Baydoun, S. 2017. Groundwater governance in Lebanon: the case of Central Beqaa. A Policy White Paper. Colombo, Sri Lanka: International Water Management Institute (IWMI). 36p.
Groundwater management ; Water resources ; Water use ; Water governance ; Water availability ; Water rights ; Domestic water ; Agriculture ; Legal aspects ; Illegal practices ; Wells ; Drilling ; Planning ; Monitoring ; Policy making ; Case studies / Middle East / Lebanon / Central Beqaa
(Location: IWMI HQ Call no: e-copy only Record No: H048393)
(1.69 MB)
12 Closas, Alvar; Imache, A.; Mekki, I. 2017. Groundwater governance in Tunisia. A Policy White Paper. Colombo, Sri Lanka: International Water Management Institute (IWMI). 43p.
Groundwater ; Water governance ; Water resources ; Water management ; Water use ; Water law ; Water policy ; Water pricing ; Irrigation water ; Wells ; Land management / Tunisia
(Location: IWMI HQ Call no: e-copy only Record No: H048394)
(1.43 MB)
13 Molle, Francois; Al Karablieh, E.; Al Naber, M.; Closas, Alvar; Salman, A. 2017. Groundwater governance in Jordan: the case of Azraq Basin. A Policy White Paper. Colombo, Sri Lanka: International Water Management Institute (IWMI). 30p.
Groundwater ; Water governance ; Water resources ; Water management ; Water policy ; Water law ; Water use ; River basins ; Agricultural development ; Illegal practices ; Wells ; Drilling / Jordan / Azraq Basin
(Location: IWMI HQ Call no: e-copy only Record No: H048395)
(1.58 MB)
14 Closas, Alvar; Molle, Francois. 2016. Groundwater governance in the Middle East and North Africa. [Project report of the Groundwater Governance in the Arab World - Taking Stock and Addressing the Challenges]. Colombo, Sri Lanka: International Water Management Institute (IWMI). 192p. (Groundwater Governance in the Arab World - Report 1)
Groundwater management ; Water governance ; Water resources ; Aquifers ; Groundwater extraction ; Water law ; Regulations ; Decentralization ; Water policy ; Groundwater irrigation ; Surface water ; Agriculture ; Incentives ; Water supply ; Water pricing ; Groundwater depletion ; Water users ; Strategies ; Traditional methods ; Wells ; Community management ; Cooperatives ; Conflict ; State intervention ; Political aspects ; Oases / Middle East / North Africa / Morocco / Algeria / Tunisia / Libya / Egypt / Sudan / Lebanon / Syria / Jordan / Yemen / Saudi Arabia / Bahrain / Oman / Iran / Turkey / Souss Region / Mitidja Plain / Merguellil Basin / Nile Delta / Western Desert / Bekaa Valley / Azraq
(Location: IWMI HQ Call no: e-copy only Record No: H048385)
(4.48 MB)
15 Closas, Alvar; Molle, Francois. 2016. Groundwater governance in Sub-Saharan Africa. [Project report of the Groundwater Governance in the Arab World - Taking Stock and Addressing the Challenges]. Colombo, Sri Lanka: International Water Management Institute (IWMI). 31p. (Groundwater Governance in the Arab World - Report 2)
Groundwater management ; Water governance ; Water resources ; Aquifers ; Boreholes ; Groundwater extraction ; Water law ; Legislation ; Regulations ; Licences ; Water use ; Equity ; Water policy ; Corporate culture ; Community involvement ; Farmer-led irrigation ; Social capital / Africa South of Sahara / South Africa / Kenya / Botswana
(Location: IWMI HQ Call no: e-copy only Record No: H048386)
(2.06 MB)
16 Closas, Alvar; Molle, Francois. 2016. Groundwater governance in Europe. [Project report of the Groundwater Governance in the Arab World - Taking Stock and Addressing the Challenges]. Colombo, Sri Lanka: International Water Management Institute (IWMI). 99p. (Groundwater Governance in the Arab World - Report 3)
Groundwater management ; Water governance ; Groundwater extraction ; Regulations ; Legal frameworks ; Water law ; Water rights ; Water policy ; European Union ; Water supply ; Water pollution ; Pesticides ; Taxes ; Water user associations ; Conjunctive use ; Communities ; Collective behaviour ; Social capital ; River basins ; Aquifers ; Water authorities ; State intervention ; Political aspects ; Solar energy / Europe / Denmark / France / Spain / Copenhagen / Barcelona / La Mancha / Valencia / Beauce Aquifer / Western Mancha Aquifer / Guadiana River Basin / Llobregat Valley
(Location: IWMI HQ Call no: e-copy only Record No: H048398)
(3.41 MB)
17 Closas, Alvar; Molle, Francois. 2016. Groundwater governance in Asia and the Pacific. [Project report of the Groundwater Governance in the Arab World - Taking Stock and Addressing the Challenges]. Colombo, Sri Lanka: International Water Management Institute (IWMI). 176p. (Groundwater Governance in the Arab World - Report 4)
Groundwater management ; Water resources ; Water governance ; Groundwater extraction ; Water law ; Water market ; Water supply ; Groundwater irrigation ; Surface water ; Aquifers ; Groundwater recharge ; Technology ; Tube wells ; Ownership ; Community management ; Water users ; Solar energy ; Water policy ; Energy policies ; Development projects ; Social aspects ; State intervention ; Political aspects / Asia and the Pacific / India / China / Pakistan / Nepal / Bangladesh / Japan / Australia / Andhra Pradesh / Gujarat / Karnataka / Maharashtra / Punjab / West Bengal / Murray-Darling Basin / Great Artesian Basin / New South Wales / Lower Murrumbidgee Valley / North China Plain
(Location: IWMI HQ Call no: e-copy only Record No: H048399)
(5.31 MB)
18 Closas, Alvar; Molle, Francois. 2016. Groundwater governance in America. [Project report of the Groundwater Governance in the Arab World - Taking Stock and Addressing the Challenges]. Colombo, Sri Lanka: International Water Management Institute (IWMI). 238p. (Groundwater Governance in the Arab World - Report 5)
Groundwater management ; Water governance ; Groundwater extraction ; Water law ; Water conservation ; Groundwater depletion ; Groundwater table ; Surface water ; Water quality ; Pollution control ; Water supply ; Urban areas ; Conflict ; State intervention ; Corporate culture ; Water market ; Taxes ; Water users ; Community involvement ; Cooperatives ; Water resources ; Aquifers ; River basins ; Plains ; Agriculture ; Drought ; Pumping ; Energy ; Land management / North America / South America / USA / Mexico / Peru / Bolivia / Chile / Texas / Nebraska / California / Los Angeles / Oregon / Florida / Cochabamba / Ogallala Aquifer / Edwards Aquifer / Ica Valley / Copiapo River Basin
(Location: IWMI HQ Call no: e-copy only Record No: H048400)
(7.73 MB)
19 Molle, Francois; Closas, Alvar; Al-Zubari, W. 2018. Governing groundwater in the Middle East and North Africa Region. In Villholth Karen G.; Lopez-Gunn, E.; Conti, K.; Garrido, A.; Van Der Gun, J. (Eds.). Advances in groundwater governance. Leiden, Netherlands: CRC Press. pp.527-553.
Groundwater ; Water governance ; Water supply ; Agriculture ; Farmers ; Irrigated land ; Aquifers ; Surface water ; Water law ; Water rates ; Water policy ; Water use ; Financial situation ; Irrigation schemes ; Rainfed farming ; Supplemental irrigation ; Wells ; Drilling ; Desalination ; Participatory approaches / North Africa / Middle East
(Location: IWMI HQ Call no: IWMI Record No: H048564)
20 Closas, Alvar. 2018. Groundwater, the state, and the creation of irrigation communities in Llanos del Caudillo, Spain. Water Alternatives, 11(1):19-39.
Groundwater ; Irrigation programs ; Communities ; Colonization ; State intervention ; Political aspects ; Governmental organizations ; Social aspects ; Irrigated land ; Hydraulic structures / Spain / La Mancha / Llanos del Caudillo
(Location: IWMI HQ Call no: e-copy only Record No: H048574)
http://www.water-alternatives.org/index.php/alldoc/articles/vol11/v11issue1/407-a11-1-2/file
https://vlibrary.iwmi.org/pdf/H048574.pdf
https://vlibrary.iwmi.org/pdf/H048574.pdf
(0.94 MB) (960 KB)
This article explores the creation of new groundwater-based irrigation communities as a result of the internal colonisation projects of Franco’s government in the 1950s in La Mancha, Central Spain. The literature on Spain’s hydraulic mission has mainly focused on the use and mobilisation of large surface water projects as part of a state-driven modernisation mission promoting irrigation and water management infrastructure without much contextualisation or focus on its operationalisation at the local level. This paper complements this body of work by examining the local socio-political development of government-led irrigation plans in the colonisation town of Llanos del Caudillo. Moreover, the study of Spain’s hydro-politics and colonisation efforts usually focuses on surface water infrastructure while the public promotion of groundwater use has always been relegated to a second place, as it was mainly driven by private initiative. This paper substantiates the role of groundwater within Spain’s hydraulic mission and production of state-sponsored irrigated landscapes.
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