Defining Cities by Water: Addressing Capital Misallocation in a Race to Conserve Resources

As part of its efforts to promote a sustainable and high-quality development,China has pledged to reduce water consumption and create a water-efficient society.On the basis of identifying the institutional root causes of excessive capital allocation and excessive water consumption in China’s water-intensive industrial sectors,this study elaborates how the national water-efficient cities assessment contributes to optimized capital allocation.Our research shows that national water-efficient cities assessment has motivated local governments to compete for water efficiency.To conserve water,local governments regulated the entry and exit of water-intensive enterprises,discouraged excessive investments in water-intensive sectors,and phased out obsolete water-intensive capacities within their jurisdictions.This approach has resulted in mutually beneficial outcomes,including improved allocation of capital,enhanced water efficiency,and reduced emissions.This paper offers policy recommendations for establishing a water-efficient society throughout the 14^(th) Five-Year Plan(2021-2025)period by presenting empirical evidence on the policy effects of resource efficiency evaluation.

Assessing Water Resources Access of Nouhao Sub-Basin, Burkina Faso

Water resource access in the Nouhao sub-basin, assessed based on the availability of drinking water mobilization facilities, the availability of water for uses and the quality of drinking water, revealed that in 2017 the basin was covered by 1249 modern water point, main drinking water sources. On average, the sub-basin shows a ratio of 271 users per drinking water point. Communal level shows some disparity with Bittou recording the highest number of people per drinking water point, i.e., around 537. Water that can be captured in the entire sub-basin meets only 42% of the total water needs from the three mains uses: irrigation, domestic consumption and livestock. The highest demander among these uses is Irrigation with 75% of the need, i.e., approximately 12,859,995 m3. Water in 33% drinking sources of this sub basin is of poor quality. Arsenic, one of the quality parameters studied, is found in some communes of the sub-basin. 11% of the water points in Bissiga are arsenic polluted making this commune the most arsenic contaminated location. The vulnerability maps deducted from lack of water for uses;lack of drinking water works and poor water quality shows so, the exposure level of the sub-basin’ communes to some potential risks related to low water resources access.

Anthropogenic disturbance of aquatic biodiversity and water quality of an urban river in Penang, Malaysia

Malaysia's rapid economic and demographic development have placed negative pressure on its water supplies and the quality of the Juru River, which is close to the nation's capital and its major source of water. Healthy aquatic ecosystems are supported by physicochemical properties and biological diversity. This study evaluated the anthropogenic impacts on aquatic biodiversity, especially plankton, fish, and macrobenthos, as well as the water quality of the Juru River in the Penang area. Aquatic biodiversity and river water parameters were collected from ten sampling stations along the Juru River. Seven variables were used to assess the physicochemical environment: pH, temperature, total suspended solids (TSS), salinity, dissolved oxygen (DO), biochemical oxygen demand (BOD), and chemical oxygen demand. At each sampling station, the total number of plankton, fish, and macrobenthic taxa were counted and analyzed. The relationships between the physicochemical parameters and aquatic biodiversity were investigated with biotypological analysis, principal component analysis, hierarchical cluster analysis, and linear regression analysis. These analyses showed that the richness and diversity indices were generally influenced by salinity, temperature, TSS, BOD, and pH. The data obtained in this study supported the bioindicator concept. The findings, as they related to scientifically informed conservation, could serve as a model for Juru River management, as well as for river management throughout Malaysia and other tropical Asian countries.

Evaluation of Water Resources Carrying Capacity in Gansu Section of Yellow River Basin Based on Fuzzy Comprehensive Evaluation Model

As a basic natural resource and strategic economic resource,the development and utilization of water resources is an important issue related to the national economy and people's livelihood.How to scientifically evaluate the water resources carrying capacity is the premise to improve the regional water resources carrying capacity and ensure the regional water security.The Gansu section of the Yellow River basin is an important water conservation and recharge area.Whether the water resources in this area can ensure the normal operation of the ecosystem and whether it can carry the sustainable development of social economy is the key to realize the high-quality development of the Yellow River basin.In this study,from the three dimensions of water consumption per capita,water consumption of 10000 yuan GDP and ecological water use rate,by constructing the evaluation index system and index grading standard of water resources carrying capacity,the fuzzy comprehensive evaluation model was used to evaluate the water resources carrying capacity of Gansu section of the Yellow River Basin,in order to provide theoretical decision-making basis for the comprehensive development,utilization and planning management of water resources in Gansu section of the Yellow River basin and even the whole basin,and help the high-quality development of the Yellow River basin.

Artificial Intelligence Technique in Hydrological Forecasts Supporting for Water Resources Management of a Large River Basin in Vietnam

Hydrological forecasting plays an important role in water resource management, supporting socio-economic development and managing water-related risks in river basins. There are many flow forecasting techniques that have been developed several centuries ago, ranging from physical models, physics-based models, conceptual models, and data-driven models. Recently, Artificial Intelligence (AI) has become an advanced technique applied as an effective data-driven model in hydrological forecasting. The main advantage of these models is that they give results with compatible accuracy, and require short computation time, thus increasing forecasting time and reducing human and financial effort. This study evaluates the applicability of machine learning and deep learning in Hanoi water level forecasting where it is controlled for flood management and water supply in the Red River Delta, Vietnam. Accordingly, SANN (machine learning algorithm) and LSTM (deep learning algorithm) were tested and compared with a Physics-Based Model (PBM) for the Red River Delta. The results show that SANN and LSTM give high accuracy. The R-squared coefficient is greater than 0.8, the mean squared error (MSE) is less than 20 cm, the correlation coefficient of the forecast hydrology is greater than 0.9 and the level of assurance of the forecast plan ranges from 80% to 90% in both cases. In addition, the calculation time is much reduced compared to the requirement of PBM, which is its limitation in hydrological forecasting for large river basins such as the Red River in Vietnam. Therefore, SANN and LSTM are expected to help increase lead time, thereby supporting water resource management for sustainable development and management of water-related risks in the Red River Delta.

Analysis of the Status and Rational Allocation of Water Resources in China in View of the New Era

This paper examines the current status of water resource management and conservation in China,along with strategies to address the water resource crisis.Given the current situation,the paper highlights issues such as incomplete legal mechanisms,limited environmental awareness among enterprises,and insufficient government investment.To ad-dress these challenges,the paper proposes a series of strategies,including improving the ecological environment,enhanc-ing production techniques,strengthening management systems,rationalizing water resource allocation,and implementing water-saving measures in both industrial and agricultural production.These strategies serve to achieve sustainable water resource management,reduce water pollution,and effectively tackle the pressing water resource issues faced in China currently.

The Relationship between Water Resources Use Efficiency and Scientific and Technological Innovation Level: Case Study of Yangtze River Basin in China

The Yangtze River Basin’s water resource utilization efficiency(WUE)and scientific and technological innovation level(STI)are closely connected,and the comprehension of these relationships will help to improve WUE and promote local economic growth and conservation of water.This study uses 19 provinces and regions along the Yangtze River’s mainstream from 2009 to 2019 as its research objects and uses a Vector Auto Regression(VAR)model to quantitatively evaluate the spatiotemporal evolution of the coupling coordination degree(CCD)between the two subsystems of WUE and STI.The findings show that:(1)Both the WUE and STI in the Yangtze River Basin showed an upward trend during the study period,but the STI effectively lagged behind the WUE;(2)The CCD of the two subsystems generally showed an upward trend,and the CCD of each province was improved to varying degrees,but the majority of regions did not develop a high-quality coordination stage;(3)The CCD of the two systems displayed apparent positive spatial autocorrelation in the spatial correlation pattern,and there were only two types:high-high(H-H)urbanization areas and low-low(L-L)urbanization areas;(4)The STI showed no obvious response to the impact of the WUE,while the WUE responded greatly to the STI,and both of them were highly dependent on themselves.Optimizing their interaction mechanisms should be the primary focus of high-quality development in the basin of the Yangtze River in the future.These results give the government an empirical basis to enhance the WUE and promote regional sustainable development.

Qingdao City Resources Water Price Estimate

The water resource price is currently one of the difficult problems of water price research.After references collection,investigation and analysis,the water resource price of Qingdao City was calculated by applying fuzzy mathematics.According to the present situation and region characteristic of Qingdao,water quality,per capita water supply,economical level,population density and alternative water resources were selected as water resource influence factors and weigh coefficients of all these factors were ascertained.The results show that the water resource price of Qingdao is 3.05yuam/m3 and total water price is 4.65Yuan/m3.

SUSTAINABLE EXPLOITATION AND UTILIZATION OF WATER RESOURCES IN THE INLAND RIVERBASIN OF ARID NORTHWEST CHINA

Calculated in terms of surface runoff plus irrepeated groundwater, there is about 8. 67 ×1010m3 of total available water resources in the inland river basins of arid Northwest China. Water resources is the decisive factor for survival of oases and human being. But there have arisen several aspects of Serious eco-environment problems resulted from irrational exploitation and utilization. From now on, the development and utilization of water not only requires to promote regional economy, but also needs to protect and improve the environment based on their potential. Sustainable utilization needs to broaden new sources and saving water at first. Then three measures are recommended.

Climate change, water resources and sustainable development in the arid and semi-arid lands of Central Asia in the past 30 years

The countries of Central Asia are collectively known as the five "-stans": Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, Turkmenistan, Tajikistan and Kazakhstan. In recent times, the Central Asian region has been affected by the shrinkage of the Aral Sea, widespread desertification, soil salinization, biodiversity loss, frequent sand storms, and many other ecological disasters. This paper is a review article based upon the collection, identification and collation of previous studies of environmental changes and regional developments in Central Asia in the past 30 years. Most recent studies have reached a consensus that the temperature rise in Central Asia is occurring faster than the global average. This warming trend will not only result in a higher evaporation in the basin oases, but also to a significant retreat of glaciers in the mountainous areas. Water is the key to sustainable development in the arid and semi-arid regions in Central Asia. The uneven distribution, over consumption, and pollution of water resources in Central Asia have caused severe water supply problems, which have been affecting regional harmony and development for the past 30 years. The widespread and significant land use changes in the 1990 s could be used to improve our understanding of natural variability and human interaction in the region. There has been a positive trend of trans-border cooperation among the Central Asian countries in recent years. International attention has grown and research projects have been initiated to provide water and ecosystem protection in Central Asia. However, the agreements that have been reached might not be able to deliver practical action in time to prevent severe ecological disasters. Water management should be based on hydrographic borders and ministries should be able to make timely decisions without political intervention. Fully integrated management of water resources, land use and industrial development is essential in Central Asia. The ecological crisis should provide sufficient motivation to reach a consensus on unified water management throughout the region.

Problems of Sustainable Use and Management of Water and Land Resources in Uzbekistan

In this paper, the problems of rational use, protection and management of water and irrigated land resources of Uzbekistan are discussed. Uzbekistan is using more than 50% water resources of the region and therefore it’s more vulnerable to the problems of water deficiency and pollution caused by mismanagement, use of outdated technologies, and climate change impact. Utilization of water resources on main branches of economy (irrigation, industry and drinking water supply) from 2000-2009 and in some cases beyond this period was analyzed. Based on the data analyzed, the conditions of irrigated land degradation in Uzbekistan are estimated. The results of this analysis suggest several possibilities toward a sustainable use of irrigated lands: i) reduction of the groundwater table depth;ii) decrease of the level of mineralization of groundwater, and iii) improvement of ameliorative conditions of irrigated lands. The causes resulting in degradation of the irrigated lands and practical measures on the reduction of salinization of the irrigated lands are also recommended.

Evaluation of regional water resources carrying capacity based on binary index method and reduction index method

Based on the regional water resources carrying capacity(WRCC)evaluation principles and evaluation index system in the National Technical Outline of Water Resources Carrying Capacity Monitoring and Early Warning(hereafter referred to as the Technical Outline),this paper elaborates on the collection and sorting of the basic data of water resources conditions,water resources development and utilization status,social and economic development in basins,analysis and examination of integrity,consistency,normativeness,and rationality of the basic data,and the necessity of WRCC evaluation.This paper also describes the technique of evaluating the WRCC in prefecture-level cities and city-level administrative divisions in the District of the Taihu Lake Basin,which is composed of the Taihu Lake Basin and the Southeastern River Basin.The evaluation process combines the binary index evaluation method and reduction index evaluation method.The former,recommended by the Technical Outline,uses the total water use and the amount of exploited groundwater as evaluation indices,showing stronger operability,while the latter is developed by simplifying and optimizing the comprehensive index system with greater systematicness and completeness.The mutual validation and adjustment of the results of the above-mentioned two evaluation methods indicate that the WRCC of the District of the Taihu Lake Basin is overloaded in general because some prefecture-level cities and city-level administrative divisions in the Taihu Lake Basin and the Southeastern River Basin are in a severely overloaded state.In order to explain this conclusion,this paper analyzes the causes of WRCC overloading from the aspects of basin water environment,water resources development and utilization,water resources regulation and control ability,water resources utilization efficiency,and water resources management.

AHP Comprehensive Evaluation on Sustainable Utilization of Water Resources in Hengshui City, China

In order to investigate the sustainable utilization of water resources in Hengshui City, quantitative analysis and comprehensive evaluation on 15 indexes of Hengshui City, such as the perspectives of social and economic development condition, water resource condition, environment condition, development and utilization of water resources,were conducted by using the analytic hierarchy process(AHP) method from 2004 to 2008. Although the sustainable utilization has been growing from 2004 to 2008, the situation and environment of water resources were not optimistic because of the severe water shortage in Hengshui. In the future, improving the supply capacity is the key target for promoting sustainable utilization of water resources.

FACILITATING REGIONAL SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT THROUGH INTEGRATED MULTI-OBJECTIVE UTILIZATION, MANAGEMENT OF WATER RESOURCES IN THE LANCANG-MEKONG RIVER BASIN

The Lancnag Mekong River is the most important international river across China and Southeast Asia, If it is developed according to "Great Mekong Subregional Cooperation Plan" [9] prepared by ADB, the area directly affected will be up to over 2.32 million km 2, the population over 220 million, and the natural environment, and socio-economic conditions within a large area will be greatly changed. "Agreement on Cooperation for Sustainable Development of Mekong Basin" signed by the four riparian countries along the lower Mekong River on April 5, 1995 provides a new opportunity for sustainable development of the Basin. According to preliminary analysis, if the multipurpose utilization of the water resources is the target for carrying out integrated planning and management, and the efforts are made 1) to focus on energy exploitation on the Lancang River Mainstream and the tributaries of the lower Mekong River; 2) to build gated weirs at Tonle Sam; 3) to construct spillways at the Mekong Delta; 4) to facilitate flood dykes in big cities and on both banks of the mainstream which are concentrated with population and farmland and liable to be flooded, and 5) to strengthen networks for forecasting hydrological and meteorological conditions, then all problems such as power demand, irrigation, flood, salt water intrusion as well as acid water erosion to soil could be solved without constructing large cascaded stations and dams on the lower Mekong Mainstream. This will not only avoid input of great number of fund, large scale resettlement and land inundation, but also prevent aquatic organisms living in Mekong River from being injured due to dam construction, and promote the sustainable development of the Basin.

Estimation of future water resources of Xiangjiang River Basin with VIC model under multiple climate scenarios

Variation trends of water resources in the Xiangjiang River Basin over the coming decades have been investigated using the variable infiltration capacity(VIC) model and 14 general circulation models'(GCMs') projections under the representative concentration pathway(RCP4.5) scenario. Results show that the Xiangjiang River Basin will probably experience temperature rises during the period from 2021 to2050, with precipitation decrease in the 2020 s and increase in the 2030 s. The VIC model performs well for monthly discharge simulations with better performance for hydrometric stations on the main stream of the Xiangjiang River than for tributary catchments. The simulated annual discharges are significantly correlated to the recorded annual discharges for all the eight selected target stations. The Xiangjiang River Basin may experience water shortages induced by climate change. Annual water resources of the Xiangjiang River Basin over the period from 2021 to 2050 are projected to decrease by 2.76% on average within the range from-7.81% to 7.40%. It is essential to consider the potential impact of climate change on water resources in future planning for sustainable utilization of water resources.

WATER RESOURCES TRANSFORMATION AND WATER QUALITY VARIATION IN THE URUMQI RIVER BASIN

Like other inland basins in arid regions, the natural vertical zones create special conditions for water resources transformation in the Urumqi River Basin. In the course of water resources transformation and utilization, the chemical composition and degree of mineralization are influenced by both geographic conditions and human activities. Although the Urumqi River is rather small in runoff and rather short in flow distance, the water quality changes substantially along the river. However, ion concentrations of surface and ground water in the whole basin are relatively low, generally less than 1 g/L. Therefore, the basin is good at providing low-mineralized water. The pollution is not so serious and the water impurity does not surpass the national standard for drinking. As long as people are conscious with protecting water quality and reducing the further water pollution, it is possible for harm of the slight pollution to be eliminated.

Projection Pursuit Dynamic Cluster Model and its Application to Water Resources Carrying Capacity Evaluation

The research shows that projection pursuit cluster (PPC) model is able to form a suitable index for overcom-ing the difficulties in comprehensive evaluation, which can be used to analyze complex multivariate prob-lems. The PPC model is widely used in multifactor cluster and evaluation analysis, but there are a few prob-lems needed to be solved in practice, such as cutoff radius parameter calibration. In this study, a new model-projection pursuit dynamic cluster (PPDC) model-based on projection pursuit principle is developed and used in water resources carrying capacity evaluation in China for the first time. In the PPDC model, there are two improvements compared with the PPC model, 1) a new projection index is constructed based on dynamic cluster principle, which avoids the problem of parameter calibration in the PPC model success-fully;2) the cluster results can be outputted directly according to the PPDC model, but the cluster results can be got based on the scatter points of projected characteristic values or the re-analysis for projected character-istic values in the PPC model. The results show that the PPDC model is a very effective and powerful tool in multifactor data exploratory analysis. It is a new method for water resources carrying capacity evaluation. The PPDC model and its application to water resources carrying capacity evaluation are introduced in detail in this paper.

Climate change and groundwater resources in China

Water resources play an important role in supporting the economic and social development of China. The impact of climate change on water resources has become a bottleneck in this process, especially for major projects, with surface water and groundwater systems experiencing considerable impacts. The annual natural recharge of fresh groundwater is 8 840×10~8 m^3, which accounts for approximately 31% of the water resources. Groundwater is the most significant water source for many cities and energy bases, and it is also the main source acting as a buffer against extreme climate events caused by climate change. However, most of the groundwater in China buried deeply and unevenly, which increases the difficulty of investigating and exploiting this resource.This paper illustrates the general conditions of China water resources and hydrogeological hazards, such as karst sinkholes, surface subsidence, and soil salinization, caused by climate change, El Nino, La Nina, other climate events and human activities and presents the regulatory measures enacted to mitigate these issues in China.The China Geological Survey(CGS) has organized professional teams to investigate and evaluate groundwater resources and the environment since 1999. Based on these investigations, the total quantity, expected exploitable quantity and current exploited quantity of groundwater in whole China have been evaluated. In addition, an evaluation of the groundwater pollution caused by climate change throughout China and key areas has been conducted. At present, the CGS is conducting national groundwater monitoring projects and establishing regional engineering and technical measures for water resource exploitation and utilization.

Groundwater resources in karst area in Southern China and sustainable utilization pattern

Occurrence conditions of groundwater in southern karst area are complicated. The water-bearing media in the karst have multiplicity, and the groundwater is hosted in holes, gaps, seams, pipes and caves. The karst water shows heterogeneity where fast and slow flow coexist, and the Darcy and non-Darcy flow coexist, and the liquid flow, the gas flow and solid flow coexist. The evaluation and investigation indicates that the mineable resource of karst groundwater is about 53.44 billion m^3/y, and the current exploitation quantity is merely 6.565 billion m^3/year. The exploitation and utilization potential is gigantic. In the region there are altogether 2 763 karst subterranean rivers with a total length of 12 687 km. The dry season runoff volume equals to 47 billion m^3/year. At present the exploitation is only 10%. Four effective utilization models of karst groundwater resources have been put forward.(1) The karst hills-depression zone formed the surface-underground united reservoir. By digging tunnels, water diversion irrigation and generating electricity, the ecological economy is developed.(2) In the deep-cut peak cluster depression area, by using the high-part Epikarst spring and constructing the regulation and storage water tank, the stereo ecological agriculture is developed.(3) In the karst peak forest plain and hilly-gully area, the pump-type underground regulating reservoir is constructed and the water-saving ecological agriculture is strengthened.(4) In the fault basin region with the surrounding groundwater runoff belting beam backwater, the water resources are jointly controlled to develop a fruit crop base within the basin.

Exploitation of groundwater resources and protection of wetland in the Yuqia Basin

In Yuqia Basin, the climate is arid and the ecologic environment is fragile, and shortage of water resources has seriously restricted the sustainable development of local economy. In order to meet the needs of industrial and domestic water in the Yuqia Basin, numerical simulation was used to evaluate the groundwater resources and potential for exploitation. The results showed that the mathematical model and calculation parameters used were mainly in accordance with practical situation. The calculated value of the underground water level is consistent with measured value during the period of identification and validation. The total recharge of groundwater resources was 22.02×10~4 m^3/d, and the total drainage was 21.95×10~4 m^3/d at present. The Yuqia River leakage is the main supply source of groundwater. There is no significant effect on area of wetland when water source place exploited by 2.5×10~4 m^3/d at alluvial-diluvial fan of Yuqia River. After long-term exploitation, the spring flow reduces from 1.42×10~4 m^3/d to 1.01×10~4 m^3/d and wetland area reduces by 32.7% of original area. The calculation of water balance shows that it is safe to the Yuqia Basin, Da Qiadam Lake, the Mahai Basin at downstream of Yuqia River and wetland under the condition of water source place exploited by 2.5×10~4 m^3/d.