Evaluating Water Withdrawals for Regional Water Management Under a Data-driven Framework

With an increase in population and economic development,water withdrawals are close to or even exceed the amount of water available in many regions of the world.Modelling water withdrawals could help water planners improve the efficiency of water use,water resources allocation,and management in order to alleviate water crises.However,minimal information has been obtained on how water withdrawals have changed over space and time,especially on a regional or local scale.This research proposes a data-driven framework to help estimate county-level distribution of water withdrawals.Using this framework,spatial statistical methods are used to estimate water withdrawals for agricultural,industrial,and domestic purposes in the Huaihe River watershed in China for the period 1978–2018.Total water withdrawals were found to have more than doubled,from 292.55×10^(8)m^(3) in 1978 to 642.93×10^(8)m^(3) in 2009,and decreased to 602.63×10^(8)m^(3) in 2018.Agricultural water increased from 208.17×10^(8)m^(3) in 1978 to 435.80×10^(8)m^(3) in 2009 and decreased to 360.84×10^(8)m^(3) in 2018.Industrial and domestic water usage constantly increased throughout the 1978–2018 period.In 1978,industrial and domestic demands were 20.35×10^(8)m^(3) and 60.04×10^(8)m^(3),respectively,and up until 2018,the figures were 105.58×10^(8)m^(3) and 136.20×10^(8)m^(3).From a spatial distribution perspective,Moran’s I statistical results show that the total water withdrawal has significant spatial autocorrelation during 1978–2018.The overall trend was a gradual increase in 1978–2010 with withdrawal beginning to decline in 2010–2018.The results of Getis-Ord G_(i)^(*)statistical calculations showed spatially contiguous clusters of total water withdrawal in the Huaihe River watershed during1978–2010,and the spatial agglomeration weakened from 2010 to 2018.This study provides a data-driven framework for assessing water withdrawals to enable a deeper understanding of competing water use among economic sectors as well as water withdrawal modelled with proper data resource and method.

Demand-driven water withdrawals by Chinese industry： a multi-regional input-output analysis

With ever increasing water demands and the continuous intensification of water scarcity arising from China＇s industrialization, the country is struggling to harmonize its industrial development and water supply. This paper presents a systems analysis of water with- drawals by Chinese industry and investigates demand- driven industrial water uses embodied in final demand and interregional trade based on a multi-regional input-output model. In 2007, the Electric Power, Steam, and Hot Water Production and Supply sector ranks first in direct industrial water withdrawal （DWW）, and Construction has the largest embodied industrial water use （EWU）. Investment, consumption, and exports contribute to 34.6%, 33.3%, and 30.6% of the national total EWU, respectively. Specifically, 58.0%, 51.1%, 48.6%, 43.3%, and 37.5% of the regional EWUs respectively in Guangdong, Shanghai, Zhejiang, Jiangsu, and Fujian are attributed to international exports. The total interregional import/export of embodied water is equivalent to about 40% of the national total DWW, of which 55.5% is associated with the DWWs of Electric Power, Steam, and Hot Water Production and Supply. Jiangsu is the biggest interregional exporter and deficit receiver of embodied water, in contrast to Guangdong as the biggest interregional importer and surplus receiver. Without implementing effective water- saving measures and adjusting industrial structures, the regional imbalance between water availability and water demand tends to intensify considering the water impact of domestic trade of industrial products. Steps taken to improve water use efficiency in production, and to enhance embodied water saving in consumption are both of great significance for supporting China＇s water policies.

Forecasting changes of hydrological and hydrochemical conditions in the Aral Sea

The increase of irretrievable river water withdrawals and regulation of river flow has a negative effect on the natural regime of the Aral Sea. The Ainu Darya River and the Syr Darya River Basins are the largest irrigated farming areas. Their favorable soil and climatic conditions ensure guaranteed yields of various crops on irrigated lands. Since 1961, for the drastic increase of irretrievable river water withdrawal, mainly for irrigation, the inflow of fiver water into the Aral Sea has started to decrease significantly, accordingly the sea＇s hydrological and hydrochemical regimes disrupted dramatically. The sea level has continued to drop as evaporation exceeds inflow. This negatively transforms the natural environment and worsens socio-economic conditions in Priaralie as a whole, especially in the lower reaches of Amu Darya and Syr Darya, where natural conditions are largely determined by the sea＇s impact. At present, this causes desertification of the nonirrigated zone in the deltas, spreading to new areas as the Aral Sea dries out.

Evaluating land subsidence by field survey and D-In SAR technique in Damaneh City, Iran

Based on the data from piezometers, well logs, geophysical surveys and the interferometric synthetic aperture radar（In SAR） technique, this study investigates the main causes of land subsidence in Damaneh City, Iran. The size, openings and direction of fissures were measured by micrometer and compass. The locations of fissures and wall cracks were determined by GPS. The geoelectrical data were used to determine the composition, thickness, depth and shape of lower parts of the aquifer. Groundwater fluctuations were evaluated by available piezometers. The In SAR technique was used to measure land deformation from space and to map the dense changes of surface displacements. The results indicate that the main cause of ground subsidence is the decline of groundwater heads and changes in composition and thickness of compressible lacustrine sediments. The subsidence map obtained from the radar data of ASAR sensor of ENVISAT satellite shows that the subsidence zone is mainly in northern city that is underlain by very thick fine sediments. The subsidence rates from March to December 2005 and from July 2011 to January 2012 are 6.7 and 7.0 cm/a, respectively. The results also show good correlations among the formation of earth features, decline in groundwater head and thickness of fine-grained sediments. We recommend that the groundwater withdrawal for agricultural and industrial sectors should be restricted and urban expansion in the northern part of the city should be constrained.

Synergetic pathways of water-energy-carbon in ecologically vulnerable regions aiming for carbon neutrality:a case study of Shaanxi,China

Synergetic energy-water-carbon pathways are key issues to be tackled under carbon-neutral target and high-quality development worldwide,especially in ecologically vulnerable regions(EVRs).In this study,to explore the synergistic pathways in an EVR,a water-energy-carbon assessment(WECA)model was built,and the synergistic effects of water-energy-carbon were comprehensively and quantitatively analyzed under various scenarios of regional transition.Shaanxi Province was chosen as the representative EVR,and Lower challenge(LEC)and Greater challenge(GER)scenarios of zerocarbon transition were set considering the technological maturity and regional energy characteristics.The results showed that there were limited effects under the zero-carbon transition of the entire region on reducing water withdrawals and improving the water quality.In the LEC scenario,the energy demand and CO2 emissions of Shaanxi in 2060 will decrease by 70.9%and 99.4%,respectively,whereas the water withdrawal and freshwater aquatic ecotoxicity potential(FAETP)will only decrease by 8.9%and 1.6%,respectively.This could be attributed to the stronger demand for electricity in the energy demand sector caused by industrial transition measures.The GER scenario showed significant growth in water withdrawals(16.0%)and FAETP(36.0%)because of additional biomass demand.To promote the synergetic development of regional transition,EVRs should urgently promote zero-carbon technologies(especially solar and wind power technologies)between 2020 and 2060 and dry cooling technology for power generation before 2030.In particular,a cautious attitude toward the biomass energy with carbon capture and storage technology in EVRs is strongly recommended.