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Senate Bill 1 and HB 1763 have greatly changed Texas water planning. With SB1 the planning process became a bottom-up approach that allowed 16 regional water planning groups (RWPGs) to create a plan that would be combined to form the state plan. Then in 2005, HB 1763 gave groundwater conservation districts (GCDs) the authority to determine groundwater availability instead of regions. The purpose of this research is to explore the overall impact of the regional planning process and how the change in groundwater availability determination will affect regional water planning. The findings of this research can serve as a guide for legislative changes to improve the process. This is crucial if Texas expects to meet the needs of a doubled population in less than 50 years. In order to collect opinions from water planners across Texas, a survey was sent to all 322 members of the 16 RWPGs. Also, all 72 members from 10 Groundwater Conservation Districts (GCDs) were selected in Region G. All statements were based on a Likert Scale ranging from strongly agree to strongly disagree. The modified Dillman procedure was used with a response rate of 57%. Independent t-tests and Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) were used to measure differences between regions, interest groups, and level of experience. Overall respondents agreed that water issue awareness, communication, and regional project support improved except for reservoirs and transfers. Also all thought GCDs were the most appropriate entity to lead groundwater planning and believed that the new process would result in greater resource protection. Several statements in the survey resulted in high levels of uncertainty. This suggests that water planning for water user groups whose future supplies are from groundwater should carefully consider broadening their strategies both in terms of quantities and sources to take this uncertainty into account.

Senate Bill 1 and HB 1763 have greatly changed Texas water planning. With SB1 the planning process became a bottom-up approach that allowed 16 regional water planning groups (RWPGs) to create a plan that would be combined to form the state plan. Then in 2005, HB 1763 gave groundwater conservation districts (GCDs) the authority to determine groundwater availability instead of regions. The purpose of this research is to explore the overall impact of the regional planning process and how the change in groundwater availability determination will affect regional water planning. The findings of this research can serve as a guide for legislative changes to improve the process. This is crucial if Texas expects to meet the needs of a doubled population in less than 50 years. In order to collect opinions from water planners across Texas, a survey was sent to all 322 members of the 16 RWPGs. Also, all 72 members from 10 Groundwater Conservation Districts (GCDs) were selected in Region G. All statements were based on a Likert Scale ranging from strongly agree to strongly disagree. The modified Dillman procedure was used with a response rate of 57%. Independent t-tests and Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) were used to measure differences between regions, interest groups, and level of experience. Overall respondents agreed that water issue awareness, communication, and regional project support improved except for reservoirs and transfers. Also all thought GCDs were the most appropriate entity to lead groundwater planning and believed that the new process would result in greater resource protection. Several statements in the survey resulted in high levels of uncertainty. This suggests that water planning for water user groups whose future supplies are from groundwater should carefully consider broadening their strategies both in terms of quantities and sources to take this uncertainty into account.

The state of Texas is facing critical decisions that will greatly impact the preparedness of the state to meet future water demand. Consequently, during the 83rd Texas Legislative Session, state legislators proposed House Bill 4 (HB 4), a bill that if funded will provide an additional two billion dollars of funding for Texas water planning projects. Objectively evaluating and prioritizing projects would enable the efficient distribution of funding and minimize conflicts between water users. This project uses multi-criteria decision modeling to compare various evaluation criteria and decision preferences and prioritize proposed water management strategies in the 2012 State Water Plan. Combinations of project, regional, and legislative criteria are considered in eight decision scenarios. Projects are evaluated using Logical Decisions software and Microsoft Excel to calculate project utility and identify distribution strategies for funding. Results of this study provide insight into regional and strategy funding biases. Additionally, the decision model analyses highlight the effects of project prioritization on urban vs. rural and arid vs. humid Texas water conflicts. / text

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In Central America, two conflicting narratives are used to describe the relationship between forest cover and water availability, with implications for management of water resources throughout the region. Many resource managers believe forests increase dry season water availability, but scientific consensus refutes this perspective. This study analyzes the narratives explaining the relationship between forest cover and dry season water yields in Central America and how they influence resource management. In a case study of the Sasle catchment in Nicaragua, I use a combination of satellite imagery analysis and SWAT hydrologic modeling to investigate land use change over the past 25 years and the potential impact of these changes on the hydrology of the catchment. False perceptions of the role of land cover in hydrology are influencing management practices in sensitive headwater catchments and creating unintended results. A broader perspective on the socio-political and scientific context of these narratives is needed.

The provision of water, wastewater and stormwater infrastructure is an essential ingredient of cities. However, questions are being raised about the type and form of urban infrastructure, for economic and environmental reasons. Traditionally these techologies have offered linear solutions, drawing increasing volumes of water into cities and discharging waste at ever increasing levels, causing escalating stress on the environment. In addition the costs of water infrastructure provision and replacement, both in the developing and developed world, is becoming prohibitive. In response, a new paradigm has been called for and new solutions are emerging that have been labelled as Integrated Urban Water Management (IUWM). This concept can be considered to consist of both technical and philosophical dimensions, and represents a new form of professional praxis. However, the adoption of these techniques and concepts is constrained by the inertia of the existing urban water systems. It is therefore argued that the introduction of any change must occur across a number of dimensions of the technoeconomic system of the city. These dimensions-artefacts and technical systems (i.e. the technology and knowledge systems), professional praxis and socio-political context (i.e. institutions, culture and politics) and biophysical realities and world views (i.e. the environment and underlying values) - provide a framework for analysis of the change process - both how it is occurring and how it needs to occur. This framework is used to illustrate the link between environment values and the process of technological innovation, and points to the need for the emerging values and innovations to be institutionalised into the professional praxis and socio-political context of society. Specifically, it is argued that a new form of transdisciplinary professional praxis is emerging and needs to be cultivated. A broad review of the literature, an evaluation of selected emerging technologies and three case studies are used to illustrate and argue this position. These examples show the potential economic, social and environmental benefits of IUWM and provide some insight into the potential which this approach has to influence the form and structure of the city and at the same time highlighting the institutional arrangements required to manage urban water systems.

Protection of International Watercourses The purpose of the Thesis is to analyze the present degree of the protection of international watercourses and to describe three main levels: international law, European law and Czech law. Although the issue of environmental protection and sustainable use of international watercourses is considered to be one of the most significant problems of the present society, the topic has been rather neglected by Czech scholars. Analytical, logical and historical methods were primarily applied in the study. The thesis is composed of four chapters, which are furthermore divided into sections and subsections. The term "international watercourses" usually designates rivers, lakes and groundwater sources shared by two or more states. Chapter one deals with international customary law (especially equitable utilization and no harm principle), international treaty law (global and regional cooperation as well as non- binding documents) and selected major cases important for the evolution of protection of water. In the past, international water law concerned mostly with allocating water supply between riparian states. Nowadays the law concentrates more on permissible uses of watercourses and preventing pollution of freshwater resources as well as water ecosystems. The second...

O presente trabalho discute a gestão das águas doces metropolitanizadas brasileiras, tendo como áreas de atenção as Regiões Metropolitanas de Belo Horizonte e São Paulo. É apresentada uma unidade para planejamento ambiental estratégico -- a bacia ambiental. Uma unidade de conformação morfológica dinâmica definida pelos indicadores sociais e ecológicos sob a premissa da sustentabilidade do desenvolvimento. Pretende-se uma participação diferenciada de todos os segmentos sociais no processo de gestão. / The present work discusses the metropolitanized freshwater management in Brasil, proposing a new strategic environmental planning unit -- the environmental basin. It is a process with dynamic boundaries defined by social and ecological indicators under the perspective of the development\'s sustainability. It aims to allow a differentiated participation of all segments of society.

<p>In the Kisumu District, Kenya, unreliable rainfall pattern has been identified as one of the main causes for poverty in rural areas. The negative effects of such unreliable patterns could be mitigated through improved water resource management and planning. However, estimates of current (and future) water availability will likely differ depending on whether managers draw upon data gathered at a local-scale or regional-scale. This is particularly important in developing regions where, due to lack of data availability, managers are often limited in their choice of data resolution. This study investigates the potential effect of spatial resolution of data on water management and planning by comparing hydro-climatic trends in local-scale data with trends in regional-scale data. The influence of adopting local-scale versus regional-scale data is further demonstrated by estimate the storage requirements of proposed irrigation ponds for farmers in the Orongo village of the Kisumu District located in Kenya, Africa. Results indicate a low correlation between local and regional hydro-climatic trends. Data spatial scale directly influences water resources management leading to a 300% difference in estimated storage requirement for the average farmer.</p>