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.

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.

The water and sewage company in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania has expressed a lack of integrated development plan for their service area. The current planning does not combine the social, economic and environmental stakeholders. This project investigated how rapid urbanisation and Tanzania’s vision of going from a low to middle-income country before 2025 will affect the water demand together with an investigation of the sustainability of the water supply in the city, Dar es Salaam. Furthermore, the study also investigated the collected historical data from the city’s biggest water supplier, Ruvu river, to examine if there are any changes in waterflow. The study used previous research, collaboration with students and interviews with the stakeholder and experts to collect information and estimate historical patterns. With the software, Water And Evaluation Planning (WEAP), the study processed the historical data to simulate future scenarios with aim on sustainability and development mentioned above. The study shows an increased demand in the future as a result of both urbanisation and economic growth and unmet demand in all scenarios. From the historical data the study shows a small decrease in total quantity and an upgoing trend of the peaks that occur during the biggest annual rainy season. Lastly, the study finds a need of looking at the current sources of supply to achieve sustainable utilization of the resource. / Det här projektet undersöker hur en snabb urbanisering och Tanzanias vision att gå från låg- till mellaninkomstland kan komma att påverka efterfrågan på färskvattnet i Dar es Salaam fram till 2030. Från historisk flödesdata från stadens största vattengivare, Ruvu floden undersöks om det går att utläsa några ändringar i flödena sedan 1980 fram till 2010. Fortsättningsvis diskuteras även hur ett hållbart nyttjande går att åstadkomma. Information och historisk data samlades från litteratursök, intervjuer och med samarbete med studenter och vatten- och sanitetsföretaget i staden. För att undersöka framtiden för stadens vattentillgång och efterfråga användes simulationsprogrammet Water And Evaluation Planning (WEAP) som genom att processerna historisk data, kan simulera liknande variationer i framtiden. Programmet gör det också möjligt för användaren att undersöka parallella scenarios med ändrade flöden och efterfråga. Studien visar att efterfrågan på vatten kommer att öka i alla scenarios och omött efterfrågan i alla scenarios. Studien finner att för hållbart nyttjande av denna resurs kräves mer undersökningar eller alternativ för att säkra tillgången på färskvattnet. De historiska data samlade från floden visar en liten nedåtgående trend i flödesmängd och en uppåtgående trend på mängd vatten som kommer under årets största regnperiod.​

This thesis presents the results of exploratory sociological research designed to better understand how farmers select agricultural practices with the potential to effect water quality. The primary research methodology is a Rapid Rural Appraisal of thirty farms in five rural municipalities in Saskatchewan, Canada during the year 2000 growing season. The data establishes that a variety of economic, institutional, organizational, and social factors interact in dynamic ways to influence farmer resource management decisions and that the resulting agricultural practices have the potential for subtle and dramatic effects on water quality in Saskatchewan. Risk-mitigating farming methods known as Best Management Practices (BMPs) are interpreted by farmers in the field research as being both appropriate and problematic. Alternative initiatives and communication strategies are identified in the field data that offer support to production and productivity in the agriculture sector while also promoting water quality. The research suggests that measures such as providing accessible public water quality data, promoting water treatment for individual households, and educating rural women and youth about water quality issues may merit further investigation.

This thesis presents the results of exploratory sociological research designed to better understand how farmers select agricultural practices with the potential to effect water quality. The primary research methodology is a Rapid Rural Appraisal of thirty farms in five rural municipalities in Saskatchewan, Canada during the year 2000 growing season. The data establishes that a variety of economic, institutional, organizational, and social factors interact in dynamic ways to influence farmer resource management decisions and that the resulting agricultural practices have the potential for subtle and dramatic effects on water quality in Saskatchewan. Risk-mitigating farming methods known as Best Management Practices (BMPs) are interpreted by farmers in the field research as being both appropriate and problematic. Alternative initiatives and communication strategies are identified in the field data that offer support to production and productivity in the agriculture sector while also promoting water quality. The research suggests that measures such as providing accessible public water quality data, promoting water treatment for individual households, and educating rural women and youth about water quality issues may merit further investigation.

This thesis provides an analysis of the Georgia statewide regional water planning process; a system deemed to be operating in the adaptive management framework. The principal focus of this analysis is to detail a novel paradigm capable of dynamic response to changing resource demands which stems from adaptive management principles and ensures representativeness. The paradigm extends directly from application of the theories of bounded rationality and adaptive management. Development of the framework is accomplished through application of theory and correlated empirical analysis. Extreme drought conditions signal a punctuated-equilibrium effecting statewide water resource management which in turn drives the issuance of an executive-level directive to prioritize and effectively manage critical state water resources. This study evolves directly from analysis of the current effort to establish unified regional water plans which address rapid population growth, and escalating water resource conflicts with Alabama and Florida while satisfying priorities established within the executive directive. Fundamental to this analysis is the survey of currently seated regional water planning council members. The essential function of the survey is to provide a qualitative assessment of the perceptions of appointed council members. These perceptions influence water management techniques prescribed by the final policy. While this is a fuzzy correlation, a primary function of this analysis is to quantify the strength of correlation between perceptions and developed policy. This survey details appointed council member attitudes and attributes and affords analysis of future decision making outcomes. The method prescribed herein unifies multi-level decision making processes under a dynamic adaptive management paradigm, and is intended to link the regional water planning processes with continuous annual assessment in order to achieve the pluralistic benefits of adaptive management decision making.