Water security for better lives - A SUMMARY FOR POLICYMAKERS
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Water Security brochure [3]_Layout 1 27/08/2013 17:05 Page 15
Water security
for better lives A SUMMARY FOR POLICYMAKERS
Water Security brochure [3]_Layout 1 27/08/2013 17:04 Page ii
“Water security is
about learning to
live with an
acceptable level
of water risk.”
Did the Ancient Egyptians have it right?
Thirteen centuries ago, the “Nilometer”
measured the level of Nile to predict
acceptability of flood risks along the river:
moderate inundation was synonymous with
productive farming, while too little flood water
would cause famine and too much would be
equally disastrous, washing away the
infrastructure built on the floodplain.
Water Security brochure [3]_Layout 1 27/08/2013 17:04 Page 1
Water security
for better lives
A SUMMARY FOR POLICYMAKERS
What is water security? 2
Why do we need it? 3
Taking steps to address water risks 4
Market-based instruments for managing water risks 7
Policy coherence for water security 10
About OECD
The Organisation for Economic Co‐operation and Development (OECD) is a
multi‐disciplinary inter governmental organisation, tracing its roots back to
the post‐World War II Marshall Plan. Today, it comprises 34 member countries
that are committed to democratic government and the market economy and
the European Commission, with the major emerging economies increasingly
engaged directly in the work. The OECD provides a unique forum and the
analytical capacity to assist governments to compare and exchange policy
experiences, and to identify and promote good practices through policy
decisions and recommendations.
This work is published on the responsibility of the Secretary-General of the OECD. The opinions
expressed and arguments employed herein do not necessarily reflect the official views of the
Organisation or of the governments of its member countries.
© OECD September 2013
OECD freely authorises the use of this material for non-commercial purposes. All requests for
commercial uses of this material or for translation rights should be submitted to rights@oecd.org.
OECD WATER SECURITY FOR BETTER LIVES . 1
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1 What is water security?
The OECD report, Water Security for Better Lives,
proposes a fundamental shift in our approach
to tackling water security, applicable to both
OECD and non-OECD countries.
increasing diversions to reduce the risk of
water shortage can increase the risk of
undermining the resilience of freshwater
systems. Evaluating the impact on water risks
of policy interventions (or lack thereof)
Achieving water security objectives means requires weighing such “risk-risk trade-offs”.
maintaining acceptable levels for four water
risks: Water management, at its core, is about
reducing or avoiding water risks and about
l Risk of shortage (including droughts): lack
distribution of the water risks that remain –
of sufficient water to meet demand (in both
that is, who bears the risk. Policy responses to
the short- and long-run) for beneficial uses
managing water risks can also transfer risks to
by all water users (households, businesses
others or defer them into the future. As
and the environment)
explained above, policy intervention may
l Risk of inadequate quality: lack of water of increase other water risks. Current policies
suitable quality for a particular purpose or often fail to recognize these unintended
use effects (“externalities”) and to address these
trade-offs between water risks.
l Risk of excess (including floods): overflow of
the normal confines of a water system
A risk-based approach addresses water
(natural or built), or the destructive
security first and foremost by determining
accumulation of water over areas that are
acceptable levels of each of the four key
not normally submerged
water risks in terms of their likelihood and
l Risk of undermining the resilience of the potential consequences (economic,
freshwater systems: exceeding the coping environmental, social), and balancing this
capacity of the surface and groundwater against the expected benefits of improving
bodies and their interactions (the “system”); water security. This will help to ensure that
possibly crossing tipping points, and causing the level of water risk implied by different
irreversible damage to the system’s policy actions reflects societal values and
hydraulic and biological functions. that responses are proportional to the
magnitude of the risk. A risk-based approach
All four risks must be assessed in an also allows the identification of areas of high
integrated way as interventions to reduce one risk where policy action should be given
risk can increase other risks. For instance, priority.
What is risk?
Risk describes the likelihood and consequence of an at the intersection of hazard, exposure and
uncertain event of which the probability of vulnerability. The reduction of any one of the three
occurrence can be reliably estimated. Indeed risk is factors to zero consequently would eliminate the risk.
Hazard
Risk
re
Vu
su
ln
po
er
ab
Ex
ilit
y
2 . OECD WHAT IS WATER SECURITY
Water Security brochure [3]_Layout 1 27/08/2013 17:04 Page 3
2Why do we need it?
The cost of water insecurity to society There is concern that some segments of the
illustrates the magnitude of the risks. Last population face greater risks because they
year’s drought in the United States, for are more vulnerable (e.g. children), more
example, nearly halved the contribution of exposed (living in areas at risk) and have
the agricultural sector to US GDP over the more limited access to water resources and
3rd quarter. And the 2011 floods in Thailand services (e.g. poorer households). In
slashed their 4th quarter GDP growth by a particular, microbial water pollution mostly
staggering 12%, motivating the Thai Central hurts children. An estimated 1 800 children
Bank to cut rates to aid the recovery in GDP under the age of five die every day from
after the floods. diarrhoeal diseases linked to unsafe water
supplies and poor sanitation and hygiene.
The costs of policy inaction can be And groundwater shortage mostly affects
considerable, not least because water the rural poor. In the family farming
insecurity can have global impacts. This is systems of South Asia and Northern China,
because local water risks may impact on for example, 1.2 billion poor farmers rely
global commodity markets (e.g. a major primarily on groundwater for their daily
drought in a food exporting country drives income (Shah, 2007).
up food prices worldwide) and disrupt
supply chains on a global scale (e.g. the 2011 There is also a concern that disparities in
Thai floods led to the closure of water risks can increase income
multinational electronics and vehicle disparities. Because they invest less in
industries, with impacts cascading through water security and are often living in areas
the global economy) (Grey and Garrick, 2012). at water risk (e.g. areas of poor water
quality), lower income groups are more
Not only are water risks directly affecting exposed to water insecurity and
users (e.g. through the depletion of water potentially “pay” a higher share of the
resources), they also can result in significant costs of policy inaction (e.g. health costs)
additional use costs (e.g. increased than higher income groups. In addition,
abstraction costs due to groundwater water insecurity can marginalize those
subsidence). Moreover, there can be costs who lack access to capital (e.g. to invest in
associated with damages to non-use values, well-deepening as a result of falling water
such as the life-support function of water. tables).
OECD WHY DO WE NEED IT? . 3
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3 Taking steps to address water risks
Water Security for Better Lives provides
guidance on how to apply a risk-based
approach to water security through a three-
step process: “know the risks”, “target the
There is also more information available
on areas at risk of water deficit and, for
few pollutants (e.g. nitrates), on areas
vulnerable to water pollution. For
risks” and “manage the risks”. example, France has delineated areas of
chronic surface water or groundwater
deficit (i.e. water supply insufficient to
MANAGE
meet demand). These areas are subject to
cost efficiency more stringent abstraction licensing and
from practice
higher abstraction charge. Pursuant to the
Feedback
EU Nitrates Directive, EU countries are
designating zones vulnerable to nitrates
from practice
Feedback
TARGET pollution, with the aim of adopting
acceptable level measures to effectively combat nitrates
pollution in these zones.
KNOW
assessment
Know the risks
A significant obstacle to improving water
security is often a lack of knowledge on
water risks and their scale.
In general, agreement on acceptable levels of
water risks will be more likely if there is a
common understanding of the problem at
hand, its causes, and its impacts (over both
the short- and long-terms), underpinned by But much more needs to be done to assess Zones of chronic water
deficit for surface water (left)
a robust risk assessment. In addition to all the uses and associated values of water
and groundwater (right) in
scientific and technical assessments of the resources and to ensure that those exposed France.
risk, governments should also take into or vulnerable to risks have the knowledge to Source: Ministry of Ecology,
account the risk perceptions of stakeholders. make informed choices about their own Sustainable Development and
Energy, in Ben Maïd (2012).
This promotes both transparency and welfare.
accountability and can contribute to
informed public debate about the acceptable It is important to anticipate and address all
level of risk. The acceptance of a given potential risk drivers, including socio-
instrument by stakeholders and their economic trends, natural phenomena and
willingness to pay for risk management are inadequate water and water-related policies,
strongly related to the degree of awareness even if they cannot necessarily be readily
of the water risk the instrument seeks to quantified.
address, thus the importance of undertaking
concern assessment.
“In general, agreement on acceptable levels of water risks
A number of countries are taking steps to will be more likely if there is a common understanding of
reduce this risk information gap. Flood risk
maps, for instance, are now required in
the problem at hand, its causes, and its impacts,
many OECD countries, including in the underpinned by a robust risk assessment.”
European Union (pursuant to the 2007 EU’s
Floods Directive) and in the United States
(for recipients of federal disaster assistance).
4 . OECD TAKING STEPS TO ADDRESS WATER RISKS
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Taking steps to address water risks
Steps in improving understanding of water risks
Partners must first agree on the risks in order to But discussions of risk in water planning should
manage and prepare for them. not be dominated by uncertainty about
hydrological conditions. Due attention must be
The first step is to identify water risks, to measure given to economic, social, cultural and
their likelihood and impact. Indeed improving environmental factors, which can be more
knowledge and reducing information asymmetry important than hydrological uncertainties.
are the basis for making effective and informed
risk management decisions. An understanding of risk perceptions is also a
fundamental step in “knowing the risk”, as the
Good science and technical expertise are needed, perception of risk has an important influence on
especially because water resource management is stakeholders’ decisions affecting their
entering an era of uncertainty, greater variability vulnerability to the risk and risk management
and increasing risks as a result of increasing water strategies.
demand and pollution, as well as climate change.
Target the risks
In many cases, decisions about the acceptable
level of water risks are made implicitly, and Possible effect
Probability
of climate change Acceptable risk
are not the subject of informed public debate.
And it is often (natural or man-made) Managed zone Unmanaged zone
disasters – rather than carefully assessing
and managing risks in advance – that
prompts countries to worry about their level Flood magnitude, pollution, drought severity
Consequences, costs
of protection against water risks. Source: Prosser (2012).
For example, in the aftermath of Hurricane level of groundwater allocation is set “The acceptable
Sandy, New York City is now looking at how to considering trade-offs between the risks to
strengthen its flood defences. In another environmental, cultural and social
level of water risk
example, it was only after a cyanide spill into groundwater-dependent values (“in situ for society should
the Tisza and Danube rivers in 2000 that the values”) and the opportunity cost of not depend upon the
Protocol on Civil Liability to the UN-ECE Water abstracting water for consumptive use
Convention was adopted in Kiev (in 2003). (“development risk”)
balance between
economic, social
The acceptable level of water risk for society and environmental
should depend upon the balance between Targets for water risks should vary between
economic, social and environmental uses of water. For example, large dams to
consequences
consequences and the cost of amelioration. protect downstream populations might be and the cost of
The limit of cost-effective or practical water built to survive a 1:1 000 year flood. amelioration.”
management is an element to consider when Residences and major roads might be built to
evaluating the cost of amelioration. avoid inundation from a 1:100 year flood,
Indeed completely eliminating risk is often while minor roads and recreational facilities
technically impossible or just too costly. might only be secured from a 1:10 year flood.
Similarly, urban water supply might be
Governments need to focus on the systematic provided to meet demand in 95% of years and
assessment of the expected costs and not cause any human sickness in 99% of
benefits of options to manage water risks and years; whilst irrigation water might only meet
to properly evaluate risk-risk trade-offs. For demand in 50% of years and have lower water
example, in Western Australia, the acceptable quality requirements, such as salinity levels.
OECD TAKING STEPS TO ADDRESS WATER RISKS . 5
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Taking steps to address water risks
Targeting the risks
Appraising water risk acceptability means environmental terms (e.g. deterioration of
identifying areas subject to high-severity events, freshwater systems to reduce the risk of water
including “tail events” (i.e. low probability/high shortage).
impact risks), but also “slow-developing
catastrophic risk” areas, which are subject to low Depending on the existing level of water security,
but cumulative impacts (e.g. gradual depletion of incremental improvements may, in some cases, be
water resources; accumulation of pollutants in disproportionally costly. By identifying the level of
sediments). acceptability of risks, a risk-based approach
fosters targeted and proportional policy responses.
A water risk is deemed acceptable if the likelihood Emphasising the proportionality of action to
of a given hazard is low and the impact of that address risk helps to avoid taking action where the
hazard is low. In such cases, there is no pressure marginal cost of risk reduction exceeds the
to reduce acceptable risks further, unless more marginal expected benefits. There is also the
cost effective measures become available. potential for improvements in water security to be
However, while the level of water security can be achieved by correcting existing policy failures that
improved, this will generally come at a cost. This themselves are costly and are reducing the existing
cost may be in economic (e.g. building new or levels of water security. In such cases, risk may be
replacing old water infrastructure), social (e.g. reduced without imposing additional costs on
closing water allocations to cap demand) and/or society by simply addressing the policy distortions.
Manage the risks
Allocating water risks between residential,
agricultural, industrial and environmental
uses raises significant political economy
questions. Uncertainty about the values
placed by producers and consumers on
potential changes in water security can make
any systematic effort to compare the costs
and benefits of proposed targets complex for
both decision makers and stakeholders.
A risk-based approach allows for assigning
risks to the actors that are likely to be able to
manage them most efficiently. For example,
flood risks may be addressed more cost-
efficiently through flood insurance or
compensating farmers converting their land
into flood plain instead of government
investing in the construction of additional
levies.
Once set, targets for water risks should be
achieved as cost-effectively as possible. When
considering which particular instruments
should be used to meet a given target for
water risk – among direct regulatory
6 . OECD TAKING STEPS TO ADDRESS WATER RISKS
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Taking steps to address water risks
measures, market-based instruments and
public financial support – an assessment
should be made of how each instrument, or
the mix of instruments, is likely to
contribute to the goals of water security
and economic efficiency.
Another key dimension is the “social”
dimension, including equity. By explicitly
considering the distribution of water risks,
a risk-based approach helps to ensure an
equitable distribution of risks amongst
stakeholders and can help to prevent the
imposition of one group’s risk preferences
on others.
As a result, policy options should be
assessed from an economic and equity
perspective, to ensure that risk reduction is
proportional to the risk faced, pursued at
least cost and taking into account the
distributional impacts.
Implementing a risk-based approach for adapting water systems to climate change
Climate change is expected to increase water disseminating information. For instance, Chile has
risks and generate a greater degree of established a programme to monitor its glaciers,
uncertainty than water managers have which provide the single most important source of
traditionally had to cope with. Confidence levels replenishment for rivers, lakes, and groundwater in
are often low in climate change projections for arid regions during periods of drought.
key parameters needed for water management
at local scale. A risk-based approach can Some countries have engaged in processes to
provide a flexible, dynamic and future-oriented better “target” the risk by revisiting levels of
approach in the absence of reliable climate acceptable risk. For example, the Netherlands is
predictions. reviewing its flood protection standards in light of
current and future challenges, including sea-level
Considering climate change adaptation in the rise resulting from climate change.
broader context of water security can ensure that
adaptation is not undertaken in an isolated way Countries have also made some progress on
that focuses only on climate as a risk driver to the “managing” water risks. For example, the United
exclusion of other, often more dominant, drivers Kingdom is applying a real options approach to
of water risks. At the same time, climate change flood risk management for the Thames Estuary to
adaptation should also be seen as a prerequisite incorporate the uncertainty of climate change and
to improving water security over the long-term. the value of flexibility into decision making.
The OECD report, Water and Climate Change Country profiles providing a snapshot of water and
Adaptation: Policies to Navigate Uncharted climate change adaptation policies in all 34
Waters, reveals that the majority of adaptation member countries and the European Commission
efforts to date have focussed on “knowing” the are available at: www.oecd.org/env/resources/
risk by building the scientific evidence base and waterandclimatechange.htm.
OECD TAKING STEPS TO ADDRESS WATER RISKS . 7
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4 Market-based instruments for managing water risks
Did you know?
In Denmark, urban
water prices – the
Policy interventions to manage water risks
and to facilitate trade-offs between risks
will need to draw on the full range of policy
instruments at governments’ disposal.
Supply management
The natural variability of water resources
and the large upfront costs related to water
highest among These include traditional command and infrastructure investment has generally
OECD countries – control instruments such as regulations, resulted in water infrastructure
have contributed to standards and permits, as well as market- investments being made by public
reducing the based instruments such as taxes, charges authorities rather than the private sector.
average household and tradable quota schemes. This latter set To ensure that government resources are
water use to 110 of instruments has a potentially important used to achieve the highest social returns,
litres per head per role in improving water security by creating water supply investment decisions should
day, compared with an incentive structure that uses market be made using cost-benefit analysis and
long-term targets signals to influence behaviour rather than other tools to assess the trade-offs between
of 130 lhd in relying solely on regulatory instruments. By increasing access to water and the costs of
London and 140 lhd changing incentives through the use of providing access.
in Singapore. price mechanisms market-based
instruments can better signal the value of The use of scarcity pricing of water
water among competing uses, including for resources can be used to signal the optimal
environmental purposes. Market-based time to invest in large-scale water
mechanisms can be used in a variety of infrastructure projects, thereby, avoiding
ways to improve water security. the considerable welfare losses associated
with water prices being raised to cover the
costs of poorly timed investments. For
Water security Recommended market-based Advantages of use example, analysis shows that if scarcity
issue instruments pricing had been introduced in Sydney,
Australia, at an appropriate time it could
Water supply Marginal social cost pricing, Signals the optimal time to
have reduced water demand to a level
incorporating the scarcity invest in water infrastructure
which no longer required the development
value of water so that supply is augmented
efficiently
of a costly new desalination plant (Grafton
and Ward, 2010).
International and regional Allows trade of water from
water markets areas of surplus to increase
the water supply in areas of Demand management
scarcity
One way in which water demand can be
Water demand Regional water markets Allows trade of water from low managed using market-based instruments
to high value uses creating is to establish water markets. Indeed, a
incentives to use water number of countries (such as Australia) are
efficiently and reduce demand addressing the over-extraction problem by
putting a cap on the amount of water that
Marginal social cost pricing, Reduces demand for water can be extracted and by assigning a fixed
incorporating the scarcity during periods of scarcity number of tradable user’s rights for
value of water accessing the resource.
Water quantity Buy-backs of water user’s Secures water for Under a properly functioning market (where
rights environmental flows and
the number of user’s rights is not over-
offsets economic losses
allocated), access to the resource is no
longer freely available, but depends on
Water quality Emission permit trading for Allows pollution to be reduced
acquiring the water user’s right. This creates
point and non-point pollution from the lowest cost sources
a scarcity value for water and an incentive
Emission taxes Creates ongoing incentive for for individuals to use water more efficiently,
all sources to reduce pollution for example, by employing water-efficient
technology, adopting deficit irrigation, or
Source: Grafton (2011). growing less water-intensive crops.
8 . OECD MARKET-BASED INSTRUMENTS FOR MANAGING WATER RISKSWater Security brochure [3]_Layout 1 27/08/2013 17:04 Page 9
Water governance
For example, the success of water trading was Gross value of irrigated agricultural production in the Murray-Darling Basin
highlighted in the 2007-08 drought in the
12 000 6 000
Murray-Darling Basin, Australia, where the
Gross value of irrigated agricultural
Water used in irrigation (GL)
gross value of irrigated agricultural 10 000 5 000
production ($ millions)
production fell only marginally despite a
8 000 4 000
decline in water availability of more than 70%
compared with average. 6 000 3 000
4 000 2 000
Another way to manage water demand using Water use GVIAP
market-based instruments is to set efficient 2 000 1 000
water prices. For example, using data from 0 0
1 600 households across ten OECD countries, 2000-01 2001-02 2002-03 2003-04 2004-05 2005-06 2006-07 2007-08 2008-09
Grafton et al. (2011) find that households Source: Skinner (2012)
facing volumetric water pricing consume
around 20% less water than those facing Environmental water to be recovered in the Murray-Darling Basin
tariffs which are not directly linked to the Total environmental water
4 500 4039 GL
volumes of water used. Total water return
4 000 Water buybacks
Savings and infrastructure
The affordability of water prices must be 3 500
Water volume (GL)
given due attention, though. For example, in 3 000
Water buybacks
the 1990s, inhabitants of the Metropolitan 2 500
2221.8 GL
Area of Barcelona refused to pay higher water Savings and infrastructure
2 000 1817.2 GL
bills to finance the wastewater treatment
1 500
plants required by the EU.
1 000
500
Water quantity 0
2005 2010 2015 2020 2025
Market-based instruments can be used to Source: Skinner (2012)
secure water for environmental flows in the
most efficient manner. Where water markets Water quality improvement
are operating, buy-backs of water user’s rights
through markets can be used to secure Emissions taxes to manage water quality have
environmental flows efficiently by purchasing been used in a number of countries for
the lowest value uses of water first. reducing water pollution and for raising
revenues. In France, for example, emission
South Africa and Australia have taken steps taxes now make up around 12.5% of
to better manage environmental flows of household water bills (Bommelaer et al., 2011).
water. South Africa has taken a direct
regulatory approach, where a quantity of The use of emissions trading schemes is
water is set aside for the environment gaining ground, although they are less
(ecological reserve) before any other water common than emissions taxes. For example,
use permits are allocated. Australia opted for with its Lake Taupo nitrogen trading scheme,
acquiring water for the environment through New Zealand introduced the first non-point
buy-backs of water users’ rights in the water source to non-point source (NPS) cap and
market in the Murray-Darling Basin. trade scheme worldwide (Shortle, 2012).
OECD MARKET-BASED INSTRUMENTS FOR MANAGING WATER RISKS . 9Water Security brochure [3]_Layout 1 27/08/2013 17:04 Page 10
5 Policy coherence for water security
Improving water security requires a coherent
approach between water policies and other
(sectoral, environmental) policies (OECD,
2012a). In particular, the nexus between
Energy policy reform can also bring water
security benefits. For example, energy policy
that promotes the expansion of hydropower
can increase freshwater supply and improve
water, energy, food, climate and biodiversity flood/drought risk management through the
presents significant challenges for water construction of dams and storage schemes.
security, and has been attracting increasing But the benefits of hydropower may come at
policy attention in recent years. Increasing social (e.g. displacement of people) and
the coherence of policies (policy objectives environmental (e.g. changes in flow and
and policy instruments) across these areas is continuity of rivers) costs. This highlights the
essential if governments wish to meet the importance of properly assessing risk-risk
range of policy goals while not undermining trade-offs.
water security objectives.
Energy policies to enhance food security can
Did you know?
More coherent policy approaches are slowly have negative spill-over effects on water. For
Agricultural and beginning to take shape in a growing example, electricity subsidies to farmers for
water policy reform number of OECD countries. For example, the pumping of groundwater can adversely
has helped agricultural policy reform over the past 20 affect the sustainability of groundwater
Australia reduce its years has, in part, removed policy resources. In the same way, agricultural
irrigation water inconsistencies and helped address water policies to enhance energy security can
application rate by risks from agricultural activities. But much increase water risks. For example, the
nearly 60% since more needs to be done, including exploiting increasing support to agricultural feedstocks
1990. potential win-wins (such as taking steps to to produce biofuels and bioenergy may cause
increase both water and energy efficiency). water quality impacts from the use of
agrochemicals (OECD, 2012b).
A number of OECD countries are lowering
agricultural support and shifting from direct Climate policy appears to have significant
production and farm input support to spillover to other policy areas that affect water
payments that are decoupled or even support security. This includes sectors as diverse as
environmental objectives and this has helped energy, transport, agriculture, forestry, fisheries
improve water resource use efficiency and and tourism. Information on such indirect
lower water pollution from agriculture. water security impacts of climate policy would
10 . OECD POLICY COHERENCE FOR WATER SECURITYWater Security brochure [3]_Layout 1 27/08/2013 17:04 Page 11
Policy coherence for water security
certainly improve economic efficiency (e.g. Nature protection and water policies can
avoiding farmers to be paid for the reduction also help each other. For instance, floodplain
in nitrogen emissions at the same time as restoration may often be justified
they receive income to convert farmland to economically in the long run if the
forest land, which also contributes to reduce recreational (improved river accessibility)
nitrogen leaching into water) and social and biodiversity co-benefits are accounted
welfare (e.g. air quality co-benefits of for in addition to the avoided flood damage
mitigating carbon emissions improve human (Brouwer and Van Ek, 2004).
health and reduce eutrophying depositions
on surface water). As a flexible, incentive-based and site-
specific instrument, payments for ecosystem
Understanding the effects of climate services can improve the cost effectiveness in
mitigation and adaptation policies on water managing some water risks, compared to
security, and the interactions between indirect payments or other regulatory
them, is essential. For example, where the approaches. Such payments need to be
water security objective is to manage the carefully designed and implemented and Did you know?
risk of nitrate pollution of water, an should only compensate holders of land-use
adaptation policy to expand natural rights (e.g. farmers or foresters) for the Water demand for
floodplains through supporting the creation additional costs of ecosystem service energy production
of wetlands (in which bacteria convert provision, over and above legal requirements. is projected to
nitrate to nitrogen released to the They should not take the form of uniform double by 2035,
atmosphere) may prove more cost-effective payments on a per hectare basis, as is often with the largest
than a mitigation policy to reduce nitrous the case, but take account of differences in drivers being
oxide from fertilisation by encouraging ecosystem benefits and opportunity costs for expected increases
organic farming. holders of land-use rights. in coal-fired
electricity and the
Climate mitigation and water policies can ramping up of
help each other. In New Zealand, for “Understanding the effects of climate biofuel production
example, in places where it has induced mitigation and adaptation policies on (IEA, 2012).
farmland conversion into forests, carbon
emission trading has reduced nitrogen water security, and the interactions
releases into water (Yeo et al., 2012). between them, is essential.”
OECD POLICY COHERENCE FOR WATER SECURITY . 11Water Security brochure [3]_Layout 1 27/08/2013 17:05 Page 12
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12 . OECD WATER SECURITY FOR BETTER LIVESWater Security brochure [3]_Layout 1 27/08/2013 17:05 Page 13
“We urgently need a
fundamental shift in
approach to tackle
water security
challenges: we must
first agree on the
risks.”
www.oecd.org/env/resources/
watersecurity.htm
CONTACT:
Gerard Bonnis (Gerard.Bonnis.@oecd.org)Water Security brochure [3]_Layout 1 27/08/2013 17:05 Page 14
For more information:
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