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<br />February 2003
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<br />ECOLOGICALLY SUSTAINABLE ~ATBR MANAGEMENT
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<br />emphasize a few elements partic~larly relevant to water
<br />man~gelnent. .
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<br />[] DOomJrnDO DCDDDIJ
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<br />During the initial detel.minatfon of ecosystem flo'w
<br />!"equireLnents, a nun1ber ofhypotheses will be gen'erated
<br />concerning the ex.pected responses of various ecosys-
<br />tem conditions to the ecosystem flow prescription', For
<br />examplet it lnight be hypothesized that under the pre.. .
<br />scribed flood conditions, the popltlation of a ,target fish
<br />species will fluctuate within an estimated range, Some
<br />of the most important }1ypotheses will be tested during
<br />,the water managen1ent experimeJ1tatlon described for
<br />Step 5 of our framework~.Other hypotheses should be
<br />.tested through tht collection and analysis of monitoring
<br />data over longer time frames. Monitoring data should
<br />be collected for a suite of ecosystem indicat~r~ that
<br />reflect ecological integrity as a whole (Noss, 1990)1 in
<br />a manner that allows for testing hypotheses developed
<br />in earlier steps" .
<br />In 'Kruger National Park in South Africa, ecosystem
<br />flow ~equirements and targeted ranges fOf. other- eco-
<br />sy.stem indicators bav'e been d'efined for geolnorphic
<br />conditions, vegetationJ fish, invettebl.ates, birds, and
<br />water quality (Table 2~ Rogers~and Bestbiel~ 1997). Foi.
<br />each ecosystem attribute, scientists' have specified the
<br />freqllency. scale) and methods for meaSl1rement, as well.
<br />as all associated th:lteshol d of possible concern: These
<br />tht'esholds are ex.pressed as upper or lower yaloest pro..
<br />viding bounds within. which an ecosystenl a.ttribute is
<br />expected to fluctuate, or thresholds that should not be
<br />crossed. , _._ .
<br />, Selecting a'suite of indicators and defining targeted
<br />ranges of Viliatioll or oritical thresholds for each at..
<br />tribute l~eqti.ires a high level of understanding of the
<br />interaction among river flows, human. activities, and
<br />ecosysten1 response. As results ,from the monitoring
<br />program clarify these relationshipst new. ecosystem in-
<br />dicatol'S or target ranges ~ay need to be selected.'
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<br />o DODODOcmro
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<br />As described in Step 4J adaptive,manageme.nt should
<br />always begin with ~e:fining ll1utually acceptable go'als
<br />. fa r water management (Rogers and Bestbier 1997). Def-
<br />inition of nlutually acceptable g08:1s related to' ecosys~
<br />tem healtht economic benefitst and other societafneeds
<br />and preference~ should be an explicit product of the'
<br />collaboration We encourage in Step 4~ Water manage-
<br />ment activities can then be directed at trying to fully
<br />attain these goals, Tbis may require num~rous itera-
<br />tions or trials, such 'as Inaking nlodifications, to dam
<br />operating rules or wat~r wiUldrawal schedules. It may
<br />also becolne necessary t6 revisit 111utually agreed UpOl1
<br />goals if the full suite cannot be realisticatty attained.
<br />c UnfortllnateIY1 traditional water man,agemen~ plans
<br />have commonly been formulated ill ways that make
<br />then1 difficult, if not impossible, to modify frequently
<br />or quickly. For example, specific requirell1ents for pr~-,
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<br />visio-n of instrealn :flows below pl'ivate hydropower
<br />dam$ in the United States are cOLnmonly specified in
<br />40-Yf dam operating licenses, makIng modificatio11S to
<br />thesq flow requirements costly, time..conswning, or Ie-
<br />.gall~ problematic. The design of water infrasU"ucture,
<br />suchl as water relea.se structures at dams~ Ol~. pipes and
<br />plunps used to divert wa:tel~ fronl. a Jiver; can place
<br />serious constraints on nlanagement fle.xibility if these
<br />struqtures are 110t designed to pass ,variable volumes of
<br />water.
<br />It ~ is absolutely essential that. all ecologically sus..
<br />tain~ble wa.ter ulanagement plan preserves th.e ability
<br />to r~spond to new information gained from water Inan..
<br />ageL11ent ex.periments or a long-tel1.n, monitoring pro..
<br />grat*t and to alter, the plan and related infrastructure
<br />'ope~ations accordingly. This ultimately depends on the
<br />tlex~bi1ity of wa.ter management infrastructure, regu..
<br />lato*y or legal mechanis1118 controlling water use, and
<br />the politipal will to stay with all ever-evolving process.
<br />O~er the long tetml managin$ adapti vely to meet the
<br />goa\ of ecologically sustahlable water management wiil
<br />il1cr~ase certainty as the most troublesome uncertain-
<br />ties ~are reso [vedJ infrastructure operations are refined
<br />fot" ~reater efficiency and compaJibi1~ty, and ecological
<br />degvada.tion halted. As adjl.lstll1ents in the status quo'
<br />arc ~equired, parties may need to aeriously explore
<br />wayk to share and minhnize the financial and economLc
<br />i1l1P~C~. including the possibility of indemnification
<br />agreetnents that cover SOlne of the costs associated with
<br />thes~ chaIlges. -If it is impossible to hnplelnellt new or
<br />mocHfied water Inanagement strategies over time, the
<br />optiPtlS for attaining ecologically sustainable ,water
<br />ma~agement will be diminished greatly. ...
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<br />o morn,
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<br />tater mallagers will need, to continually respond to
<br />ne~ information by modifying their ecologically sus-
<br />tain'abJe water manageme:nt plan, The process and au-
<br />tho\iities 'for sueh, decision..mak;ing must be clearly ar-
<br />ticuJated,in the pla.n. We strongly recommend that this
<br />governance include the formation of a scientific peer
<br />review C011'lnlitteejl chartel.ed with responsibility for re..
<br />vie{ving the design and results of water management
<br />expleriments and monito ring and making recomlnen..
<br />dat~ons to a river basin commission or othe'r local or
<br />reglonal management agency with ultimate decision~
<br />- ma~ing au~horlty i'
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<br />tJ[I]]O] rnoOODO
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<br />the.management plan should also identify funding
<br />ne~ds and sources, witlJ. an emphasis 011 SOtlrces that
<br />caci provide for long-term security. Even. .short-term
<br />bre;aks in funding' support ca.n severely iUlpact water'
<br />m~lagement experil\lents and monitoring progranls:
<br />Th~ success of monitoring programs relies upon C011-
<br />tinilousj consistellt measurements adequa.te to capture
<br />sh~rt..term and interann~al fluctuations in flow and eco-
<br />sy~tem conditions.. Multiple..year congressional appro-
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