Assessment of groundwater resources in the Baikal Basin and groundwater-related transboundary issues (Output 1.3) Assessment of groundwater resources in the Baikal Basin and groundwater-related transboundary issues (Output 1.3) UNESCO-International Hydrological Programme Project Steering Committee, Ulaanbaatar, April 2013 GEF-UNDP-UNOPS regional project “Integrated Natural Resource Management in the Baikal Basin Transboundary Ecosystem” Holger Treidel, UNESCO International Hydrological Programme (IHP)

 Groundwater plays a central socio-economic role Primary source of drinking water Primary source of drinking water Supplies major cities in the basin Supplies major cities in the basin Agriculture and industry Agriculture and industry  Exploitation mainly from shallow unconfined aquifers, generally supplying high quality water  Vulnerable to pollution (especially shallow groundwater) and over-exploitation  Climate change is expected to further increase the importance  buffer function Groundwater in the Lake Baikal Basin

 IWRM: to recognize the intergrated nature of surface and shallow groundwater circulation  Deep groundwater circulation plays a role in the lake‘s ecology (not a focus in the framework of this project)  TDA/SAP will need to address: Protection of groundwater sources for potable water Protection of groundwater sources for potable water Protection of recharge areas (Karst, main fractured belts along the active faults) Protection of recharge areas (Karst, main fractured belts along the active faults) Land use policies in valley floors, tourism development Land use policies in valley floors, tourism development  First lake project in the GEF portfolio adopting a basin approach, fully integrating groundwater considerations

Shallow groundwater resources  Alluvial sediments of rivers draining into lake Baikal  Concentration of human activities  contamination of unconfined alluvial aquifers  Nutrients and PTS (from agriculture, mining, other industries and urban waste)  Risk for both, human health and the lake ecosystem  Surface water – shallow groundwater interactions

Scope of activities under the Output 1.3  Sustainable, integrated management of groundwater and surface water and environmentally sound water protection policy  Increasing water demand for drinking and other purposes and potential impacts of excessive groundwater exploitation (e.g. groundwater level decline, loss of base flow, land subsidence).  Transboundary pollution threats to groundwater quality (in close cooperation with Output 1.4).  Advantages of conjunctive use of groundwater and surface water for social and economic development. Compile existing knowledge, data and information on transboundary groundwater resources in shallow aquifers in the Baikal Basin, with special regard to:

  Vulnerability of groundwater and groundwater dependent ecosystems.   Influence of the present status of land use and land use planning on groundwater resources quantity and quality.   Potential impact of climate variability and change on different type of aquifers (shallow, karstic, deep) and on frequency and extent of natural disasters (floods, droughts, storms, earthquakes). Scope of activities under the Output 1.3 – cont’d Output: Groundwater report as a contribution to the preparation of the Baikal Basin TDA, including Identification of groundwater-related issues of transboundary concern Recommendations for managementOutput: Groundwater report as a contribution to the preparation of the Baikal Basin TDA, including Identification of groundwater-related issues of transboundary concern Recommendations for management

Activities and Progress to date   IAA signed UNOPS-UNESCO signed in September 2012   Key partners for the groundwater acitivities identified and contacted:   Mongolia: Institute of Geoecology & UNESCO Chair, Ministry of Environment and Green Development, Geological Investigation Centre, Institute of Hydrology and Meteorology   Russian Federation: Irkutsk State University & UNESCO Chair on Water Resources, Geological Institute SB RAS, Baikal Institute of Nature Management SB RAS, Limnological Institute SB RAS, Institute of Water Problems (Moscow)

 Detailed workplan for the implementation of groundwater activitites and TORs for national experts prepared  Scientific-technical coordinator for output 1.3 contracted  Four national experts on hydrogeology (2 from Russia, 2 from Mongilia) nominated and contracted (based on recommendation from partners institutions)  First workshop organized in Ulan Bator, November 2012 Agreement on structure and table of contents of the groundwater report Agreement on structure and table of contents of the groundwater report Assignment of tasks among the experts Assignment of tasks among the experts Activities and Progress 2012 – cont‘d

 Interim groundwater report submitted 20 January Comprehensive compilation of existing groundwater-related data and information in the Baikal Basin Comprehensive compilation of existing groundwater-related data and information in the Baikal Basin Two parts: Mongolia and Russia Two parts: Mongolia and Russia 1. Geographical, hydrological and climatic characteristics 2. Overview of geological conditions, incl mineral resources 3. Hydrogeological conditions (shallow aquifers, deep aquifers, aquifers in the perennial permafrost deposits 4. Detailed description of shallow aquifers in fluvial /alluvial deposits 5. Groundwater pollution (from municipal wastes, mining, industrial activities, agriculture) 6. Groundwater abstraction (for drinking water supply, for mining activities, for industrial activities, for agriculture/irrigation) 7. Groundwater monitoring network 8. Groundwater protection (Protection zones, Land use planning in groundwater recharge zones, Protection of groundwater dependent ecosystems) 9. Groundwater legislative framework 10. Occurrence of hydrological disasters and their impact on water resources and populations 11. Potential climate change influence on groundwater resources Activities and Progress to date

 Second groundwater team meeting organized, Ulan-Ude, March 2013 Agreement on structure of the final groundwater report, contribution to the TDA of the Baikal Basin Agreement on structure of the final groundwater report, contribution to the TDA of the Baikal Basin Title of the final report: Assessment of shallow groundwater resources in the Transboundary Lake Baikal Basin: current knowledge, protection and management frameworks Title of the final report: Assessment of shallow groundwater resources in the Transboundary Lake Baikal Basin: current knowledge, protection and management frameworks Distribution of tasks towards the completion of the report Distribution of tasks towards the completion of the report  Based on the preliminary results, substantial additional inputs were provided by the UNESCO team on groundwater issues,  partly integrated in the final version of TDA doc as well as annexed. Establishment of a transboundary groundwater monitoring network Establishment of a transboundary groundwater monitoring network Priority issues of transboundary concern Priority issues of transboundary concern Activities and Progress to date

Issues of transboundary concern  Establishment and operation of transboundary groundwater monitoring programme, including establishment of standardized methodology of groundwater observation and sampling and harmonization of monitoring frequency  Establishment of transboundary water database in GIS and formulation of methodology of transboundary water data assessment and management, and data mutual accessibility and exchange between Russia and Mongolia  Based on groundwater monitoring data evaluation of transboundary groundwater flows and transboundary groundwater pollution threats in shallow aquifers in the valleys of transboundary rivers

Issues of transboundary concern (cont‘d)  Evaluation of existing and potential pollution sources (industry, mines, municipalities, agriculture) with respect to the potential transboundary groundwater pollution transport and propose relevant groundwater pollution remediation techniques  Investigation and evaluation of conditions for interaction between surface water and groundwater in shallow aquifers with respect to the potential conjunctive use and protection of both resources on the transboundary level and Baikal Basin scale  Evaluation of the impact of turf degradation processes on groundwater quality in shallow aquifers and on Baikal Lake

Transboundary groundwater monitoring network and database in GIS  Transboundary groundwater monitoring network has not been established yet  no evidence about groundwater quantity and quality flowing across Mongolian – Russian boundary  Together with existing data from surface water transboundary network groundwater data will support calculation of total (surface water and groundwater) transboundary water runoff and potential transboundary groundwater pollution threats  Standardization of monitoring methods and harmonization of sampling frequency in both countries will provide reliable, mutually comparable and consistent groundwater data sets; Quality Assurance / Quality Control (QA / QC) procedure will be ordinary part of groundwater monitoring procedure

Transboundary groundwater monitoring network and database in GIS (cont‘d)  Feedback is an essential future of any monitoring programme; geostatistical methods and relevant models help to adjust monitoring network design, optimize measurements and samplings frequency and number of variables observed  Operation of transboundary groundwater and surface water monitoring networks has to be integrated and coordinated with meteorological, soil and other environmental networks and programmes  Establishment of transboundary groundwater GIS database, sharing of monitoring data and free data exchange between both countries is pointed out

Workplan Output 1.3 – next steps  Finalization and submission of the final groundwater report - end of May 2013  The preliminary report was largely focused on data collection and compilation  The final report will focus on analysis of the available data, with special regard to transboundary aquifers in the border between Russia and Mongolia

Budget (USD) Output 1.3 Output 1.4 Total Consultants 78,200 (4 national consultants, 1 coordinator) 17,200 (national consultants) 95,400 Travel, incl. meetings 48,000 (two expert group meetings, participation in SC meeting 14,300 (coordinating and scoping meetings) 62,300 Miscellaneous 1,000 (purchase of maps) -1,000 Total expenditure to date 127,20031,500158,700  Total allocation received to date: 175,000 (140k for output 1,3 and 35k for output 1.4