TOPIC 3 - WATER RELATED RISKS BALWOIS 2012 - 28 May to 2 June 2012 , Ohrid, Republic of Macedonia TOPIC 3 - WATER RELATED RISKS Final Conclusions

WATER RELATED RISK EXCESS OF WATER SHORTAGE OF WATER Heavy rainfalls Floods Drought Debris flow Mud flow, Water Erosion, Landslides, Landfall, Rockfall, Avalanches Other Wind erosion Wild Fires Desertification Other Nowadays, in addition to the effects of rapidly expanding human activities, humankind is faced with serious consequences of water related risks caused by excess of water (heavy rainfalls > floods, landslides, debris flows, erosion and other,) or shortage of water (drought wildfires, desertification etc) in the world.

Conference STATISTICS Significant number of abstracts Over 50 full papers CONFERENCE Total Oral Poster Excess of water 25 17 10 Shortage of water 6 3 31 20 13

CHAIRPERSONS ASSESMENT Excess of water (floods – dominant) - 25 floods and consequences 4 flood causes (precipitations) – 5 flood modeling – 4 flood mapping – 4 flood management – 3 - erosion. and run off , landslides, debris flow – 5 Shortage of water – Drought – 6 Drought causes and vulnerability asssemnets - 4 Drought consequances - 1 Drought management - 1 Other related risks - 0

The following water risk/disaster mitigation measures in general can be taken to reduce the negative effects on humans: Shift from state scale and reactive approach (emergency/crises management) to a transboundary scale and pro-active approach (basin management, monitoring, forecasting, contingency plans). Raise the awareness of the need for water related risks mitigation, mobilize support through partnerships, expand disaster mitigation activities within societies, encourage and support efforts to incorporate disaster mitigation into community decision making. .

Thank you for your attention