Kalmar host for GIWA Kalmar host for GIWA

Global International Waters Assessment UNEP/GEF University of Kalmar, Sweden

Mission statement “GIWA is the framework of UNEP’s global water assessment strategy,” remarked Dr. Klaus Toepfer, UNEP’s Executive Director at the opening of GIWA, “and will enable us to record and report on the critical water resources of the planet for consideration of sustainable development management practices as part of our responsibilities under the Agenda 21 agreements of the Rio Conference”

Project Goals Identify the linkages between issues affecting the transboundary aquatic environment and their causes, so GEF will be better placed to intervene to resolve the problems in a sustainable and cost- effective manner and bothImplement environmental and socio-economic impact assessments in 66 subregions, including both marine and freshwater systems

Global International Waters Assessment (GIWA)

GIWA 5 Concerns (22 Issues) 1.Freshwater shortage (Reduction of stream flow; Lowering of water table and; Pollution of existing water supplies) 2.Pollution (Microbiological pollution; Eutrophication; Chemical pollution; Suspended solids; Solid waste; Thermal pollution; Radionuclides; Spills) 3.Habitat and community modification (Loss of ecosystems or ecotones; Modification of ecosystems or ecotones) 4.Unsustainable exploitation of fisheries and other living resources (Inappropriate harvesting practices; Resources/habitat changes; Habitat destruction; Decreased viability of stock through contamination and disease; Biodiversity impacts) 5.Global change (Changes in hydrological cycles; Sea level change; Increased UV-B radiation as a result of ozone depletion; Changes in ocean carbon dioxide source/sink function)

GIWA Assessment Methodology Scoping/Scaling –Identification of priority Issues (among 23 Issues) regarding: Environmental impact Socio-economic impact Detailed Impact Assessment –For those Priority Issues identified during Scoping Environmental Impact Assessment Socio-Economic Impact Assessment Causal Chain Analysis –By following the most significant successive causes of environmental degradation, a causal web is constructed, having at the top, the sociatal causes

1.Agriculture 2.Urbanization 3.Industry 4.Fisheries 5.Tourism/Leisure 6.Transport 7.Energy Sectors in the Causal-Chain

Market (Revenue optimisation, Economic growth) Inadequate Education (Competence & Capacity) Insufficient Legislation (Laws, rules, regulations and enforcement) Lack of investments (Infrastructure and equipment) Inadequate technology Demographic changes (Urbanisation, lifestyle, migration) Classes of Root Causes

GIWA: Expected Outputs The GIWA report, an up to date status of the global aquatic ecosystems and their socio- economic impacts identifying areas of global priority for GEF intervention. A GIWA Assessment Protocol, including an agreed methodology for conducting causal chain analyses to examine the social causes of water related environmental problems. Sixty-six subregional and nine Megaregional reviews of the ecological status of transboundary and other waters, as well as major environment related water issues, including analyses of their social causes. Megaregional and subregional scenarios for the future state of transboundary waters, based on planning boundaries, trends and rates of changes in industrialisation, population growth and development. A global analysis of the social causes of identified major environmental water related concerns, principal issues and effective policy responses

GIWA Project Plan