1. Valuing Delhi’s Natural Resources Yamuna Floodplains
Water is created naturally. It cannot be made technologically
Professor Vikram Soni (National Physical Laboratory)
Inputs: Prof s P S Dutta, V N Bajpai, Manu Bhatnagar, Diwan Singh,O Kumar , CGWB.
NATURAL HERITAGE FIRST (supported by Ashok Trivedi)

2. FRESHWATER /india Land 3.4 million sqkm Rainfall 4000 km^3
Rivers etc 1870km^3
Usable km^3
Groundwater430km^3
Total (Use) 1100km^3
PerPerson1100cu.mt.
In 1947 > 3000 cu.mt.
Actual Use 500 km^3
= 500 Billion cu. mt
Agri. > 80 %
Industry < 10 %
Domestic < 10 %
Total per person 500 cu.mt

3. INDIA Some concerns; Glaciers melting
Water storage capacity going down as forests shrink
Population up by 4 times since independence
Natural Resource loss( >50%) is more serious than climate change as it is IRREVERSIBLE
And we are developing at a huge pace to catch up with U.S , where energy consumption is over 20 times ours.
U.S. area is 3 times India’s, U.S. population is quarter of India’s. So amount of natural resources available with U.S is 12 times per capita compared to India.
We are becoming conspicuous consumers So we are going to finish these resources much more than12 times faster than U.S. - DANGER

4. Our City - Delhi
In developing countries cities are urbanizing at an unsustainable pace, way beyond their carrying capacity., in terms of everything:
Natural resources, water, waste disposal, traffic, shrinking open spaces etc.
WATER
For these mega cities in the developing world it is no longer a question of importing an essential resource like water, the water is just not there
New York, gets its water from the Catskills forest, which is 150 kilometres away. Delhi does not have such an option

5. Water Resource - Delhi
The sustainable carrying capacity of Delhi is about 8 million - less than half its present population! (“Water and Carrying Capacity of a City; Delhi”, Vikram Soni,
published in Economic and Political Weekly, Nov ,)
The study finds that a third of the city’s water is imported from the Ganga and the Beas and further import of water from these heavily agricultured river basins will lead to intense conflict.
It also found that the secondary (non potable) recycling of water is not a realistic option, as the cost per person per year will be close to $ 200,a third of the annual per capita income
This makes it urgently necessary to examine the issue in depth- especially the preservation of local natural water resource.

6. A NEW SCHEME NO OTHER SOLUTIONS FOR DELHI
THE FLOODPLAINS OF THE YAMUNA HAVE THE CAPACITY TO STORE
ENOUGH WATER FROM MONSOON DISCHARGE TO TAKE CARE OF 2/3 OF
DELHI’S WATER NEEDS
NO OTHER SOLUTIONS FOR DELHI
Rain water Harvesting is no solution : can provide only 5% of this volume
It also found that the secondary (non potable) recycling of water is not a realistic option, as the cost per person PER YEAR will be close to $200
40% of the city’s water is imported from the Ganga and the Beas-Sutlej and further import of water from these heavily agricultured river basins will lead to intense conflict

7. Delhi Yamuna Flood Plains
Area sq.kms on map
Soil Composition Permeable Top Layer: Sand
Below: silt, clay and bedrock
Depth of sand layer metres approximately
Water holding capacity % of its volume (see experiment)
Specific yield % of its volume ~600 million cubic meters
Total water extraction potential million cubic metres (almost 2/3
annual water supply of Delhi)
Economic Value – over Rs crores per year of permanent annual
non invasive use ((estimated at cheapest tanker value of water i.e Rs 1,000 for 10,000 liters or recycling cost)
See “Three Waters…”, Vikram Soni, published in Current Science, 25 September 2007

8. Even now,the river has enough surplus flow in the monsoon
Before 1960 Every year we had some monsoon flooding
At Present in Delhi we have only DECADAL floods (1995,1978)
From lack of flow
Even now,the river has enough surplus flow in the monsoon
4 BILLION MCM
A NEW SCHEME – REGULATED FLOOD
EMBANK FLOODPLAIN BETWEEN BARRAGES. DURING MONSOON
DISCHARGE OPEN UPSTREAM BARRAGE CLOSE DOWN STREAM
BARRAGE. REGULATED INUNDATION FOR A DAY OR TWO WILL
SATURATE THE FLOODPLAIN.
Percolation in the sand layer is fast: At one site: 8 meters in less than 1 day

9. Needs a 30 meter underground bund at Okhla
Needs strategic bunds from Palla to Okhla
Once we withdraw water from the floodplain, the
monsoon regulated flood will restore the freshwater to
its original level

12. Yamuna Floodplain: Features
In normal non flood state water flows from outer flood plain to river as outer floodplain has less sand so more shallow aquifer

13. ECONOMICS
1960 – 3 Million Delhi – water - no problem
URBANIZATION
Now - 17million Delhi -- no water - problem
Newsweek , AUGUST 27 (2007)
China will spend $125 billion in 5 years for recycling water
$5 Billion for million people in Shanghai - $200 per capita per year
Recycling cost for Delhi – 15 million people - $3, billion ( = previous estimate)
We are giving Delhi an option to do this free thanks to nature

14. OBSTACLES Building kills aquifer and also increases withdrawal
FLOODPLAIN BEING DESTROYED BY CONSTRUCTION
Against advice from NEERI, MoEF Expert Committee and COURTS
1.AKSHARDHAM
2.METRODEPOT ETC
3.COMMON WEALTH GAMES VILLAGE
4.OTHER
SOLUTIONS
Alternative site
Metro depot – Anand Vihar in east Delhi.
Games Village - Dwarka , Jasola, or Safdarjang Airport
Others - Cancel
ALTERNATIVE
NEERI specifically says build a temporary structure for Games village

15. Augment flow in the Yamuna AT HATHNIKUND YAMUMA Diverted to
Suggestion
Augment flow in the Yamuna
AT HATHNIKUND
YAMUMA Diverted to
Western Yamuna Canal (Haryana) Eastern Yamuna Canal (UP)
Delhi gets water from
BEAS ( FROM WEST) GANGA ( TEHRI)
Eco strategy INSTEAD JUST LET THE YAMUNA FLOW TO DELHI
The BEAS to Haryana and the GANGA to UP and not waste water
transport in canals and avoid siltation and conflict