James L. Wescoat

Socio-hydrology: Use-inspired water sustainability science for the Anthropocene

Water is at the core of the most difficult sustainability challenges facing humans in the modern era, involving feedbacks across multiple scales, sectors, and agents. We suggest that a transformative new discipline is necessary to address many and varied water-related challenges in the Anthropocene. Specifically, we propose socio-hydrology as a use-inspired scientific discipline to focus on understanding, interpretation, and scenario development of the flows and stocks in the human-modified water cycle across time and space scales. A key aspect of socio-hydrology is explicit inclusion of two-way feedbacks between human and water systems, which differentiates socio-hydrology from other inter-disciplinary disciplines dealing with water. We illustrate the potential of socio-hydrology through three examples of water sustainability problems, defined as paradoxes, which can only be fully resolved within a new socio-hydrologic framework that encompasses such two-way coupling between human and water systems.

Indus Basin of Pakistan : Impacts of Climate Risks on Water and Agriculture

This study, Indus basin of Pakistan: the impacts of climate risks on water and agriculture was undertaken at a pivotal time in the region. The weak summer monsoon in 2009 created drought conditions throughout the country. This followed an already tenuous situation for many rural households faced with high fuel and fertilizer costs and the impacts of rising global food prices. Then catastrophic monsoon flooding in 2010 affected over 20 million people, devastating their housing, infrastructure, and crops. Damages from this single flood event were estimated at US dollar 10 billion, half of which were losses in the agriculture sector. Notwithstanding the debate as to whether these observed extremes are evidence of climate change, an investigation is needed regarding the extent to which the country is resilient to these shocks. It is thus timely, if not critical, to focus on climate risks for water, agriculture, and food security in the Indus basin of Pakistan.

Water Management in the Indus Basin of Pakistan: A Half-century Perspective

This paper surveys the past half-century of water management experiments and experience in the Indus River basin in Pakistan as a way to identify principles for long-term water planning. The survey focuses on three variables: (1) spatial scales of water management; (2) geographic regions of water management; and (3) substantive water problems. These variables help assess changes during the post-colonial transition (1947-60); Indus basin development (1960-75); and management and environmental movements (1975-2000). Taken together, these periods point toward a model of Articulated Adaptive Management, which stresses planning for economic, political and environmental crises; dynamic changes in governance; multiple scales of water management; regional diversity and innovation; and broader scientific experimentation and monitoring of water management alternatives .

The Water-Energy-Food Nexus: Enhancing Adaptive Capacity to Complex Global Challenges

Multiple intersecting factors place pressure on planetary systems on which society and ecosystems depend. Climate change and variability, resource use patterns, globalization viewed in terms of economic enterprise and environmental change, poverty and inequitable access to social services, as well as the international development enterprise itself, have led to a rethinking of development that solely addresses economic growth. Fulfilling the essential human aspirations for quality of life, meaningful education, productive and rewarding work, harmonious relations, and sustainable natural resource use requires ingenuity, foresight and adaptability.

Managing the Indus River basin in light of climate change: Four conceptual approaches

Abstract Global warming raises troubling questions about the ecological and economic future of large irrigated river basins such as the Indus River in Pakistan. But it is not clear how potential impacts might best be identified or addressed. This article reports on a multidisciplinary study of four distinct conceptual approaches to climate change: climate scenarios assessment; critical water management problems; historic antecedents and analogies; and Muslim political reconstruction. Current scientific research emphasizes the first approach, but the other three may be more important for water managers in the basin. The article reviews previous research on water resources effects of climate change; introduces the Indus basin; discusses the four conceptual approaches; and finally discusses prospects for coordinating them.

On Water Conservation and Reform of the Prior Appropriation Doctrine in Colorado

The prior appropriation doctrine has come under criticism for impeding both the efficient allocation of water and the adoption of water conservation improvements. Analysis of water rights statutes and case law revealed the following opportunities for evolutionary reform of the appropriation doctrine in Colorado: more precise definition of key property rights concepts (such as beneficial use, waste and duty of water); improved public administration (e.g., in record-keeping and analysis of water use patterns); and organizational adjustments to reduce transaction costs and strategic behavior. Integration of vested rights with the concept of maximum beneficial use will depend upon such creative adjustments in public and private institutions for water management. 32 references, 3 figures, 4 tables.

Energy use in large-scale irrigated agriculture in the Punjab province of Pakistan

Pakistan’s Indus Basin irrigation system, conceived initially as a vast network of gravity-fed canals, has evolved into a quasi-conjunctive management system in which pumped groundwater increasingly augments surface water supplies. Analysis of the evolution of on-farm energy use for agriculture in Punjab Province over the last 15 years finds that while total crop production increased 31%, direct energy intensity for agriculture increased 80%. Moreover, direct energy use is chiefly driven by groundwater pumping (61%). Important knowledge gaps are identified in the critical water-energy-food interdependencies that need to be addressed for sustainable management of scarce natural resources in Pakistan.

Environmental impacts of climate change and water development in the Indus delta region

Abstract The prospect of global warming raises particular concern in delta regions, many of which are already experiencing severe environmental strain as the result of human activity. This paper considers the potential environmental effects of climatic change and water development in the delta region of Pakistans Indus River Basin. The impact assessment is conducted using regional output from a river basin simulation model of the Indus Basin. Potential changes in river inflows to the delta, canal diversions and groundwater balance are evaluated under a range of climate change and water development scenarios. The paper also explores possible environmental impacts not included in the modelled evaluation, and discusses policy implications of the assessment results.

Resource management: oil resources and the Gulf conflict

Last year’s progress report on global environmental change noted the connections between resource management, war, colonialism, trade, and ecologic crisis (Wescoat, 1991). The Gulf conflict of 1991 demonstrates the importance of these connections and raises troubling questions about geographers’ research on resource conflicts, in general, and oil resources in particular. This review asks: what role did oil play relative to other geopolitical, cultural, and political-economic forces in the Gulf conflict? Has there been sufficient geographic research on oil resources to address this question? What contributions have geographers made, and what difference have they made?

Water Policy and Cultural Exchange: Transferring Lessons from Around the World to the Western United States

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