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Water Transfer Schemes

Water transfer projects have significant impacts on both source and receiving areas, including reduced water availability and ecosystem degradation at the source, while increasing water demand and pollution in receiving areas. The document discusses case studies such as the Snowy Mountains Scheme in Australia, which has both positive and negative environmental and political impacts, and international projects like the proposed water transfer from Turkey to Israel and China's South-North Water Transfer project. These projects highlight the complexities and challenges of managing water resources across different regions.

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6 views2 pages

Water Transfer Schemes

Water transfer projects have significant impacts on both source and receiving areas, including reduced water availability and ecosystem degradation at the source, while increasing water demand and pollution in receiving areas. The document discusses case studies such as the Snowy Mountains Scheme in Australia, which has both positive and negative environmental and political impacts, and international projects like the proposed water transfer from Turkey to Israel and China's South-North Water Transfer project. These projects highlight the complexities and challenges of managing water resources across different regions.

Uploaded by

cassidymotang
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Risks of developing pathways

There are many impacts of water transfer projects on both the source and the receiving area. These are:

Source: Receiving Area:


- Less water - The reduced amount of water means - More water — solves existing demand and
that locals won’t have as much to use therefore it therefore leads to increased usage
may increase poverty - Development demands — the increased water
- Ecosystem changes — ecosystems may be means that development of cities may increase,
degraded, destroyed, have lower functioning and along with tourism sites such as golf courses. It will
productivity as a result of the decreased water also lead to better human health due to better
- Pollution - increased pollution as there is less sanitation
dilution so the pollutants are more concentrated - Agricultural demands — the increased availability
of water means that famers may use it
unsustainably e.g. flood irrigation
- Pollution — pollution from fertilisers cause
eutrophication and salivation of water courses,
which is then transferred in the water transfer
project causing ecosystem degradation.

Water transfer projects can be on a range of scales, the case studies below cover a national example as well as a
international example.

CASE STUDY: Snowy Mountains Scheme, Australia -


NATIONAL

The Snowy Mountains hydro-electric scheme is the


largest engineering project ever undertaken in
Australia. The scheme consists of:

- 16 major dams
- 1 pumping station
- 7 power stations
- 225km of pipelines and tunnels

The scheme is mainly underground with only 2% above ground, covering a mountainous area of 5,124km2
costing AUS$820 million. It began in 1949 and as completed 25 years later in 1974. The purpose of the
scheme is to collect melt water from the Snowy Mountains and divert it through tunnels in the mountains,
through dams, generating electricity. The water then flows mainly into the Murray and Murrumbidgee Rivers,
instead of the Snowy River like it did prior to the scheme.

Environmental Impacts: Political Impacts:


- Dams built have caused the creation of a large - As a result of the scheme there was conflict within
storage lakes such as Lake Eucumbene. This has the government. This has meant that the Snowy
flooded large, valuable wildlife habitats. The Water Inquiry has created in 1998. This inquiry
decomposition of vegetation in these is releasing decided that in flow in the Snowy Mountain river
large amounts of CO2 into the atmosphere. has to be restored to 20% of its flow by 2010, and
- Diverting there river flow to New South Wales for then eventually 28% (the level set by scientists to
irrigation means that the Snowy River flow is now which it can sustain itself).
at just 1% of what it was prior to the diversion.

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Positives:
- The scheme will displace 5 million tonnes of CO2 as the it will generate around 74% renewable energy for the east and
28% nationwide
- The farmlands that can be irrigated by Snowy water produce million of dollars worth of crops each year
- The lakes and reservoirs created provide tourists attractions for hundreds of visitors each year.

CASE STUDY: Turkey to Israel - INTERNATIONAL

There have been many issues that have arisen due to the water transfer projects proposed between Turkey and Israel. Israel
desperately needs an alternative water supply because the over-abstraction of aquifers next to the Sea of Galilee means
that salt water incursion has occurred. The demand for water in Israel is ever-growing with it currently being 1.5 billion m3
per year.

Turkey has a surplus of water in the Manavgat River which could be easily sold to Israel. Water transfer projects have been
discussed for years, the timeline below show this:

December 2001 - Israel and Turkey plan an undersea May 2005 - Israel and Turkey discuss once again the
pipeline linked via northern Cyprus possibility of an undersea pipeline

August 2002 - Israel begins talks with Turkey to import 50 April 2006 - the water pipeline deal is scrapped amid
million cubic meters of treated water each year using fears of terrorism, as well as the fact that the cost of
tankers desalinations is falling

July 2004 - Syria objects to Turkey supply Israel with June 2007 - Turkey proposes a ‘peace bridge’ overland
water because it already has reservoirs on the Tigris and pipeline to link the Middle Eastern states
Euphrates that are reducing water flow through Syria,
therefore increased abstraction will reduce this further. July 2008 - official figures suggest Turkey is experiencing
increasing drought and its own water shortage. This could
be due to global warming and poor management.

After the Gaza flotilla incident in 2010 in which Israel raided 6 aid ships in the Mediterranean Sea. As a result discussions
between Turkey and Israel have halted as well as other proposals such as Bluestream 2 and Manavgat projects.

CASE STUDY: China’s South-North Water Transfer

China’s South-North water transfer project is one of the largest water transfer projects in the world. The project started
planning in 1952, with work starting in 2002, expecting to be completed by 2050. The aim is to divert 45 billion meters
cubed of water a year from the water surplus river basins in the south and east to the north where there is frequent deficit
in places such as Beijing and Tianjin. The project will cost $62 billion to complete and will involve the resettlement of
people which was not popular.

There are 3 main routes in which this project is diverting water. These are:

1. Western Routes - work started on these in 2010, with the terrain being very difficult and the altitude being between
3000 and 5000m. The route here will pass an area of high industry. As a result it is feared that this will mean that water is
polluted on transfer, as well as reduce the volumes in the Yangtze causing problems with sediment and the ecosystem
2. Central Routes - this is a 1267km diversion with some of the water from the Three Gorges Dam being used in order
help.
3. Eastern Route - this route is 1,155km long diversion from the Yangtze river
next to Shanghai to Beijing and Tianjin in the north.

In this project the main key player is the government sponsored ‘South to North’
Water Transfer Project Company, which works with each provinces water
company. Other key players involved in the project as those undertaking the
huge civil engineering needed building 3 major canals, pipelines, tunnels and
pumping stations.

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