THE WORLD BANK CHINA ▪ WATER GLOBAL PRACTICE ▪ PROJECT INNOVATIONS KNOWLEDGE SHARING SERIES China Turpan Water Management Model
WATER SCARCITY SOLUTIONS FOR DEVELOPMENT IN ARID REGIONS Innovations for Dryland Water Management Public Disclosure Authorized Turpan Prefecture in far western China is one of China’s poorest and most arid regions. Struggling to balance limited water supplies with growing demands, the entire Turpan Basin faces significant water resources challenges: Xinjiang ▪ Chronic and worsening groundwater overdraft, and dropping water tables UygarAutonomous Region Turpan ▪ Persistently low incomes for small farmers District ▪ Current uses of scarce water resources leave insufficient supplies for important local ecosystems and priority future demands The People’s Republic of China ▪ Previous large-scale efforts to save water had counter-intuitively led to an overall increase in basin water consumption The Xinjiang Turpan Water Conservation Project successfully used advanced remote-sensing (RS) technology, targeted improvements in irrigated agri- Geographic location of Turpan in western China culture, and reforms to water rights and water pricing for a ‘whole-system’ water resources management solution supported by the World Bank. PROJECT PROFILE ( P111163 ) Public Disclosure Authorized This new 'China Turpan Model' provides important lessons and sustainable IBRD Loan Amount: US$100 million solutions for combatting water scarcity and promoting development in arid Implementation Period: 2010 - 2017 regions with over-exploited water resources and degraded ecosystems. World Bank Office: Beijing, China
Project Area Context Timeline of Modern Water Turpan Prefecture, located in Xinjiang Uygar Autonomous Stress in Turpan Prefecture Region, is an ancient Silk Road outpost and one of the The 1980’s and 1990’s poorest, most remote, and most arid regions in western China began economic reforms. China. Turpan owes its existence to groundwater-fed In western China, agricultural Turpan is a poor agricultural springs and ancient water wells, called Karez, that for production was promoted by region in western China… long provided water to caravans crossing the vast desert. expanding irrigated lands.
Public Disclosure Authorized In modern times, rapid expansion of irrigated land has From 1992 to 1999 greatly increased the pressure on groundwater (GW) – Turpan reclaimed desert lands by threatening the viability of agriculture, which accounts expanding basic irrigated farming for 70% of employment in the region. The Turpan from 60,000 to 80,000 hectares. government responded with investments in modern, However, this expansion was water-saving irrigation technologies (e.g. drip-irrigation, without significant consideration …in one of China’s most arid sprinklers, canal-lining, low-pressure pipes, etc.). With of local water carrying capacity. zones… optimistic estimates that they could save irrigated water From 2000 to 2008 through use of the new technologies, local planners By this time, surface and ground- reasoned they could both further expand irrigated water supplies were under great farmland, and at the same time save water. stress. The Turpan government invested in modern irrigation However, the expected water savings were not realized. technologies to save water. But Farmers expanded the total area of cultivated farmland, at the same time, irrigated farm- resulting in an increase in total water use for irrigation in …with ancient underground land expanded from 80,000 to ‘Karez’ wells… the basin. Groundwater levels continued to decline by 1.5 107,000 hectares (+33%). Public Disclosure Authorized – 2.0 meters per year, most karez systems fell into disrepair, sensitive oasis and lacustrine ecosystems were By 2008 Severe surface and groundwater severely damaged, and little water was available for problems had only worsened. planned industry and urban development. GW over-exploitation exceeded In 2008, the World Bank started to prepare the Xinjiang 230 million m3 per year, water Turpan Water Conservation Project (loan: US$100 million) tables dropped 2m per year, and …and where lake ecosystems to help investigate these issues and recommend water management emerged as are drying up. innovative, workable solutions. an unsustainable crisis.
THE WORLD BANK CHINA TURPAN WATER MANAGEMENT MODEL 1 China’s Turpan Model: Identifying the Problem
The Xinjiang Turpan Water Conservation Project aimed to address water challenges in a comprehensive fashion from three important perspectives. These local challenges are only expected to intensify because of climate change.
Turpan Water Arid Farmer’s Managers’ Ecosystems’ Perspective Perspective Perspective
Persistently low incomes Insufficient data and management tools Chronic and worsening damage Small farmers in Turpan depend on Water managers in Turpan were Local ecosystems in Turpan were groundwater for their livelihood. aware of the challenges, but lacked stuck facing severe and increasing Access to water through shallow the right data on water supplies and stress. Water resources were not wells is threatened by rapidly usage. Managers have been unable systematically managed to ensure dropping water tables and the need to monitor water consumption; nor sufficient environmental flows. to install ever-larger and ever-more could they control farmers digging The result has been chronic and costly pumps. new wells, expanding irrigated areas, worsening groundwater overdraft With limited alternatives in the arid and using more water. (230 million m3/yr), dropping water basin, small farmers never seem to Current water usage patterns leave tables (1-2 m/yr), and great stress on have enough water when they need insufficient supplies for the historic sensitive lakes and wetlands. it. This leads to low yields and low karez wells, local ecosystems, and Turpan’s Aiding Lake dried up, local incomes, which prevents investment new industry & domestic demands. trees and vegetation died, sensitive in better water-saving practices. The And, past efforts to save water with wildlife habitats shrunk, and erosive result is a vicious cycle of persistent modern irrigation technology led to dust storms cause negative health poverty and wasted water. more overall water use (see below). impacts on local residents.
1990 2012 1990 2012
Aiding Lake Aiding Lake credit: IBT, credit:2003 IBT, Farmers in Turpan rely on increasingly Irrigated farmland and total water use The surface area of Aiding Lake (blue) was deep and costly wells. (red) expanded from 1990 to 2012. completely dry by 2012.
PARADOX : Modern Irrigation Efforts Do Not Always Reduce Overall Water Consumption In Turpan, as in other arid regions around the world (North Africa, the Middle East, etc.), there is Conventional, Inefficient Modern, ‘Efficient’ Irrigation Irrigation an observed paradox whereby modern, large-scale efforts to save water actually lead to an ET Increased overall increase in total water consumption. The underlying problem is threefold: Yield & ET
▪ First, while modern irrigation beneficially increases crop health and yield, this can actually With- Farm Land Farm Land drawal WithdrawalWith- increase the water consumption of individual farmers (as measured by evapotranspiration, ET). (Conv. Irrig) drawal (Modern. Irrig) ▪ Second, with conventional irrigation, excess water seeps into the ground or flows downstream
DS and is relied upon by other farmers and ecosystems in the basin. Modern efficient irrigation Reduced GW Outflows to GW Outflows systems reduce these flows and don’t necessarily “save” water from the basin perspective. & Downstream ▪ Third, current definitions of water rights entitle farmers to withdraw a certain volume of water from Modern irrigation alone reduces flows to GW common conveyance channels. Any efficiency “savings” (i.e. reduced seepage) from modern and downstream, and can increase ET irrigation technologies do not reduce farmers’ withdrawal rights. Instead, it is in their economic interest to further "reuse" that water by expanding irrigated land area or increasing crop intensity. Farmers ‘Reuse’ Water, Grow High-Value Crops Expand Land on Less Land Incomes Rise & More Crops, Carefully Water Use Drops
The combined result is that more irrigated land is cultivated, more water is consumed, and More ET Control ET
ExpandedLand RetiredLand less water seeps back into the ground or flows downstream (for other farmers, or ecosystems). Reduced With- Farm Land Area of The solution to this paradox in highly water-scarce regions is to conduct water accounting and drawal (Modern. Irrig) Lower Farm Withdrawal Land planning at the basin scale, define a sustainable limit on total water consumption, set targets (Modern. Irrig) for reduction, and then carefully monitor, control, and reduce the actual water consumption Greatly Reduced Reduced Outflows, but Downstream (ET) on each plot of land. As was found in Turpan, this may require a reduction in the overall Outflows Protected by Lower Withdrawals area of cultivated land, the switch to high-value-low-water crops, and the use of water-smart Holistic solutions are needed to raise farm agronomic practices, all in conjunction with modern irrigation technologies. incomes, while lowering overall water use
THE WORLD BANK CHINA TURPAN WATER MANAGEMENT MODEL 2 China’s Turpan Model: Designing a ‘Whole-System’ Solution
Directly addressing the challenges in arid Turpan Prefecture required an understanding of water resources as a complex and inter-connected system. The World Bank approach combined five areas of targeted interventions and investments for a ‘Whole-System’ solution that benefits local farmers, water managers, and sensitive ecosystems. Basin-wide Planning Five Interlinking Elements of the ‘Whole-System’ Solution Adopted in Turpan A key element in the project was a comprehensive basin-wide plan for Basin-Wide Planning : managing water resources as a system, Water Budget + Allocations based on effective mechanisms and Remote Sensing (RS) : tools for budgeting, allocating, and High-Tech Monitoring controlling overall water consumption Empower Farmers & Water User Associations (measured by evapotranspiration (ET) ). Set a Basin-Wide Sustainable Cap on Water Use Determine and enforce a strict cap on overall Water-Saving Agriculture Revised Water Rights & & Irrigation Practices water consumption (i.e. a scientifically- Economic Incentives determined safe limit on water consumption). Conduct Water Balance / Budget Analysis L a k e credit: adapted from Zahra Paydar, Yun Chen, 2014 Use multi-stakeholder decision-making to annually define a prioritized budget for water ET-Consumption-Based Accounting and Management of Water consumption in the basin. This basin-level Evapotranspiration (ET) is the process by which water is transferred from the land to the atmosphere by balance accounts for all water supplies and all evaporation from the soil and transpiration from plants. ET is in the water balance equation: competing water demands (i.e. ecosystem, ΔStorage = Precipitation + Inflows - Outflows - ET agricultural, industry, municipal demands, etc.). The most important aspect of real water savings in agriculture is to control the total amount of consump- Allocate Water-Use Targets to Farmers tion, or ET, to a sustainable level; and then maximize the productivity of “every drop” consumed by crops. Use the basin budget for agriculture to allocate “water-use permits” to each farmer (i.e. an (..revised water rights, continued) Empower Farmers & WUA’s expected farm-ET, converted to a withdrawal volume, In Turpan, farmers' water withdrawal & revised annually as irrigation efficiencies improve). permits were revised to be based on the In Turpan, 43 Water User Associations target water-consumption allocations under (WUAs) were established and Water-Saving Agriculture & the basin-wide sustainable water cap. empowered to engage in on-the-ground Irrigation Practices T0 enforce the permits and discourage water management, and to be Apply irrigation and agronomic overuse, water prices were revised to a two- responsible for ongoing operation and interventions for real water savings that tier block tariff system. Actual water with- maintenance of the water systems. reduce actual ET, under the basin-wide drawals are compared to the target/permit: Functioning WUAs not only have clear water consumption cap, and which ▪ If actual withdrawal is below the target, responsibilities for monitoring and protect and improve farmer incomes. farmers pay low "water charges" only. enforcing water withdrawals, but are ▪ If actual withdrawal exceeds the target, Shift to higher-value, water-saving crops farmers pay a higher "water resources fee", also given the technical and financial Raise farmer incomes while consuming less plus the normal water charges. capacities needed to successfully water by growing grapes, melons, etc., implement their responsibilities. instead of high-water-low-value crops like Remote Sensing Monitoring: maize, cotton, etc. Cost Effective and High-Tech Install water-saving irrigation technologies In Turpan, the latest remote-sensing (RS) Key Steps for Comprehensive Raise water-use productivity ($/m3) through Water Management modern drip irrigation, canal lining, low- technologies were applied, along with pressure systems, etc. land-use and weather data, to easily and Setup of Institutions and Systems Optimize irrigation and agronomic practices accurately monitor water consumption – ▪ Revise and reform local Water Rights Raise water-use productivity ($/m3) with from the basin-scale to the farm level. and Water Tariffs to be based on ET improved crop & irrigation practices (i.e. RS provides high-resolution, basin-wide ▪ Invest in and setup RS Monitoring planting + irrigation schedules, greenhouses, etc.) information at lower cost than expensive systems and an ET Monitoring Center Reduce less-productive irrigated land metering and inspection systems – making ▪ Digitize land-use & water system maps There was simply too much irrigated land under RS well-suited to less wealthy dry regions Regular Water Management Tasks like Turpan. cultivation for the arid climate. With higher 1. Define Basin-Level Consumption Cap value crops and efficient irrigation, less Advanced RS systems continuously observe 2. Specify Water-Use Budget and Allocate productive lands could be retired; thereby land-use & crop growth to measure actual Withdrawal Targets to Water Users protecting farmer livelihoods and saving water. farmer water consumption against their allocated withdrawal permits. 3. Plan & Design Water-Saving Agriculture Revised Water Rights & Practices for Farmers to Meet ET Target An ET Management Center with expert (crop selection, modern irrigation, retire lands, etc.) Economic Incentives trained staff and a user-friendly water Water rights and price reforms can be monitoring platform was established to 4. Monitor the Actual ET vs. Target ET of effective to reduce water consumption, support basin-level decision-making. Farmers/WUAs with Remote-Sensing especially when combined with other RS accuracy is already on par with hydrology 5. Continuous Improvement - (technical, legal, strong polices and enforcement. data, and the technology improves yearly. & economic incentives to raise water productivity) THE WORLD BANK CHINA TURPAN WATER MANAGEMENT MODEL 3 China’s Turpan Model: Achieving Results and Outcomes
The Xinjiang Turpan Water Conservation Project was rated ‘Highly Satisfactory’ by the World Bank Independent Evaluation Group (IEG) for its successful application of state-of-the art technologies alongside farm-level agriculture and institutional reforms to create a ‘whole-system’ solution with multi-benefit outcomes that save water and improve farmer livelihoods. Farmer incomes increased and With total agricultural water Institutional reforms and state- total agriculture water consum- consumption reduced, more of-the-art tools have greatly ption declined, while inefficient water is available for GW and strengthened local water irrigated lands were retired. other ecological & human uses. management capacity. The project’s training of farmers and Turpan reallocated low-productivity Water User Associations (WUAs) were careful application of modern tech- water-use to better balance supplies key to implementing and maintaining nologies under strict water-use for ecological protection and project investments and achieving targets encouraged farmers to grow economic development – all while outcomes from the ground-up; while more valuable crops for higher reducing the dependence on GW. the new ET Management Center incomes, while decreasing irrigated Given its acute water scarcity, this is provided top-to-bottom monitoring land area and water consumption. a key achievement for the arid region. and control of basin water-use.
Farmer Net Annual Income Basin Water Balance: Net GroundwaterWithdrawals With Crop Pattern Adjustments 200 Without Crop Pattern Adjustments Pre-Project Project Period 6,000 100 Peaks of high rainfall exceed GW withdrawl 0 4,000 Long period of Trend
-100 GW overdraft [million [million m3] RMB / yr 2,000 -200 -300 0 Annual GW Withdrawals
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2015 2016 Farmer incomes rose by 24%, and water The project area reduced GW overdraft by The project established 43 new water user productivity rose from 1.8 to 11.58 RMB/m3 17 million cubic meters associations (WUAs)
Basin Water Balance: Agricultural Consumption (ET) Basin Water Balance: Industry & Domestic Water Use Schematic of Remote Sensing Satellite Monitoring 1,000 Pre-Project Project Period 75 Pre-Project Project Period Satellite 750 (source & sensor) commons) 50
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2016 credit: Through efficiency and savings, total agri- Water savings reduce aquifer stress; and pro- Remote-sensing satellites measure real water cultural water consumption reduced by 22% vide 5 million m3 for city & economic growth consumption for low-cost management
Land Retirement: Thousands of Hectares by Year Aiding Lake Perennial Water Body Area [1,000 Ha] 2.5 Pre-Project Project Period 2012 0.0 2.0 2013 6.7 1.5 Two years of 1.0 high rainfall Dramatic increase
2014 [Hectares] 9.7 in project period 0.5 Long periods 2015 10.8 Area Surface Water of dry lakebed 0.0
2016 13.0 Areas of unproductive land retired
2002 2004 2006 2008 2010 2012 2016 2014 under the project 2000 13,000 hectares of low-productivity Aiding Lake area steadily increased during The ET Management Center allows high-
irrigated land was retired from 2012-2016 the project, along with vegetation cover resolution analysis for water planning credit: Samuel Bailey, 2009 Farmers switched to growing melons (green- Once nearly dry, the health of local habitats Groundwater recovery restored the house), grapes, and other high-value crops and ecosystem improved significantly functioning of ancient Karez well systems Mr. Jiang Liping Dr. Wu Bingfang Mr. Ye Yongxin For more information on this project Senior Water Resources Specialist Director, Division of Digital Agriculture (RADI) Director and the innovative solutions, contact : World Bank Office Beijing, China Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing Turpan Project Mgmt. Office Email: [email protected] Email: [email protected] Email: [email protected] This knowledge sharing brochure was designed and authored by Alek Cannan, World Bank project team consultant. For queries, contact: [email protected] THE WORLD BANK CHINA TURPAN WATER MANAGEMENT MODEL 4