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Kherlen River the Lifeline of the Eastern Steppe

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Kherlen River the Lifeline of the Eastern Steppe Kherlen River the Lifeline of the Eastern Steppe by Eugene Simonov, Rivers without Boundaries and Bart Wickel, Stockholm Environment Institute Satellite image of Kherlen River basin in June 2014. (NASA MODIS Imagery 25 August 2013) The Second Edition Ulaan Baatar 2017 1 Barbers' shop on Kherlen River floodplain at Togos-Ovoo. Photo-by E. Simonov Contents Foreword ................................................................................................................................................................... 6 Executive summary ................................................................................................................................................... 8 PART I. PRESENT VALUES AND STATUS OF KHERLEN RIVER .................................................................................... 24 1 Management challenges of Mongolia’s scarce waters ................................................................................... 24 2 The transboundary rivers of Dauria – "water wasted abroad"? ..................................................................... 27 3 Biodiversity in River basins of Dauria .............................................................................................................. 29 4 Ecosystem dynamics: Influence of climate cycles on habitats in Daurian Steppe .......................................... 32 5 Conservation efforts in Dauria and river basin management ......................................................................... 34 5.1 Dauria International Protected Area (DIPA) ............................................................................................ 34 5.2 Kherlen River Basin Managers ................................................................................................................. 36 6 Kherlen river – stronghold of nomadic culture and economy ........................................................................ 40 7 Hydrology in a variable climate ....................................................................................................................... 42 8 Climate change and the path to adaptation ................................................................................................... 46 PART II. EXISITING AND PLANNED DEVELOPMENT AND ITS POSSIBLE IMPACTS .................................................... 51 9 Human impacts on the Kherlen and adjacent river basins today ................................................................... 51 9.1 Impacts in Kherlen River valley ................................................................................................................ 51 2 9.2 Kherlen river basin in comparison with other rivers of Dauria steppe ................................................... 53 10 Planned industrial water supply projects .................................................................................................... 59 10.1 Prestige Group Designs ........................................................................................................................... 59 10.2 “Monhydro construction” Sainshand Water Supply Design ................................................................... 64 10.3 JETRO Study Design ................................................................................................................................. 66 11 Water Supply to Gobi – potential impacts and risks ................................................................................... 70 11.1 Deep groundwater .................................................................................................................................. 70 11.2 Alluvial water intake from the Kherlen River valley. ............................................................................... 71 11.3 Water diversion from the Kherlen River ................................................................................................. 73 11.4 Impacts of water conveyance infrastructure .......................................................................................... 77 12 Impacts from Coal Industry and other sectors ............................................................................................ 79 12.1 World-wide environmental impacts of coal industry .............................................................................. 79 12.2 Coal Mining and Water ............................................................................................................................ 80 12.3 Coal-based Chemical Industry ................................................................................................................. 83 13 Future Water Balance and Climate risk ....................................................................................................... 86 13.1 Possible human use of Kherlen water resources by 2030 ....................................................................... 86 13.2 Possible climate change impacts on Kherlen water balance .................................................................. 88 13.3 Consequences of dual impacts from excessive withdrawal and climate change .................................... 90 PART III. ENVIRONMENTAL SAFEGUARDS FOR KHERLEN RIVER ............................................................................. 92 14 Cumulative and Strategic Impact Assessment ............................................................................................ 93 14.1 Cumulative impact assessment ............................................................................................................... 93 14.2 Strategic Environmental Assessment for Kherlen-Gobi Water Transfer Project .................................... 94 15 Water management alternatives in the light of climate adaptation ........................................................ 102 15.1 Thorough assessment of Gobi groundwater and environmental limits to its use. ............................... 102 15.2 Limiting development in Gobi, moving industries to water. ................................................................. 104 15.3 Water Supply in fluctuating climate of Mongolia: infiltration water intakes vs reservoirs .................. 106 15.4 Water Supply adaptation measures in fluctuating climate ................................................................... 110 15.5 Ecosystem-Based Adaptation Planning ................................................................................................. 113 16 Transboundary river issues in Dauria ........................................................................................................ 122 17 Conclusion ................................................................................................................................................. 134 APPENDIX 1. IMPACTS CHECKLIST ......................................................................................................................... 147 APPENDIX 2. Kherlen Community Survey Results ................................................................................................. 153 3 TABLE OF FIGURES Figure 1. MODIS satellite composite of Mongolia. Image showing the clear contrast between the green vegetated areas which receive precipitation in the North and the Desert region with tan colors in the Central and Southern parts of the country (by Bart Wickel. SEI)................................................................................................ 25 Figure 2. Kherlen river basin and other 28 river basins management units of Mongolia (Kherlen Water Authority 2013) ........................................................................................................................................................................ 27 Figure 3. Kherlen river basin and adjacent transboundary river basins of Mongolia.............................................. 29 Figure 4. Kherlen from Mongolian Border to Dalai lake has no dams and reservoirs-exceptional situation for China (MODIS Imagery 2013) .................................................................................................................................. 31 Figure 5. Protected areas of Dauria (by E.Egidarev -WWF and E.Simonov RwB) .................................................... 35 Figure 6. Organizational Structure of Mongolia's Water Management .................................................................. 37 Figure 7. Annual distribution of the Kherlen river flow at Baganuur, Undurkhaan and Kherlen-Toono (million cubic meters) (“Monhydro construction” 2014) ..................................................................................................... 42 Figure 8. Cyclical change in Kherlen river discharge (Oyunbaatar et al., 2011) ...................................................... 43 Figure 9. Annual mean runoff distribution in the Kherlen river basin in Mongolia (D. Oyunbaatar et al., 2011) .. 44 Figure 10. Decrease in average annual flow volume along Kherlen river from Baganuur(1) , via Kherlen-Toono(2) and Undurkhaan(3) , to Choibalsan(4) (in million cubic meters) (Monhydro construction 2014) .......................... 44 Figure 11. Fluctuation in level of terminal lakes in transboundary basins: Dalai lake (left scale-black squares) and Barun-Torey lake (right scale white circles) (by V. Obiazov 2011) .......................................................................... 46 Figure 12. Long-term changes in average annual air temperature for the Onon-Argun inter-river
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