THE ESSENCE OF LESVOS MANAGING WATER RESOURCES IN LESVOS, GREECE K. ALLEN, D. BILIC, N. CAPELAN, A. CHANDRA, M. PETRASOVA, K. SULTANALIEV, N. WISESA MESPOM ΠΑΝΕΠΙΣΤΗΜΙΟ ΑΙΓΑΙΟΥ (University of the Aegean) THE ESSENCE OF LESVOS MANAGING WATER RESOURCES IN LESVOS, GREECE K. Allen, D. Bilic, N. Capelan, A. Chandra, M. Petrasova, K. Sultanaliev, N. Wisesa 15 June 2009 Mytilene, Lesvos Greece The Essence of Lesvos — Managing Water Resources in Lesvos, Greece Table of Contents Abstract 4 5.2 Component 1: Demonstrations and mainstreaming of IWRM approaches into 1. Introduction 4 existing cross sectoral approaches to 2. Methodological Framework 5 water management 23 2.1 Problem identification and data collection 5 5.2.1 Watershed management 23 2.2 Evaluation of the meteorological 5.2.2 Wastewater and sanitation parameters and development of management 24 water budget 5 5.2.3 Water resources assessment and 2.3 Water balance model architecture 5 protection 25 3. Situation analysis 7 5.2.4 Water use efficiency and water safety 25 3.1 Context and regional significance 7 5.3 Component 2: Legislative and institutional 3.2 Island level water budget 10 reform for IWRM for implementation of EU 3.3 Threats, root causes and barriers analysis 10 water policy and other national water management strategies 26 3.3.1 Threats analysis 12 5.4 Component 3: Local capacity building and 3.3.2 Root causes 12 sustainability programs for IWRM, including opportunities for community 3.3.3 Barrier analysis 13 knowledge exchange and public 3.4Stakeholder analysis 13 participation 27 3.4.1 Current stakeholder perceptions 5.4.1 Public participation in water 14 resource management 28 3.5 Policy analysis 14 5.4.2 Applying lessons learnt from Pinios River Basin 29 3.6 National and regional water management programs 15 5.5 Component 4: Monitoring, evaluation and adaptive management 30 3.7 Baseline management practices 15 6. Expected results, indicators and risks/ 3.7.1 Water supply and use structure 15 assumptions—Logical Framework Analysis 3.7.2 Discharge of wastewater 17 (LFA) 31 3.7.3 Quality of water 17 7. Conclusion 33 3.7.4 Water prices 17 Reference list 34 4. Future scenario 18 Annexes 37 4.1 Climate change challenges for water resource management 18 4.2 Water demand increase and in-efficiency 18 4.3 EU Water Directive and impacts of its implementation 19 4.3.1 EU Water Policy 19 4.3.2 Impacts of the implementation of the WFD 20 5. Management and strategy 21 5.1 Role of IWRM, WUE, and ecosystem- based management 21 3 The Essence of Lesvos — Managing Water Resources in Lesvos, Greece ABSTRACT Water is a precious resource and therefore needs to be respected. Integrated Water Resource Management, water use efficiency and ecosystem management are all approaches used to preserve and sustain water supply for future generations. These approaches are im- portant because improper management of water can lead to severe social and environmental concerns. An Integrated Water Management Plan highlighting water use efficiency and ecosystem management has been developed for Lesvos Island, located in the North Aegean Region of Greece. Lesvos Island currently implements very few environmental policies and lacks proper water resource management. The main objective of the study is to analyse current water resource issues on the island, create future scenarios of water demand and develop proper management strategies for the use of water resources on the island. The objective has been completed through first defining the methodological framework used, along with a detailed analysis of the baseline water resource conditions in Lesvos. The baseline analysis includes such components as an estimated water budget and model, a description of stakeholders, and current management practices on the island. Using baseline information future scenarios and alternative models have been developed, guiding the establishment of a three -component management plan. paper is to analyse the problems, future scenarios and management and use of the water resources in Lesvos. 1. Introduction It presents applied concepts of Integrated Water Re- sources Management (IWRM), Water Use Efficiency (WUE) and ecosystem-based management approach Greece is famous for its natural beauty, ancient my- to propose measures and actions for the management thology, elegant islands and delightful people. This of water resources in Lesvos. The report is divided vibrant atmosphere lures thousands of tourists to into four sections. Section 1 provides a brief account Greece and it’s many islands throughout year. The of methodology and tools used to analysis water re- summer months (June-August) are not only charac- sources and management of Lesvos. The general terised by peak tourist activities, but are also a period baseline situation is then presented in section 2 of the when Greece suffers from severe water imbalance, report providing an account of the major threats, root “increased demands for irrigation and potable water causes and barriers, stakeholder perceptions and cur- use due to tourism” (Tsagarakis et al. 2003). rent management practices. Section 3 of the report builds up on this, and details future scenarios of water Lesvos Island, situated in the North Aegean Sea, is resource availability and management. one of Greece’s vibrant islands that is with water management concerns. Water resources in Lesvos can The last section of the report proposes a management be characterised by the “quantity of water that is strategy that combines demonstration and main- available or can be used in a sufficient way, the ap- streaming, legislative and institutional reform, local propriate quality and the duration for the satisfaction” capacity building and sustainability and monitoring, of present and future demands (Sofios et al., 2008). evaluation and adaptive management for IWRM and Today with increasing demand for water, Lesvos WUE. The report concludes by recommending that suffers from water and environmental management large investments in political will, integrated policy problems. The common water resource management implementation and citizen participation are required and water use efficiency issues in Lesvos includes an for rational management of water resources in Les- increasing demand for water (potable, irrigation and vos. industrial), inadequate and inefficient capture, storage and distribution of water resources, pollution and associated reduction in water quality, climatic threats to water supplies, an overall lack of integrated ap- proach, administrative deficiencies and inefficient citizen participation in decision making processes. Hence water management in Lesvos presents prob- lems, both in the short and long-term, although it has enough water resources. The objective of the present 4 The Essence of Lesvos — Managing Water Resources in Lesvos, Greece 2. Methodological Framework The runoff estimation was performed based on the evapotranspiration method. The equation used for the supply (input) of the water balance is delineated in the following modified equation (Karavitis and Kerkides 2.1. Problem identification and data collection 2002): In assessing the existing water resources management, P = R + I + AEVT (1) the water policy framework and proposing recom- mendations, this paper takes an analytic approach. Where “P is the total precipitation; R is the surface This approach involved explaining the context of runoff; I is the infiltration (including deep percola- water resources management and uses within the tion); AEVT is the actual evapotranspira- social, environmental and economic considerations of tion” (Karavitis and Kerkides 2002). Evapotranspor- Lesvos in the analysis. Numerous policies that govern tation (Annex 2) is taken as a standard value of 62% water resource sectors in Lesvos and Greece were of the total precipitation, while the remainder (38%) is reviewed to provide entry points for policy main- calculated as run-off and infiltration based on pre- streaming and collaboration. defined values sourced from Ministry of Develop- ment. Stakeholder views formed a vital part of the report to understand different sectoral perceptions of water The estimate of run-off from infiltration (rI) is given management in Lesvos. A semi-structured question- by: naire (Annex 1) was designed and executed over four P x f (2) field trips. In total, four stakeholders from three dif- 3 ferent sectors (industry, wastewater management and Where P is the total average precipitation (m /yr) and energy) were interviewed between 28th May and 1st f is the average annual run-off coefficient for Lesvos June, 2009 alongside in-class fieldtrips. Additionally, (Karavitis and Kerkides 2002) information from printed and online sources was The estimate of infiltration from precipitation (Ip) () is consulted to provide background on the status of wa- given by: ter use, demand and degradation, as well the legisla- p tive framework for water management in Lesvos. A RI - r (3) large proportion of material consulted was from pub- Where RI is the run-off & infiltration (m3/yr) and rp is lished sources, with online technical reports providing the estimated run-off from precipitation. The avail- more current news from the field. A large portion of able infiltration (I) is given by: the work builds on concepts of IWRM, WUE and p Ecosystem-based management building on to the Ix 40% (4) work of international agencies such as Global Water Where Ip is the estimate of infiltration from precipi- Partnership, United Nations Development Pro- tation (m3/yr) and 40% is a constant value for water gramme (UNDP) and United Nations Environment infiltration into water aquifers (Gaganis per com. Programme (UNEP). 2009). The remaining 60% of water is estimated to be unusable due to pollution and mixing with saltwater (Gaganis per com. 2009). 2.2. Evaluation of the meteorological parame- ters and development of water budget Water Use: Water use for different sectors such as domestic/household, agriculture, animal framing and Water Supply: The necessary meteorological data husbandry, tourism, milk, slaughterhouse were cal- included precipitation data was from 1956-2007 and culated, and details of which are provided for in table the average values were used.