What is integrated water resources management?

It is a framework that coordinates the management of water, land, and related resources across sectors and uses, balancing economic, social, and environmental goals at the scale of a river basin rather than managing each use or source in isolation.

What is conjunctive use of water?

Conjunctive use is the coordinated management of surface water and groundwater together, for example storing surplus surface water in aquifers and drawing on groundwater during droughts, to make supplies more reliable than using either source alone.

Water Resources Management

Water resources management is the assessment, planning, allocation, and operation of water systems to meet human and environmental needs from limited and variable supplies.

Definition

Water resources management is the coordinated assessment, development, allocation, and operation of surface- and ground-water resources and infrastructure to satisfy competing demands for water while sustaining ecosystems and managing risk.

Scope

This topic covers the assessment of available water, the planning and operation of reservoirs and supply systems, the allocation of water among competing uses, and integrated, systems-based approaches to management. It is the applied management dimension of hydrology, drawing on the physical and statistical understanding from other areas.

Core questions

How is available water assessed across surface and groundwater?
How are reservoirs and supply systems planned and operated?
How is water allocated among competing uses and users?
What does integrated water resources management entail?

Key concepts

Water resources assessment
Reservoir operation and yield
Water allocation and rights
Supply versus demand management
Integrated water resources management
Conjunctive use of surface and groundwater

Key theories

Water resources systems analysis: Water systems are analyzed and optimized using systems methods, modeling reservoirs, demands, and constraints to evaluate trade-offs and design operating and allocation policies.
Demand management and soft paths: Beyond building supply infrastructure, water security can be improved through efficiency, demand management, and decentralized 'soft-path' solutions that better match water use to needs and limits.

Clinical relevance

Water resources management directly shapes water supply for cities, farms, and industry, the operation of dams for supply, flood control, and hydropower, the protection of environmental flows, and the resolution of conflicts over shared and transboundary waters under growing scarcity.

History

Water management evolved from single-purpose engineering of dams and canals toward multi-objective systems analysis in the later 20th century and to integrated water resources management and 'soft-path' thinking that emphasize efficiency, demand management, and environmental and social objectives alongside infrastructure.

Debates

Supply expansion versus demand management: There is debate over whether growing water needs are best met by expanding supply through large infrastructure or by managing demand and efficiency through softer, decentralized approaches, with most modern frameworks combining both.

Key figures

Daniel P. Loucks
Peter H. Gleick
David R. Maidment

Seminal works

loucks2017
maidment1993
gleick2003

Frequently asked questions

What is integrated water resources management?: It is a framework that coordinates the management of water, land, and related resources across sectors and uses, balancing economic, social, and environmental goals at the scale of a river basin rather than managing each use or source in isolation.
What is conjunctive use of water?: Conjunctive use is the coordinated management of surface water and groundwater together, for example storing surplus surface water in aquifers and drawing on groundwater during droughts, to make supplies more reliable than using either source alone.