Environmental Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
horizontal interactions between (1) legal and policy reform, (2) structural changes in
economy and society and (3) variability in the biophysical environment? (c) The
question of hybridity: What role can trans-disciplinary approaches play in building
capacity through support for innovative planning instruments and monitoring and
assessment methods, advances in pedagogic and didactic techniques, formative and
summative assessments and accreditation and certi
cation of blended learning
curriculum for achievement of nexus competencies?
4 Science-Policy Interface and Integrated Management
of Water, Waste and Soil Resources
The ongoing debate on IWRM that was spurred by a presentation by IWMI has
challenged many development practitioners to re-think paradigms of sustainable
development and integrated resources management. Similarly, in development
circles there are policy questions with regard to the usefulness of large-scale
underground drainage systems compared to condominial sewers for decentralized
waste management. In the area of solid waste management there are policy chal-
lenges related to the need to balance requirements for waste incineration plants and
land
t
in terms of employment from informal waste collection and disposal. In the area of
soil management there are important trade-offs that decision-makers have to make
based on the impact that improved techniques can have on soil run-off while at the
same time considering the bene
lls with the fact that the local economy in many developing countries bene
ts that sediment transport offers over time for
populations further downstream of large water catchments. How large the impacts
of soil erosion are at plot, farm or watershed scales requires good scienti
c
understanding. Three basic principles can guide the process of developing man-
agement options that respond to the challenges posed by soil degradation and
decline in soil quality (Lal
2013
): (1) replace what is removed, (2) respond to what
is changed and (3) predict what will happen from anthropogenic and natural per-
turbations. Following these basic principles helps to develop site- and region-
speci
c management options. Further, good science is also required to distinguish
between
findings at varying scales and their generalizability in terms of policy
advice in a regional context. With respect to monitoring of groundwater levels and
quality, there is an acute need for better scienti
c understanding of aquifer char-
acteristics and their behaviour in the event of special stresses such as changes in
temperature and rainfall or human induced economic activity such as large-scale
mining operations. From a governance perspective, good science is required to
understand the comparative bene
ts of employing centralized versus decentralized
technologies and public versus private management models for infrastructure
construction and Operation and Maintenance (O&M). Furthermore, there is an
established need to inform and convince decision-makers of equity effects
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