Water Resources Management - Practices of Irrigation and On-farm Water Management - page 144

5.1.6 Fundamental Aspects of Water Resources Management

Water resources should be managed in the context of a national water strategy that
reflects the nation's social, economic, and environmental objectives and is based
on an assessment of the country's water resources. The assessment would include
a realistic forecast of the demand for water, based on projected population growth
and economic development, and a consideration of options for managing demand
and supply, taking into account existing investment and likely to occur in the private
sector. The strategy would spell out priorities for providing water services; establish
policies on water rights, water pricing and cost recovery, public investment, and
the role of the private sector in water development; and institutional measures for
environmental protection and restoration.
In water resources management, two fundamental aspects are to be considered:

i. Planning
ii. The implementation process

The basic approach to planning is to determine:

• the needs,

• the resources, and

• ways to develop the resources to meet needs, on the basis of the technological,

financial and human resources, which are available.

In the past, a water resources planning exercise was applied mainly to a river basin,
or to political and geographical boundaries such as a region or country. However,
this concept is shifting to economic consideration, for example, to metropolitan
areas or large industrial areas.

5.2 Estimation of Demand and Supply of Water

For proper planning and management of any resource, knowledge of demand and
supply is prerequisite.

5.2.1 Demand Estimation

The evaluation of future effective water consumption is more difficult as it implies
knowledge of interventions by man. For example, a country may change its fun-
damental economic options: agriculture versus industrialization following a change
in government. New technological development may promote the conservation of
water, such as inexpensive methods for surface water treatment in tropical countries
or by changing water needs through the use of drip irrigation.