Topics

Climate Change and Water Resources

Traditional Water Management Systems

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) predicts that climate change will affect mountain water storage and delivery infrastructure around the world with highly significant consequences for downstream economies. Half the world´s population relies on mountains for their water, yet mountain communities are already suffering from heightened physical instability caused by melting glaciers and water shortages, which could further enhance already high levels of food insecurity in mountain areas.

Traditional Water Management Practices

At the same time, mountains are home to traditional water management systems that have evolved as livelihood strategies and that are based on local, indigenous knowledge and technologies. Community-managed water systems aim at optimizing water resource use and, with the current vulnerability to climate change impacts, there is a particular emphasis on adaptation and mitigation strategies.

A Closer Look into Traditional Water Management Practices in Stone Village, China
The Third Horizontal Learning Exchange was held in the ancient Naxi capital of Stone Village, China, in May 2016, where more than 50 indigenous peoples and traditional farmers representing 18 mountain communities from China, Nepal, Kyrgyz Republic, Tajikistan, and Peru gathered to assess the effectiveness of biocultural heritage-based approaches for climate adaptation and to share key methods and tools for adaptation.

During the international conference, mountain communities called for support to strengthen traditional natural resource management systems, especially those of water management. The Stone Village Declaration highlights the importance of incorporating both traditional and modern water management practices to produce effective, low-cost solutions to detrimental climate change impacts as alternatives to energy-intensive modern technologies.

traditional-knowledge-management-systems
second-international-horizontal-learning-exchange-climate-change-and-biocultural-adaptation-in-mount-v1-1440-960
public-forum-indigenous-and-modern-knowledge-systems-challenges-and-opportunities-m1-920

The traditional water management system has evolved over more than 1000 years of history and is as old as the village itself. According to village leaders, the Stone Village was hit by drought nine years out of the last ten; however, the efficiency of the water management system – through terraces and irrigation – has prevented true water scarcity. Neighboring villages without customary water management systems have been more severely affected. The water management system provides water for drinking, irrigation, and fire control, and uses gravity to transport water and ancient water channels for irrigation, which were lined with cement in the 1990s to make the water travel faster from the water source in the mountain.

The Stone Village ancient water management system provides water for drinking, irrigation, and fire control to 14 villages in the watershed. Customary laws ensure fair water allocation to all households, both day and night, depending on their location in the valley. This system has prevented water scarcity and conflict despite recurring drought in the region for nine years out of the last ten, whereas neighboring villages without such a system have been more affected by drought. The Stone Village water system is overseen by a water management committee and integrates related cultural rituals.

During the Learning Exchange, several other participating communities reported water shortages and shrinking glaciers in recent years, as well as presented on similar traditional water management systems, providing further evidence of their importance for coping with water shortages and preventing conflicts and for climate adaptation locally and more widely.