13 - Afonso Do Ó Apresentação

Transboundary river basin planning:
a bigger challenge under water scarcity conditions
Transboundary
river basin
2nd European Rivers Summit
planning
Lisboa, November 2021
A bigger challenge
under water
scarcity conditions
WWF
World Wide Fund for Nature
is the world’s largest
independent nature
conservation NGO.
It has over 5 million members

across the globe and active
offices in more than 120
countries.
WWF’s mission is to build a

future where people and
nature can live and thrive in
harmony.
FORESTS
A ANP|WWF
ANP (Associação Natureza
Portugal) works in association
FRESHWATER
with WWF International,
following-up on the work
developed since the 1990’s by OCEANS
the PT team under WWF
Mediterranean.
FOOD
It operates in 6 major
Conservation Practices, and
currently leads over 20 WILDLIFE
conservation projects in the
field.
CLIMATE & ENERGY
FRESHWATER CONSERVATION IN
PORTUGAL
FLORESTAS,
ALIMENTAÇ • Water footprint reduction and risk management approaches
ÃO E
PRIORITIES • Water Stewardship initiatives and corporate responsibility
VIDA • Dam impact reduction and obsolete barriers removal
SELVAGEM • Ecologic restoration and water cycle improvement
• Plantar Água – restoring post-fire mediterranean forests in the

ÁGUA Caldeirão hills (Algarve)
PROJECTS
• Reconnecting Iberian Rivers – improving water management and
connectivity in transboundary river basins (Douro, Tejo, Guadiana)
• Water Stewardship projects with key water users (Iniciativa Tejo,
Coca-Cola, Sumol+Compal, Super Bock Group, Reckitt Benckiser)
• Regional landscape restoration dialogues (Center, Algarve)
European Political Context
• Transboundary RB’s
represent 66% of the EU
surface
• MS implementing the
WFD and its new
generation of RBMP’s
• MS opting between
coordinated or co-
managed transboundary
RBMP’s
Iberian Political Context
• Excelent diplomatic relations /

Poor common resources, political

will, and mutual recognition
• Praised Albufeira Convention &

flow regime / Exception regime
and lack of management tools
during severe droughts,
exemptions abuse
• Poor coordination between

national parts of transboundary
RBMP’s (focused on cross-border
water bodies)
The importance of shared resources
Transboundary Iberian river

basins represent:
- 46% of the Peninsula

- 64% of Portugal
- 42% of Spain
- 67% of Portugal’s surface

water resources
- 39% of Spain’s
The hydro-hegemonic power of Spain
PORTUGAL SPAIN
geography material bargaining ideational geography material bargaining ideational

- Geographic power: upstream/downstream position

- Material: financial, economic and human resources
- Bargaining: media exposure, lobbying and advocacy
- Ideational: perception biased (who’s the victim, who’s driest,…)
Source: Groove & Rackam, 2004
The hiper-Mediterranean Guadiana:

- The longest dry season (5-6 months)
- The highest summer temperatures (average > 35ºC)
- The highest PET and annual solar radiation (>3100 h)
- The strongest inter-annual rainfall variability (CV>.4)
Social/economic context (Med)

 Water scarcity due to supply variability and increasing demand

(mostly for irrigation and tourism)
 Flow and runoff reduction due to land use changes and climate
change
 Hydraulic paradigm still dominant among most local and
regional decision makers and users
Incompatible versions of the RBMP
 Different starting point (Significant Issues): themes PT, problems ES

 Poor estimation of runoff and inputs from Spain on PT water balance

 Climate change precautionary approach more developed in ES
 Water balances by: supply systems ES, virtual geographic units PT
 Interrupted monitoring series (since 2010) in PT

Incompatible versions of the RBMP
 PT lacks water allocation /

conflict resolution approach
 No real cross-border public

participation, much higher
level in ES
 Several drought mitigation

measures ES, only DMP and
relief measures in PT
 Investment budget (2016-

21): 877 M€ ES, 60 M€ PT...
Institutional shortages for a joint RBMP
 Albufeira Convention
Permanent Secretariat
(CADC) never set up
 Lack of regional / river basin

empowerment in PT
 Regional conflictuality over

water competences in ES
Simply aiming at a single, unified RBMP is not the

solution!
Cohen & Davidson (2011): “watersheds may not be appropriate in

cases where re-scaling (the governance unit) is being

undertaken to address persistent governance challenges, such
as lack of monitoring and enforcement, without concomitant
attention to the underlying sources of the problem, and may
perpetuate rather than solve governance failures”.
Afonso do Ó
Dam Removal Europe international seminar

Connected Rivers: scaling up dam removal as a river

restoration tool in Europe
Lisboa, 18-21 May 2022
Afonso do Ó
Obrigado!
adoo@natureza-portugal.org
https://www.natureza-portugal.org/
Afonso do Ó

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Transboundary river basin planning:

a bigger challenge under water scarcity conditions

It has over 5 million members

WWF’s mission is to build a

• Plantar Água – restoring post-fire mediterranean forests in the

European Political Context

Iberian Political Context

• Excelent diplomatic relations /

Poor common resources, political

will, and mutual recognition

• Praised Albufeira Convention &

• Poor coordination between

The importance of shared resources

Transboundary Iberian river

- 46% of the Peninsula

- 67% of Portugal’s surface

The hydro-hegemonic power of Spain

geography material bargaining ideational geography material bargaining ideational

- Geographic power: upstream/downstream position

Source: Groove & Rackam, 2004

The hiper-Mediterranean Guadiana:

Social/economic context (Med)

 Water scarcity due to supply variability and increasing demand

Incompatible versions of the RBMP

 Different starting point (Significant Issues): themes PT, problems ES

 Poor estimation of runoff and inputs from Spain on PT water balance

 Climate change precautionary approach more developed in ES

 Water balances by: supply systems ES, virtual geographic units PT

 Interrupted monitoring series (since 2010) in PT

Incompatible versions of the RBMP

 PT lacks water allocation /

 No real cross-border public

 Several drought mitigation

 Investment budget (2016-

Institutional shortages for a joint RBMP

(CADC) never set up

 Lack of regional / river basin

 Regional conflictuality over

Simply aiming at a single, unified RBMP is not the

Cohen & Davidson (2011): “watersheds may not be appropriate in

cases where re-scaling (the governance unit) is being

Dam Removal Europe international seminar

Connected Rivers: scaling up dam removal as a river

restoration tool in Europe

Lisboa, 18-21 May 2022

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