Management of water scarcity in arid areas: a case study (Ziz Watershed)

Abstract

The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development aims to reach 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The SDGs 6 deals with water security, which refers mainly to ensure availability and sus-tainable management of water. The present study aims to enhance reservoir performance under climate change to deal with water scarcity. For this purpose, we proposed a new methodology where precipitation and evaporation data provided through temporal downscaling are leveraged by a real-time management algorithm coupled with the Hydrologic Modeling System (HEC-HMS). The real-time dam management algorithm is based on water balance equation and rule curves. It provides information about (1) dam storage, (2) dam release, (3) dam evaporation, (4) dam diversion, (5) spilled water volume, (6) emergency spilled water volume, (7) dam inflow, (8) irrigation demand, (9) irrigation shortage, (10) dam siltation, (11) dam hydropower produc-tion, ( 12) hydropower energy income. The developed approach has been applied to the Hassan Addakhil multipurpose reservoir in Morocco. The result shows that the dam reliability and resili-ence have increased from 40% to 70% and from 16% to 66%, respectively, while the vulnerability remained constant. Additionally, this study has pointed out that the installation of a hydropower plant is an opportunity to produce clean electrical energy and generate an income enough to cov-er different costs related to dam management and maintenance. Therefore, the real-time man-agement tool developed in the framework of this project can significantly enhance reservoir per-formance.

The Contribution of Data-Driven Technologies in Achieving the Sustainable Development Goals

“…In order to globally assess water security, Giupponi and Gain [147] present a geographical information system software tool that is used to process huge amounts of spatial infor-mation, and by which a spatial multi-criteria analysis framework is derived [145]. To improve the performance of water reservoirs under climate change (e.g., water scarcity), Elhassnaoui et al [148] propose a program for the real-time control of dams that can help determine optimal schedules and project strategies in terms of drought, mitigation, water security, energy conservation, and agricultural development. Rainfall and evaporation data are provided by temporal downscaling and used by a real-time algorithm (based on water balance equations and rule curves) in conjunction with a hydrologic modeling system [148].…”

“…To improve the performance of water reservoirs under climate change (e.g., water scarcity), Elhassnaoui et al [148] propose a program for the real-time control of dams that can help determine optimal schedules and project strategies in terms of drought, mitigation, water security, energy conservation, and agricultural development. Rainfall and evaporation data are provided by temporal downscaling and used by a real-time algorithm (based on water balance equations and rule curves) in conjunction with a hydrologic modeling system [148]. The program was applied to the Hassan-Addakhil reservoir in Morocco, and the study shows that its efficiency could be improved [148].…”

“…Rainfall and evaporation data are provided by temporal downscaling and used by a real-time algorithm (based on water balance equations and rule curves) in conjunction with a hydrologic modeling system [148]. The program was applied to the Hassan-Addakhil reservoir in Morocco, and the study shows that its efficiency could be improved [148]. This successful application links to the call by Moumen et al [144] for Morocco to develop advanced tools for water management, such as the establishment of a national database whose data on soil, land use, land cover, hydrology, etc.…”

Stakeholders’ interactions in Water Management System: Insights from a MACTOR analysis in the R’Dom Sub-basin, Morocco

“…In this way, the integrated water resources management (IWRM) framework has been widely used as management approach that takes into consideration economic, environmental, and social aspects all combined (Collins et al, 2020;Giordano and Shah, 2014;Lenton, 2011;Schröder, 2019). In line with the IWRM approach, the sharing of water data and information among actors, as well as stakeholder participation, is the supporting elements for water resources management policy planning and implementation (El Mezouary et al, 2020a;Godinez-Madrigal et al, 2019;Jarar Oulidi, 2019) Several water managers and experts have developed and used various models and analysis tools to support the implementation of water management policies (Cosgrove and Loucks, 2015;Elhassnaoui et al, 2021;Hermans, 2005;Hermans and Thissen, 2009;Saleem et al, 2021). However, experience has shown a gap between the work of stakeholders and the real use of proposed solutions by water experts, despite their use of new advanced technologies (Hermans, 2005;Pellegrini et al, 2019) .…”

The Market Structure Simulation of Heterogenous Firms

“…The discussion is still ongoing: although Arkolakis et al (2012) presented their initial findings in this respect on the Armington, Krugman, and Melitz models, subsequent studies carried out by Costinot and Rodriguez-Clare (2014); Melitz and Redding (2015); Balistreri and Tarr (2018); and Marjit and Mandal (2021) showed different results in market structure formation. It is important because differences in factor endowments and used technology across countries determine the pattern of trade (Wyrwa 2020;Marjit and Mandal 2021;Prakash 2021;Elhassnaoui et al 2021;Laužikas et al 2021;Grenčíková et al 2021).…”