Letter 7: Constructing the International
Waters Project Portfolio
To: Nani G. Oruga, The Bees Trees
From:Chris N. Eppers, Solar Musketeers
Re: The international water operational strategy and pilot phase projects.
Dear Nani,
Although you don't deal much with water issues, maybe some of your colleagues
can use this information on the international waters focal area. NGOs have not
been particularly active on the issue area, so I can't give too many details
on their activities. It is quite a substantial operational strategy, and perhaps
overly so.
The Pilot Phase
During the Pilot Phase, the GEF funded 12 projects: most of them were marine
related projects, while two focused on lakes, and one dealt with a river ecosystem,
in this case the Danube. The Independent Evaluation stated that freshwater projects
were underfunded. Several projects are related to management of ship-generated
waste, others to environmental management and biodiversity conservation. For
example, the Ship Waste Disposal project in China provides technical and financial
assistance for construction and/or rehabilitation and expansion of model ship
waste disposal facilities. The environmental management projects are oriented
towards establishing scientific, institutional, and strategic bases for improved
pollution control and management of water ecosystems. For example the project
for the Danube river basin includes collection of pollution emissions data,
creation of a regional data network, preparation of water quality criteria and
a list of priority pollutants, identification of policy and legal options, selection
of sites for purification installations, feasibility studies for associated
investments, and institutional strengthening, focusing on technical capability.
The independent Evaluation was quite critical of the Pilot Phase international
waters project portfolio. The main problems it identified included the lack
of a clear strategy, that the definition failed to recognise that international
waters "form a dynamically linked integrated whole with waters under national
jurisdiction", that the major threat to international waters is mainly
from landbased activities, and that "mismanagement of biological resources
[is] a major threat to the environmental integrity of international waters".
With regard to broader participation, the Evaluation concluded that there was
not sufficient involvement of affected communities in designing and implementing
projects. It recognised, though, that in some cases it was not an essential
requirement. It also concluded that the value of the incremental cost and global
versus national benefits concept is arguable in the context of international
waters.
The Operational Strategy
The international waters operational strategy (Chapter 4 of the Revised Operational
Strategy (GEF/C.6/3) is particularly interesting because of the comprehensive
and integrated approach it takes to solving environmental problems in international
waters. The international waters focal area, unlike the other focal areas is
not guided by a specific convention. There are however, numerous global and
regional treaties concerning specific areas or aspects of international waters.
GEF projects are supposed to take these into account. There ate three operational
programmes, which, at least to me overlap, but then any boundary related to
the international waters issue is fuzzy. I think you'll just have to live with
it. The three operational programmes, which I'll discuss in more detail later,
are:
Waterbody-based operational programme.
Integrated land and water multiple focal area operational programme.
Contaminant-based operational programme.
NGOs have praised the progressive approach to tackling the problems of international
waters. However, because the focal area has very limited resources and no single
convention to guide it, they feel that-focal area is at risk of trying to do
everything and achieving nothing.
First though, the thorniest problem: what exactly constitutes 'international
waters' for the purposes of the GEF. Rather than define the term, the GEF describes
'international waters' in the following way:
"The term 'international waters' as used for the purpose of the GEF Operational
Strategy, includes the oceans, large marine ecosystems, enclosed or semi-enclosed
seas and estuaries as well as rivers, lakes, groundwater systems, and wetlands
with transboundary drainage basins or common borders." (GEF/ C.6/3, paragraph
4.5)
The strategy goes on to say that any associated water-related ecosystem would
be considered an integral part of the waterbody being proposed for a project.
A river catchment area and not just the river would be the unit used in identifying
problems and solutions. Furthermore, the strategy recognises that the global
water cycle links watersheds, airsheds, estuaries, and coastal and marine waters,
moving pollutants and organisms across boundaries.
The objective of this focal area is mainly to be a catalyst so that countries
implement a more comprehensive, ecosystem-based approach to managing international
waters and their drainage basins. Such an approach requires looking at whole
systems. All sectors should be considered and ecological and development needs
have to be integrated. In addressing the problems of international waters the
activities would be geared to assisting groups of countries to understand the
environmental concerns of their international waters and to cooperate in addressing
them building existing or new institutional capacity to use a comprehensive
approach; and implementing measures to address priority problems. These are:
Control of land-based sources of surface and groundwater pollution;
Prevention and control of land degradation affecting international waters;
Prevention of physical and ecological degradation for the protection of
international waters;
Control of unsustainable exploitation of living resources;
Control of ship-based sources of chemical washings and non-indigenous species.
Now that you have the basis for international waters activities, here are the
operational programmes. The three of them together create the potential for
funding a wide range of projects.
Waterbody-based Operational Programme
The focus of projects in this programme world be preventing degradation or
restoring the health of a specific international waterbody, such as a river,
lake, coastline, groundwater reservoir, or sea. The programme objective is to
help groups of countries to work collaboratively in learning about and resolving
priority transboundary water-related environmental concerns. Examples given
for projects in freshwater basins range from establishing an industrial toxics
pretreatment programme, and wetland restoration, to tradable pollution discharge
permit systems for installation of non-point source control of land-based pollution
in degraded watersheds. In large marine ecosystems, projects might include freshwater/coastal
area management measures, or implementation of marine resource management measures
using information technology and computer simulation.
Integrated land and water multiple focal area Operational Programme
This Operational Programme is somewhat of a catch-all category. The main focus
is on the integration of land and water resource management to address the degradation
of international waters, but projects that also address the objectives of other
focal areas or that are aimed at groups of small island developing states would
also be included. Features of projects for these island groups would usually
include: integrated freshwater basin/coastal zone management on each island
of the group; activities integrating marine, freshwater, biodiversity, climate
change, and land degradation aspects; and the coordinated involvement of different
Implementing Agencies. Activities would typically involve coastal area management
and biodiversity; sustainable management of regional fish stocks; tourism development;
protection of water supplies; land and marine-based sources of pollution; and
vulnerability to climate change.
Priorities for integrated international waters and land degradation projects
would be rehabilitation of damaged catchment areas and adoption of sustainable
land-use systems, such as agro-forestry or reforestation projects. Other aspects
are improving watershed and catchment management; sustainable land-use and conservation
systems; and changes in sectoral development and economic policies. The projects
would also often address objectives in the climate change and biodiversity focal
areas, through, for example, carbon sequestration or restoring ecosystems respectively.
The third type of project in this operational programme covers international
waters projects that also meet the objectives of other focal areas, but are
not necessarily related to land degradation. Therefore most of these would relate
to biodiversity, such as unique coastal areas, wetlands, and coral reefs. Funding
for these projects is most likely when they are facing imminent threats and
steps could be taken to prevent environmental damage.
Contaminant-based Operational Programme
Projects in this category are aimed both at ship-based pollution and specific
persistent pollutants that are found in water systems and transported over long
distance: mercury, dioxin, PCBs, and persistent organic pollutants, and some
pesticides. Priorities for shipping based projects are controlling pollution
from ship-based chemical washings, and interventions against introduction of
noxious, non indigenous species in ballast water. A third type of project is
regional or global technical support for capacity building projects to increase
awareness on how to address contaminant problems, for example on how and what
contaminants to monitor, how to analyse complex data sets, where to get help
and how to involve the public in decision-making. Demonstration or pilot projects
may be tested in this operational programme.
Often, countries or groups of countries wishing to develop international waters
projects will have to formulate a 'Strategic Action Programme'. This would be
the basis for deciding what types of projects to develop and the amount of GEF
financing. The elements of a strategic action programme include transboundary
water-related environmental analysis, relationship to national environment and
development planning documents, identifying social and economic aspects, establishing
clear priorities and baselines (commitments funded domestically, or through
donors or loans), and estimates of incremental (additional) costs resulting
from achieving 'global' benefits. The Council has stressed that these programmes
Should not duplicate other action programmes and that they should concentrate
on identifying and catalysing implementation of projects eligible for GEF support.
