EFFECTS OF PRODUCTIVE ACTIVITIES ON THE WATER QUALITY FOR HUMAN CONSUMPTION IN AN ANDEAN BASIN, A CASE STUDY

At the international level, the term “water security” (WS) has gained increasing attention in recent decades. At the operational level, WS is assessed using tools that define the concept using a variety of dimensions and sub-dimensions, with qualitative and quantitative indicators and parameters. The breadth of tools and concepts is an obstacle to the operationalisation of the concept of water security (WS). Clearly, we need a range of diverse data to evaluate water security (WS). However, there are several barriers to designing an optimal Data Gathering Strategy (DGS). Such a strategy must strike a balance between a wide range of competing and overlapping data requirements and characteristics including: resources, information, and impact. The proposed framework aims at filling the existing gaps, not by providing a strict procedure, but instead acting as a “compass”: five interfaces between data and context are identified to orient practitioners towards an optimal DGS. The conceptual aim of the framework can be summarised as shifting the focus of the DGS from a “data-to-information approach” to a “data-to-action approach,” therefore stressing the importance of reaching key stakeholders with information. The specific aims of this paper are to: identify the key issues that should be addressed in designing a Data Gathering Strategy for Water Security (DGSxWS); communicate the key issues with a clear conceptual framework; and suggest approaches and activities that could help water practitioners in dealing with the issues identified.

Conventional agricultural practices, such as the use of agrochemicals, implementation of monocultures, and the expansion of crops in strategic ecosystems, have significant impacts in Andean basins, directly increasing nutrient inputs to waterways, and contributing to ecological fragility and socioeconomic vulnerability. This complex dynamic is related to land-use change and production activities that affect the provision of hydrological ecosystem services. This study presents an integrated analysis of socioecological interactions related to water quality in the Las Piedras River basin (LPRB), a water supply basin located in the Andean region of southwestern Colombia. The analysis was conducted over a five-year monitoring period to assess the spatiotemporal variation and correlation of water quality between streams and agricultural runoff water within the LPRB. Furthermore, water quality indices were calculated based on physicochemical and biological parameters to evaluate the impact of land-use/land-cover changes and agricultural activities within the basin. Results demonstrate that different types of actors, productive logics, mechanisms of use, and access to water within the basin affect water quality and uncertainty for water management, while facing socioecological conflicts between actors.

Socio-ecological dynamics affect the ecosystem services supply and are relevant to generate effective water management strategies; this condition is considered to evaluate under a holistic approach, the water ecosystem services (WES) in an Andean supply basin (ASB) in Colombia. This analysis focus on the connection of biophysical and sociocultural components for the multi-purpose use of water based on The Soil and Water Assessment Tool (SWAT) modelling for Las Piedras River Basin (LPRB). The generated Hydrological Response Units (HRUs), allows to estimate the capacity of the basin for supplying water (quantity) in adequate conditions (quality) for local populations in rural and urban areas, as well as WES zoning. The model was calibrated and validated to generate a baseline scenario, which was complemented with social cartography and participative workshops. The results indicate a low concentration of nitrogen and phosphorus, boosted by specific agro-ecological strategies developed by local communities; however, there are health risks for populations downstream and those that are supplied with water directly from the source. Additionally, Land Use and Land Cover (LULC) affects water availability, which demands restoration and conservation strategies to maintain WES supply for socioeconomic and cultural purposes, since different views on the available WES converge in the basin.

Metodología para el análisis de vulnerabilidad en cuencas abastecedoras de agua ante la variabilidad climática

Importancia del “efecto rebote” o paradoja de Jevons en el diseño de la política ambiental