THE 37TH REGULAR MEETING OF THE INTERSTATE COMMISSION FOR WATER COORDINATION
The 37th regular meeting of ICWC was held under the chairmanship of A.A. Jalalov, First Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Water Resources (MAWR) and Head of Central Board of Water Resources at MAWR of Uzbekistan, on December 22-24, 2003 in Karshi.
The meeting agenda included the following issues:
1. On the course of implementing the limits of water intake in the vegetation period in 2003 and confirming the limits of water intake from Amudarya and Syrdarya river channels for the next hydrological year and non-vegetation period in 2003-2004.
2. On the program for providing financial and economic activities of ICWC and its executive bodies in 2004 :
- Operational needs financing plan;
- Research activities plan of SIC ICWC and national scientific and project organizations;
- Work plan of CMC ICWC and national metrological organizations;
- Work plan of ICWC Training Center
3. On the development of information provision in the ICWC system.
4. On the course of activities on ASBP-2.
5. On metrological state of operational hydrometry and information technologies in the Aral Sea basin and the measures for improving it.
6. On the Agenda and place for holding the 38th regular ICWC meeting.
Additional issue (introduced by the ICWC member A.D. Ryabtsev)
On the expected difficult water situation in the Syrdarya middle- and downstream in winter and spring period in 2004 and creating ICWC Working Group to review and establish optimum regime of water release from Naryn-Syrdarya reservoir cascade.
The ICWC members took into account the information from BVO “Amudarya” and BVO “Syrdarya” on the activities done în implementing water intake limits for the vegetation period in 2003 and providing the accepted operation mode of reservoir cascades on the Amudarya and Syrdarya rivers in the vegetation period in 2003. The limits of water intake from Amudarya and Syrdarya river channels were confirmed for the next hydrological year, including non-vegetation period in 2003-2004. Operation modes of reservoir cascades on the Amudarya and Syrdarya rivers in non-vegetation period in 2003-2004 were approved.
The meeting participants took into consideration the presented estimates of expenditures for 2004 to finance operational needs of BVO “Amudarya” and BVO “Syrdarya”, costs of maintaining SIC ICWC and its branches, costs of implementing the international program of scientific research activities within the ICWC program, costs of CMC ICWC and national metrological centers in 2004-2005. Work plans of CMC ICWC and national metrological centers for 2004-2005 and Training Center were approved as well.
The meeting participants took into account the proposals of SIC ICWC on the ‘Central Asia Regional Water Information Base’ project (CAREWIB). During month the ICWC members will send their proposals on the project organizational structure and information composition.
The decision of the Board of the International Fund for Aral Sea Saving dated 28 August 2003 on confirming the “Program of concrete actions on improving environmental and socio-economic situation in the Aral Sea basin in the period 2003-2010” was affirmed to execute.
Analytical note “On metrological state of operational hydrometry and information technologies in the Aral Sea basin and the measures on improving it”, prepared by CMC was also taken into account. CMC with NMC were charged with drawing up concrete proposals in each direction and submitting them at the next ICWC meeting.
The next ICWC meeting is planned to hold in Ashkhabad in March 2004.
The current water situation, caused by high water availability and expected inflow to the Chardarya reservoir, threatens with flooding of settlements and objects of national economic significance and other emergencies. All this causes a great anxiety of the ICWC members.
For preventing emergency situations, BVO “Syrdrya” was given a commission:
- to transmit information on arising extreme water situation in the Syrdarya middle- and downstream areas, arisen due to high water availability and expected inflow to the Chardarya reservoir, and the proposals on creating respective commission for carrying out necessary preventive measures to the governments of the states in the Syrdarya river basin.
- to develop and adjust the operation mode plot for the Naryn-Syrdarya reservoir cascade with the concerned agencies, and submit it to the ICWC members.
- to submit proposals on creating a working group consisting of the representatives of water and energy organizations for accidentless flow bypass in winter.
- to establish daily on-line communication with river basin organizations.
- to carry out organizational activities on increasing water intake from river to reduce inflow to the Chardarya reservoir.
ALL-RUSSIAN CONGRESS OF WATER SECTOR WORKERS
All-Russian Congress of Water Sector Workers, dedicated to discuss ways to develop water complex of Russia, was held on December 9-10, 2003 in Moscow under the umbrella of the State Water Service of the Russian Ministry of Natural Resources. The Congress went off within the framework of International Year of Fresh Water, declared by the United Nations Organization.
At the Congress all 89 subjects of the Federation, and also delegations from 17 countries and international organizations (UN Economic Commission for Europe, World Water Council) were presented. Water Exhibition and meetings of 10 thematic sections were held in STC “Izmaylovo”.
The Congress participants were given a unique opportunity to discuss the recent initiative demonstrated by the Ministry of Natural Resources (MNR) on creating a common organ for the operation of hydraulic structures, reservoirs and other water objects in Russia. At present, hydraulic structures are under the jurisdiction of not only MNR, but also the Ministry of Agriculture, Ministry of Transport (navigation locks), Ministry of Energy and others.
By the words of N.M. Tarasov, First Deputy Minister of Natural Resources and Head of the Water Service of Russia, this common organ will optionally function under MNR. At that, the budget of various ministries, assigned to hydraulic structures (4.3 billion roubles at present), will be united, and all means will be spent on the maintenance and development of hydraulic structures. The second source of financing seems to be the return of all payments, received from water users, to water complex for its maintenance; this measure is envisaged in the new draft Water codex of Russia. For comparison: now only 17-19% of 14 billion roubles is returned to water complex. Payments of water users, which come to federal budget, and return to objects later on, will be reimbursed to the Federation subjects. It is supposed that the third source of common organ financing would become federal task programs.
MNR will also fulfill the instruction of the President and Prime minister of Russia to work out the main directions of water complex development by 2010. The basis for this activity will be all-Russian program “Water of Russia the 21st Century”, which was drawn up more than a year. It consists of 89 programs of the Federation subjects and 16 programs on the largest river basins.
At the international workshop within the Congress a particular attention was given to transboundary basins management. 2 years ago Russia took upon itself obligation to draw up a document on interstate allocation of transboundary waterway resources, oriented toward NIS so as to help bring together the positions of these countries on rational use of transboundary water objects. The prepared document was approved at the end of November at the Conference of the Helsinki Convention Parties in Madrid. There, Russia offered to attempt to introduce the given recommendations in the Tobol river basin. The proposal was supported by Kazakhstan.
In joint presentation at the workshop on behalf of the World Water Council (organizer of World Water Forums, in particular Kyoto Forum in March this years) its Executive Director Mr. Daniel Zimmer and representative of WWC Board member Vadim Sokolov (SIC ICWC) noted that within the space of CIS there are only three members of the World Water Council. It was proposed to create a WWC Regional Center in Moscow. Its objective is to use community of water specialists’ knowledge and traditions of collaboration for joint working within the space of CIS on:
- entering into world water community as active participants;
- developing joint ways of transfer from administrative management to IWRM principles;
- organizing exchange of knowledge and achievements between each other as well as the West and East.
Also at the international workshop, Chief of the Secretariat of the Convention on the protection and use of transboundary waterways and international lakes Rainer Enderlein and Chief of the Water Service of Russia N.M. Tarasov explained the state of the EU Water Initiative EECCA component to the participants. About 150 "construction blocks", which would be reviewed at the second summit conference in Moscow on February 26-27, 2004, were presented.
Mr. Bo Libert from the Helsinki Convention Secretariat told the meeting participants about three partnerships pertaining to the region – EECCA Ecological Strategy, Strategic Partnership on Water and its EECCA component, Central Asia Initiative. He presented the review of transboundary water cooperation in NIS, and about the planned activities of the Helsinki Convention Secretariat. In particular, project for holding 6-7 workshops on creating a network and raising potential for NIS during 3 years was proposed at the Conference of the Convention Parties in Madrid. It is also planned to work on implementing the Helsinki Convention provisions in Central Asia (although at present among Central Asian countries only Kazakhstan joined to the Convention) and detecting pilot projects for this region. Furthermore, in the context of the planned activities Mr. Libert noted "white spots" in some basins and pointed to the Dniester basin, where there are opportunities and necessity to develop the collaboration between Moldova and Ukraine.
The representative of Joint Finnish-Russian Commission for boundary water systems use told about forty-year activity experience of the Commission and implementation of the EU Water Framework Directive by Finland. Particularly, the Directive envisages the duty of EU member states to collaborate with the states, not being members of the EU, to reach the Directive purposes and tasks concerning international river basin regions.
The Congress in such a format was held in Russia for the first time, although the first water supply convention in 1893 can be taken as its prototype. All-Russian congresses of water sector workers are planned to hold every three years. At intervals between congresses the committee, designated to help implement the made decisions, will function.
For ICWC, Director of SIC ICWC Kazakh office Prof. N.K. Kipshakbayev and Director General of SPA “SANIIRI” R.K. Ikramov also took part in the Congress.
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