Growing competition for scarce water resources has driven major changes in the way river basin planning is undertaken. This has resulted in a shift away from ‘technical’ approaches designed to maximize water availability and led to more strategic approaches to basin planning. These approaches aim to optimize outcomes by reconciling the competing demands of different sectors of the economy, the natural environment, and society as a whole.
Drawing on experiences from around the world, this book distills best practice approaches to basin planning in large and complex basins and provides an overview of the emerging good practice. Part A includes discussion of the evolution of basin planning and provides a framework for strategic basin planning, including environmental planning. Part B describes some of the techniques involved in basin planning, including conducting a situation assessment, addressing uncertainty, techniques for identifying objectives and balancing trade-offs, and developing thematic plans.