Climate Justice and Water

What is Climate Justice?

Climate justice is a term that stimulates discussions on legacies of inequality and colonial exploitation (Williams et al. 2022). This concept encompasses, and extends to, water justice; a realisation of solutions that are contextually relevant and dependent on participatory decision-making processes (Sultana 2017). While water challenges are widespread, the production of sustainable and equitable solutions should consider temporal and spatial specificity. The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGS) attempted to acknowledge this criteria, through enforcing countries to produce regional action plans tailored to their sustainability problems. Nevertheless, progress towards SDG 6, 'Clean Water and Sanitation', has been hindered by insufficient political acknowledgement of the WASH sector and coastal communities (Corburn 2022). 

Figure 1: Progress towards SDG 6 targets and projections for necessary action (Space4Water, 2021). Adapted from (UN, 2020).

Practicing Climate Justice 

Within Bangladesh, a startling 70 million individuals are vulnerable to climate change. The repercussions of rising sea levels include reduced freshwater availability, saline intrusion of groundwater, and insufficient sanitation access. AOSED, a non-profit, centralises climate justice in their mission to address the disproportionate impacts of climate change on coastal communities. To specify, they promote multi-actor discussions on water security, integrated water resource management (IWRM), and mitigation of freshwater contamination by chemical pollutants. IWRM in isolation is an effective contribution to climate and water justice, for it considers asymmetries in water accessibility and tailors policy design to human and natural components of hydrological systems (Savenije & Van der Zaag 2008). 

Figure 2: Integrated Water Resources Management Framework (IWRM Hub)

Transferring Approaches

The discussed example of climate justice proves transferrable to alternative countries, especially in the context of the African continent. With nations such as Mozambique and Tanzania exhibiting heightened vulnerability to unprecedented climate events, grass-root initiatives are essential for the sustenance of water security and resilient infrastructure (Williams et al. 2022). Moreover, the rising prominence of climate justice in mainstream media and policy (see Fig 3) presents a suitable platform for these efforts to be presented, celebrated, and adapted. 

Figure 3: Prevalence of justice in climate policies in the US (Diezmartínez & Gianotti, 2022)

While this blog has communicated the severity of water crises relative to environmental change, I also aimed to shed light on promising initiatives working towards resilient and equitable water systems. It is challenging to deem any solution perfectly sustainable, as there are disguised power asymmetries and resource imbalances with any approach. Nevertheless, I hope that these posts have encouraged your exploration of novel dimensions of water and climate change, especially in the context of Africa.

COP28: Water as a priority or in the peripheral

What is COP28?

This post is a slight deviation from my projected narrative, but I thought it would be important to shed light on the ongoing climate conference in the UAE. For those who are unaware, COP28 is the 28th 'Conference of the Parties'; a UN-devised conference that facilitates multilateral discussions and commitments to action on prominent climate-change topics (UNCC 2023). Despite yielding benefits for climate-awareness and sustainability agendas, numerous controversies underpin the conference leadership and priorities; hosting the conference in an oil-haven for one (Sanders 2023). According to the president, water was deemed a prime concern for COP28 discussions, with analyses on the resource in ecological, agricultural, and urban contexts (Schabus 2023). Nevertheless, the prominence of the topic beyond conference doors has been limited.  

Figure 1: Controversies surrounding oil-stakeholder involvement in COP28 (O'Hare 2023)

Sincere Promises?

The mid-week summary highlighted that an astonishing $150 million has been allocated towards water scarcity financing (COP28 2023). Beyond monetary commitments, the conference has also aimed to feature collectives such as the East African Farmers Federation, to improve local stakeholder participation in discussions on water (Marrakesh Partnership 2023). While these efforts mark an improvement in water-related urgency, it is important to note that water and sanitation solely prevailed in two of thirty adaptation targets established at the previous COP27 conference (GlobalData 2023). Considering the excessive vulnerability of African nations to adverse climate events, it proves essential to prioritise water action strategies at conferences of this scale (Zielinski 2023). Yet with growing skepticism, even by environmental organisations, I beg the question of how successful COP28 and its successors will be in addressing water in Africa. 

Figure 2: COP28 Linkedin post deeming water as a priority (COP28, 2023)

Transboundary Water Management: Beyond Traditional Territories

Contesting Borders: Basins and International Boundaries 

Previously I explored water dependency on local and national scales; however, I have yet to discuss the complexities of the form of water management that transcends geographical boundaries. A fundamental constraint to the sustainable management of water resources on the continent is the fact that 68 water basins are transboundary in nature (Kotzé 2022). The Nile and Congo basins exemplify such, with their boundaries transcending nine countries (see Fig 1) (Del Pietro 2002). While the utilisation of basin resources and provisioning services varies spatially, the lack of unified, international management strategies poses implications for water scarcity and conflict mitigation (Gaye & Tindimugaya 2018).

Figure 1: Transboundary Water Basin Map of Africa (Del Pietro, 2022)

As emphasised by the African Development Bank Group (2022), environmental change will not necessarily decrease basin-wide water availability, but rather amplify disparities in water accessibility for constituent countries. The occurrence of droughts and unprecedented inundation events could severely imbalance water fluxes, with political tensions arising as a result. Alongside conflict, ineffective legislation could be detrimental to the resilience of freshwater ecosystems (Theron 2023).

Interdisciplinary Solutions to TWM

In consideration of the complexities underpinning transboundary water management (TWM), strategies must adopt an interdisciplinary outlook to yield sustainable outcomes. To illustrate, the UN-funded program on the Incomati Basin plans to implement a risk framework that prioritises water accessibility, biodiversity and livelihood stability (UN 2022). The approach ensures that legislation in Mozambique, Eswatini and South Africa is informed according to a unified framework that approaches water across sectors and beyond traditional territorial boundaries. 

Figure 2: Map of the transboundary Incomati River Basin (CCGIAR 2023)

An alternative initiative, Cooperation in International Waters in Africa (CIWA), emphasises the vitality of biodiversity research in transboundary water strategies (Theron 2023). The video embedded below presents an insightful overview of prominent water challenges faced by Lake Victoria and how CIWA adapts strategies to improve resilience through TWM. 

Figure 3: Video exploring CIWA efforts to improve TWM of Lake Victoria (CIWA, 2023)

The management of transboundary water resources is vital towards ensuring equitable water provision and the fortification of water security. Furthermore, it is an integral component when considering climate justice. I look forward to exploring what denotes climate justice and how it should be approached in the water realm for my final blog post. 

National to Local: The Realm of Water-Based Power

Small yet powerful applications

In the context of hydroelectricity, there is a misconception that projects have to be large-scale to yield widespread benefits. As discussed in my previous post, hydroelectric projects are vulnerable to the fluctuating water patterns that arise with environmental change. Nevertheless, transitioning our focus from national to local could be an unprecedented mitigation strategy for sustaining water and energy security. I would like to commence with a powerful video that explores the accomplishment of John Magiro Wagare in his construction of a small-scale hydropower installation. 

Figure 1: Video explaining the hydropower success story of Njumbi, Kenya (Great Big Story 2018)

John utilised his experience as an electrician to harvest energy from the River Godo and produce a small-scale hydro-plant constructed from repurposed materials. The establishment of Magiro Power enabled a community-wide transition towards renewable electricity as a substitute for costly, polluting alternatives (Great Big Story 2018). In this case, the use of water to facilitate a turbine mechanism ensured energy provision for over 250 households; exemplifying the potential for small-scale hydro projects to generate durable impacts.

The geographical feasibility of mini-hydropower

While population growth can coincide with a greater urban population ratio, a range of countries in SSA have displayed rural population increases in recent years (Drangert et al. 2002). These demographic patterns encourage a consideration of water management at the local scale, especially in areas where decentralised hydroelectricity could address infrastructural limitations (Falchetta et al. 2019). Korkovelos et al. (2018) conducted a fascinating analysis of the small-scale implementation of hydropower plants throughout SSA. The insights revealed the astonishing potential to generate 9.9 GW of installed capacity  in the Southern Africa region alone. Beyond this, they used geospatial analysis to identify 10,216 sites where mini-hydropower initiatives could be established (Korkovelos et al. 2018). To provide some context to what defines 'mini', John's hydroelectric plant in Njumbi, Kenya yields a capacity of 0.25 MW, which is within this range (0.1-1MW). Now imagine the implications of replicating his initiative to thousands of other contexts!

Figure 2: Identification of potential sites for variably sized small-scale hydropower initiatives in Sub-Saharan Africa. Adapted from Fig 7 (Korkovelos et al. 2018)

The mass realisation of hydropower on a small-scale requires an adaptation of political mindsets, as well as innovative approaches to material circularity and renewable energy. In times where mass hydro-projects are anticipated to worsen water security and generate mass community displacement, these sustainable solutions could be vital towards climate and water resilience in SSA (Machado 2023).