Transboundary Water Resources in Afghanistan
Climate Change and Land-Use Implications
- 1st Edition - June 13, 2016
- Authors: John F. Shroder, Sher Jan Ahmadzai
- Language: English
- Paperback ISBN:9 7 8 - 0 - 1 2 - 8 0 1 8 8 6 - 6
- eBook ISBN:9 7 8 - 0 - 1 2 - 8 0 1 8 6 1 - 3
Transboundary Water from Afghanistan: Climate Change, and Land-Use Implications brings together diverse factual material on the physical geography and political, cultural,… Read more
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brings together diverse factual material on the physical geography and political, cultural, and economic implications of Southwest Asian transboundary water resources. It is the outgrowth of long-term deep knowledge and experience gained by the authors, as well as the material developed from a series of new workshops funded by the Lounsbery Foundation and other granting agencies.Afghanistan and Pakistan have high altitude mountains providing vital water supplies that are highly contentious necessities much threatened by climate change, human land-use variation, and political manipulation, which can be managed in new ways that are in need of comprehensive discussions and negotiations between all the riparian nations of the Indus watershed (Afghanistan, China, India, and Pakistan). This book provides a description of the basic topographic configuration of the Kabul River tributary to the Indus river, together will all its tributaries that flow back and forth across the border between Afghanistan and Pakistan, and the basic elements that are involved with the hydrological cycle and its derivatives in the high mountains of the Hindu Kush and Himalaya.
- Synthesizes information on the physical geography and political, cultural, and economic implications of Southwest Asian transboundary water resources
- Offers a basic topographic description of the Indus River watershed
- Provides local water management information not easily available for remote and contentious border areas
- Delivers access to the newest thinking from chief personnel on both sides of the contentious border
- Features material developed from a series of new workshops funded by the Lounsbery Foundation and other granting agencies
Researchers and professionals in water, environmental sciences, hydrology, and geography
- About the Authors
- Foreword to Transboundary Water Resources in Afghanistan
- Preface
- Introduction
- Part I: Introduction to Physical Characteristics of Water
- Introduction
- Chapter 1: Characteristics of the Regional Hydrological Cycle
- Abstract
- 1.1 Introduction
- 1.2 Regional Climate Controls
- 1.3 Mountain Topography of the Region
- 1.4 Drainage Systems
- 1.5 Conclusion
- Chapter 2: Hydrogeography (Drainage Basins and Rivers) of Afghanistan and Neighboring Countries
- Abstract
- 2.1 Introduction
- 2.2 Water Wisdom and War
- 2.3 Details of Climate Controls in Afghanistan
- 2.4 Rivers of Afghanistan
- 2.5 Conclusion
- Chapter 3: Ground-Water Geology of Afghanistan
- Abstract
- 3.1 Introduction
- 3.2 Geologic Overview
- 3.3 Ground-Water Occurrence
- 3.4 Ground-Water Geochemistry
- 3.5 Natural and Human-Caused Contaminants in Ground Water in Afghanistan
- 3.6 Arsenic in Ground Water in Afghanistan
- 3.7 Ground Water, Afghans, and Geology
- 3.8 Qalat Flowing Artesian Well
- 3.9 Geothermally Impacted Ground Water
- 3.10 Passive-Seismic Technology for Afghanistan
- 3.11 Conclusions
- Chapter 4: Development of Water Resources in the Kabul River Basin
- Abstract
- 4.1 Introduction
- 4.2 Geological Background
- 4.3 New Development of the Kabul River Basin
- Chapter 5: H2O Hazards, Risks, and Disasters in Afghanistan and Surrounding Countries
- Abstract
- 5.1 Introduction
- 5.2 Water-Induced Slope Failures
- 5.3 Water Floods
- 5.4 Snow and Ice Hazards
- 5.5 Droughts
- 5.6 Conclusion
- Chapter 6: Characteristics and Implications of Climate Change in Afghanistan and Surrounding Regions
- Abstract
- 6.1 Introduction
- 6.2 Regional Climate Change
- 6.3 Water Security
- 6.4 Water-Related Hazards in Afghanistan and Climate Change
- 6.5 Historical Droughts in Afghanistan
- 6.6 Possible Partial Solutions to Climate and Water Problems
- 6.7 Science and Policy Linkages in Climate Change
- 6.8 Conclusion
- Part II: Water-Management Issues in Central and South Asia
- Introduction
- Chapter 7: Modern Water Management Issues in Central and Southwest Asia
- Abstract
- 7.1 Introduction
- 7.2 Water Measurement
- 7.3 Water-Balance Accounting Systems
- 7.4 WA + Withdrawal Sheet
- 7.5 Applications of the WA + System in Central and South Asia
- 7.6 Blue-Water, Green-Water, and Gray-Water Paradigms
- 7.7 Conclusion
- Chapter 8: Introduction to the Indigenous Water-Management System in Afghanistan
- Abstract
- 8.1 MIR AAB, the Water Master
- 8.2 Conceptual Understanding of the MIR-AAB System in Afghanistan
- 8.3 Evolution of MIR-AAB Concepts in the Present-Day
- 8.4 Traditional Irrigation Infrastructure
- 8.5 Historical Phases of Irrigation Development
- 8.6 Conclusion
- Chapter 9: Dams in Afghanistan
- Abstract
- Acknowledgments
- 9.1 Introduction
- 9.2 Background
- 9.3 Methods
- 9.4 Helmand River Water Disputes Between Afghanistan and Iran (Table 9.1)
- 9.5 Helmand River and the Development of the Helmand-Arghandab Development Authority (HAVDA) (Table 9.2)
- 9.6 Results
- 9.7 Summary and Conclusions
- Chapter 10: Water Quality Matters
- Abstract
- 10.1 Introduction
- 10.2 Definitions of Water Quality
- 10.3 Why Water Quality Matters
- 10.4 State of Water Quality in Central and South Asia
- 10.5 Recommended Policies and Practices to Improve Water Quality
- 10.6 Conclusion
- Chapter 11: Issues of Hydrologic Data Collection by Remote Sensing in Afghanistan and Surrounding Countries
- Abstract
- 11.1 Introduction
- 11.2 Earth Observatory (EO) Portal Directory
- 11.3 H2O System Sensing
- 11.4 Global Precipitation Measurement
- 11.5 Conclusion
- Chapter 12: Afghanistan Water Treaties and Relevant International Water Law
- Abstract
- 12.1 Introduction
- 12.2 Definitions of an International Water Course
- 12.3 Water Law in Afghanistan
- 12.4 Water Treaties
- 12.5 Implications for Reasonable Management of Transboundary Water Resources
- 12.6 Conclusion
- Chapter 13: Hydro-Cognizant Capacity-Building in Afghanistan
- Abstract
- 13.1 Introduction
- 13.2 Capacity Types
- 13.3 Capacity-Building in the Ministries
- 13.4 Capacity-Building Assessments
- 13.5 Uses of Water Science for Capacity-Building
- 13.6 Conclusion
- Chapter 14: Hydro-Hegemony in Afghanistan and Surrounding Countries
- Abstract
- 14.1 Introduction
- 14.2 Control Strategies to Dominate Water Resources
- 14.3 Hydro-Hegemony in the Kabul River Basin
- 14.4 Hydro-Hegemony in the Helmand River Basin
- 14.5 Hydro-Hegemony in the Hari Rud-Murghab River Basin
- 14.6 Hydro-Hegemony in the Amu Darya River Basin
- 14.7 Summary and Conclusion
- Chapter 15: Water in Islam
- Abstract
- 15.1 Introduction
- 15.2 Islamic Law and Equity
- 15.3 Islam and the Environment
- 15.4 Islam and Water Conservation
- 15.5 Water-Resource Management (WRM) in the Muslim World
- 15.6 Conclusion
- Chapter 16: Water and the Opium Economy in Afghanistan
- Abstract
- 16.1 Introduction
- 16.2 Afghanistan Conflict Situations and Opium-Heroin Supply
- 16.3 Failures of Opium-Control Efforts in Afghanistan
- 16.4 Legalization Issues and Official Purchase of the Annual Crop
- 16.5 Conclusion
- Chapter 17: Hydropolitics of Afghanistan and Its Future
- Abstract
- 17.1 Introduction
- 17.2 Central Asian States and the Amu Darya Basin
- 17.3 Turkmenistan, Iran and Hari rud–Murghab and Helmand River Basins
- 17.4 Hari rud–Murghab River Basin
- 17.5 Helmand River Basin
- 17.6 Pakistan and Kabul River Basin
- 17.7 Conclusion
- Chapter 18: Future of Water Management in Afghanistan: Capacity Building, Risk Assessment, Cooperation, and Good Water Governance
- Abstract
- 18.1 Introduction
- 18.2 Problems With Cooperation
- 18.3 Water Cooperation and Risk Assessment
- 18.4 Enhancing Water Cooperation
- 18.5 Problems With Water Management
- 18.6 Water-Cognizant Capacity Development
- 18.7 Problems With Water Governance
- 18.8 Conclusion
- Part III: Distance Learning in Central and South Asia
- Introduction
- Chapter 19: Distance Learning Modules for Water
- Abstract
- 19.1 Introduction
- 19.2 Massive Open Online Courses
- 19.3 Water-Awareness Distance Learning Modules
- 19.4 Conclusion
- Chapter 20: Concluding Transboundary Water Activities
- Abstract
- 20.1 Introduction
- 20.2 Remaining Water Issues
- 20.3 Water Symposia in Islamabad, Kabul, PERTH, and Dushanbe—2015
- 20.4 Conclusion
- Index
- No. of pages: 544
- Language: English
- Edition: 1
- Published: June 13, 2016
- Imprint: Elsevier
- Paperback ISBN: 9780128018866
- eBook ISBN: 9780128018613
JS
John F. Shroder
Jack Shroder is an Editor-in-Chief at Elsevier, and has extensive experience with publishing peer-reviewed journal articles and books on numerous topics related to geomorphology and Afghanistan, among many other specialties. He is the author of over 200 scientific papers and books on geoscientific topics characteristic of high mountain environments, especially landslides, glaciers, and floods.
Affiliations and expertise
Senior Research Scholar, Center for Afghanistan Studies, Emeritus Professor of Geography and Geology, University of Nebraska at Omaha, USASA
Sher Jan Ahmadzai
Sher Jan Ahmadzai, Coordinator for Education and Outreach Programs, Center for Afghanistan Studies, University of Nebraska at Omaha
Affiliations and expertise
University of Nebraska at Omaha, NE, USARead Transboundary Water Resources in Afghanistan on ScienceDirect