Sino-Dutch Research on Integrated Water Management

Nanjing Hydraulic Research Institute signed a cooperation agreement with five Dutch organisations to establish a Sino-Dutch network in the field of integrated water management and sustainable utilization of water resources

The agreement was signed in Nanjing, China on 28 May by professor dr. Jiangyun Zhang of NHRI, director-general Jan Hendrik Dronkers of Public works and water management Rijkswaterstaat, managing director Maarten Smit of Deltares, professor dr. Arthur Mynett of Unesco-IHE and professor dr. Dirk Jan van den Berg of Delft University of Technology

Linking joint projects to research agenda

Dutch public works organisation Rijkswaterstaat is currently involved in two water projects in China. One concerns the improvement of the water quality in lake Taihu near Shanghai, and the other project concerns flood risk reduction along the Huaihe river. These two projects are conducted as part of a memorandum of understanding that was signed in 2011 on ministerial level.

"The new agreement provides the opportunity to link the existing cooperation to the agenda of all research centres involved", Gerard de Vries of Rijkswaterstaat explaines. De Vries is programme manager of the sino-dutch water cooperation.

De Vries: "We work closely together with the Huaihe river commission. This river has many similarities with our Rhine river, so we exchange experiences on both rivers. For monitoring the flood risks we use the Dike strength Analysis Module (DAM) developed by Deltares. This enables us to compare the assessments of the dikes along the rivers Huaihe and Rhine. Now we also have the possibility to involve both Dutch and Chinese researchers to interpret these strength analysis."

Combination of water-food-energy

On the occasion of signing the agreement, the Dutch delegation had a meeting with Chinese top experts. They discussed the potential issues for a joint research agenda that can benefit both countries.

This included the issue of integration of water management with agriculture and energy production. This water-food-energy nexus is an important element for sustainable development.

"In the discussion with our Chinese colleagues, it was suggested to include a fourth element, and that is the environment", De Vries adds. "Both in China and the Netherlands water scarcity is increasing. So it becomes more and more important to critically look at the allocation of fresh water to farmers and power stations. But we tend to forget that nature can severely suffer from drought too. During the meeting we talked with our Chinese colleagues on joining our research on extreme low river discharges."

Source: Dutch Water Sector

Read More Related Content On This Topic - Click Here

Media

Taxonomy

• Research
• Water-Energy Nexus
• Water Management