WORKING GROUP ON ENVIRONMENT (WG-ENV) | International Commission on Irrigation & Drainage (ICID)

Environmental sustainability is a moving target which evolves as the knowledge of nature increases. There was a time when environment just meant surroundings. It was used to describe the physical world surrounding us including soil, rocks, water and air. Gradually it was realized that the enormous variety of plants, animals and micro-organisms on this earth, including human beings are an integral part of the environment. More recently, it is further recognized that all types of social, cultural and technological activities carried out by human beings also have a profound influence on various components of the environment.

The three pillars of ‘Green Revolution’, - high yielding varieties, chemical inputs like fertilizer and pesticides, and irrigation – have had a definite positive outcome in terms of increased food production, which obviated hunger in many parts of the world. But it also had negative impacts on the environment. Similarly, for years, groundwater has served as the resource for supplemental and intensive irrigation. However, in many basins worldwide groundwater is now mined rapidly and quality is deteriorating. The way water in general and water for agriculture in particular is managed, has harmed the environment in a variety of ways: groundwater depletion; land degradation and contamination of water; depletion of forest resources; and loss of ecosystem services and biodiversity. ICID has long been concerned with the environmental impacts of irrigation and has been addressing the issues from time to time. The Working Group on Environment (WG-ENV) provides guidance on the environmental aspects of drainage and irrigation to policy makers, planners, designers, and managers including its effects on climate and human health. The Group aims at the management of sustainable environment, maximizing positive and minimizing adverse effects of irrigation and drainage systems.

Mandate:

To provide guidance to policy makers, planners, designers, and managers in the irrigation and drainage sector on the following environmental aspects of irrigation and drainage systems: (i) physical; (ii) chemical, ; (iii) ecological, (iv) socio-economic, and (v) cultural. To address concerns to the effects on local, regional and global common goods, such as climate, biodiversity and human health. To work towards the management of a sustainable environment, through adapted practices, adequate policies and institutions, maximizing positive and minimizing adverse effects of irrigation and drainage systems.

Established : 2015

Membership

Sl. No.	Name	Email	Country	Position
1	Prof. Dr. Charlotte de Fraiture	c.*************	Netherlands	Chair
2	Dr. Michael van der Laan	va*************	South Africa	Vice Chair
3	Dr. (Ms.) Seija Virtanen	se*************	Finland	Secretary
4	Dr. Aynur Fayrap	ay*************	Turkey	Member
5	Mr. Carl Walters	ca*************	Australia	Member
6	Prof. Feng Qian	xi*************	China	Member
7	Dr. Fuqiang Tian	ti*************	China	Member
8	Dr. Giulio Castelli	gi*************	Italy	Member
9	Dr. Hao-Che Ho	ha*************	Chinese Taipei Committee	Member
10	Ir. Hj. Mohd Azmi bin Ismail	az*************	Malaysia	Member
11	Prof. (Ms.) HONG Eun Mi	eu*************	South Korea	Member
12	Prof. Dr. Joong Dae, Choi	jd*************	South Korea	Member
13	Prof. Kwang Sik Yoon	ks*************	South Korea	Member
14	Dr. Ming Kai Hsieh	mi*************	Chinese Taipei Committee	Member
15	Dr. Muhammad Basharat Chaudhry	ba*************	Pakistan	Member
16	Eng. (Ms.) P.M. Jayadeera	pr*************	Sri Lanka	Member
17	Engr. Reynaldo L. Baloloy	rl*************	Philippines	Member
18	Md Samiul Ahsan Talucder	sa*************	Bangladesh	Member
19	Mr. Usamah Hashim Witwit	Us*************	Iraq	Member
20	Er. VOKHIDJON M. AKHMADJONOV	ah*************	Uzbekistan	Member
21	Dr. Yury Anatolyevich Mozhaiskii	ma*************	Russia	Member
22	Prof. Dr. Yutaka MATSUNO	ma*************	Japan	Member
23	Dr. Javaid Hussain	ja*************	Pakistan	Provisional Member
24	Dr. Sasha Koo-Oshima (FAO)	sa*************	Italy	Provisional Member
25	Dr. Yang Shihong - Young Professional	ys*************	China	Provisional Member
26	Dr. Zha Yuanyuan - Young Professional	zh*************	China	Provisional Member

CHAIRMAN’S MESSAGE+

Prof. Dr. Charlotte de Fraiture

ACTIVITIES-

ANNOUNCEMENT+

AGENDA/MINUTES/REPORTS/PUBLICATIONS+

| AGENDA (Previous) | MINUTES (Previous) |

Reports / Articles / Documents

Long-Term Groundwater Quality and Saline Intrusion Assessment in an Irrigated Environment: A Case Study of the Aquifer under the LBDC Irrigation System
Muhammad Basharat and Ata-Ur-Rehman Tariq

PRESENTATIONS+

Montpellier, France 2015: Stakeholders, Multi-Functionality, and Governance: How to Manage Competing Water Uses and Improve Decision-Making Processes in three Southern European Irrigation Systems by Sandra Ricart Casadevall

Gwangju, Rep. of Korea, 2014: 6th meeting of the WG on Environment (WG-ENV) - Dr. Sylvain R. Perret, Prof. N. Hatcho, Dr M. Van der Laan

Environmental aspects of irrigation and drainage projects - Case studies received from members

Mardin, Turkey, 2013: The potential contribution of Life Cycle Assessment to analyzing the environmental impacts and the sustainability of irrigation and drainage systems
SR Perret, M Van der Laan, N Hatcho

Adelaide, Australia, 2012

2011 :An overview of irrigation mosaics. Irrigation and Drainage, 60(4), 454-463. by Paydar, Z., Cook, F., Xevi, E., & Bristow, K. (2011).

2010: Ecosystem services and agriculture: tradeoffs and synergies. Philosophical transactions of the royal society B: biological sciences, 365(1554), 2959-2971. by Power, A. G. (2010).

CONCLUDED WORKBODIES/ TECHNICAL GROUPS+

GALLERY+

AWARDS+

ARCHIVES+

Work Team on Environmental Impacts of Reclamation Projects (1986) Renamed Working Group on Environmental Impacts of Irrigation, Drainage and Flood Control Projects (WG-ENV) (1986). WG on Environmental Impacts of Irrigation, Drainage and Flood Control Projects (1986-2008) changed its name WG on Environment (2008-2015) and *re-constituted WG on Environment in 2015 with a new mandate.

WG-ENV [2008-2015] - Closure Report