Principles of Sustainability

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Principles of Sustainability
Outline

• Sustainable Water Resources Roundtable

• Criteria Indicators

• Indicator Examples

Alan D. Steinman, Ph.D. Annis Water Resources
Institute Grand Valley State University Muskegon,
MI 49441
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Language in PA No. 148

1. Sec. 32803 (2) The council shallStudy the
   sustainability of the states groundwater use and
   whether the state should provide additional
   oversight of groundwater withdrawals

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Principles of Sustainability
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Brundtland Commission(World Environment and
Development Commission, 1987)

• Sustainable development
• meets the needs of the present while not
  compromising the ability of future generations to
  meet their own needs.
• encompasses the environmental, economic, and
  social systems and their contribution to meeting
  human needs.

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Principles Regarding Sustainability in Water
Resources

• The sustainable development of water resources
  is a multi-dimensional way of thinking about the
  interdependencies among natural, social, and
  economic systems in the use of water. In this
  view, our efforts to achieve economic vitality
  should occur in the context of the enhancement
  and preservation of ecological integrity, social
  well-being, and security.

Source Kranz, Gasteyer, Heintz, Shafer, and
Steinman (2004)
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Sustainability of Water Resources
Involves - policies, plans, and activities
that improve equality of access to water
- recognizes that there are limits and boundaries
of water use beyond which ecosystem behavior
might change in unanticipated ways -
requires consideration of interactions occurring
across different geographic scales global,
national, regional, and local -
challenges us to look to the future and to assess
and understand the implications of
decisions made today on the lives and
livelihoods of future generations and the
ecosystems upon which they depend.
Source Kranz, Gasteyer, Heintz, Shafer, and
Steinman (2004)
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Sustainable Water Resources Roundtable
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Sustainable Water Resources Roundtable (SWRR)
Purpose Serve as a forum to share information
and perspectives that will promote better
decision making in the US regarding the
sustainable development of our nations water
resources
http//water.usgs.gov/wicp/acwi/swrr/
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The Sustainable Roundtables are public/private
efforts to develop sets of national-scale
sustainability criteria and indicators for the
nations resources
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Sustainable Roundtables exist for fresh water,
forest, rangeland, and minerals
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Participants include Federal agencies, as well as
representatives of industry, academia, Tribal
governments and NGOs.
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The Roundtables are developing a comprehensive
set of criteria and indicators to assess our
progress toward sustainable resource management.
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There are many definitions of Sustainable
Development because there is disagreement about
how to balance the economic, social, and
environmental dimensions of sustainability.
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Progress toward social, economic, and
environmental sustainability, however it is
defined, can be tracked through the use of
criteria and indicators.
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Criteria and Indicators
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What is meant by the use of criteria and
indicators

• Criteria technical properties that help to
  choose an indicator
• Criteria should not be directional (SWRR)
• Example
• Inappropriate increase water for the
  environment
• Appropriate adequate water supply and timing
  for the environment

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What is meant by the use of criteria and
indicators

• Indicators measurements that track conditions
  over time should be scientifically defensible,
  quantifiable, consistent, and understandable
• Examples
• Groundwater quality
• Groundwater withdrawal depth

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Background (SWRR)

• The indicators sets should consider all aspects
  of resource systems so as to provide a balanced
  outlook
• The indicators are national scale, though many
  are based on local data and
• The indicators are not intended to be used for
  new regulatory development and there are no
  associated reporting requirements.

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Use of Indicators

• The indicators will contribute to the
  Congressionally mandated 2005 Update of the 2000
  Resource Planning Act Assessment
• The indicators will be refined over time and may
  become part of the overall indicator set used in
  the US to assess our progress toward a
  sustainable America and
• The indicators will support an informed debate
  about water systems and their contribution to
  sustainability

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Relationship among goal, criteria, indicators and
measures within capital.
Adequate water supply
CRITERIA
Residential water supply
Ecosystem water supply
Agricultural utility water supply
INDICATORS
Hydroperiod
Natural variability
Water demands
Reservoir stage
Water demands
Reservoir stage
MEASURES
Natural Capital
Economic Capital
Social Capital
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Develop Sustainable Water Resources Economic
Capital System Ex.
GOAL
CRITERIA
Adequate Water Supply for Agriculture
Adequate Water Supply for Electric Production
INDICATORS
Water Quality
Snow Pack Condition
Annual Precipitation Rate
Present Flow Rate/10 yr Average Flow
Water Recycling
Groundwater Withdrawal Depth
Mean Reservoir Depth
Proportion Groundwater/ Surface Water Supply
Irrigation Water Cost
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Examples of sustainability indices
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Universal Sujoy, Goldstein and Summers (USGS)
Sustainability Indices

• Water Supply Sustainability Index
• Thermoelectric Cooling Constraint Index
• Based on easily accessible data
• Include multiple assumptions
• Unquantified uncertainties
• Basis for more detailed analysis of
  sustainability issues
• A Survey of Water Use and Sustainability in the
  United States with a Focus on Power Generation
  (EPRI 1005474)

Freshwater Withdrawal
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Annual, Cumulative Monthly Precipitation Minus
ET, Ave. 1934-2002
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Groundwater Withdrawal/Available Precipitation
(1995)
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Summer Deficit 1995 Using 3-Year Rolling Average
Minimum Precipitation
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Change in Summer Deficit, Business as Usual,
1995-2025
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Water Supply Sustainability Index EPRI

• Extent of development of available renewable
  water
• use of available precipitation
• Sustainable groundwater use
• ratio of groundwater withdrawal to available
  precipitation
• Environmental regulatory limits on freshwater
  withdrawals
• number of aquatic endangered species
• Susceptibility to drought
• summer deficit during low precipitation years
• Growth of water use
• Increase of freshwater withdrawals from 1995 to
  2025
• New requirements for storage or withdrawal from
  storage
• increase in summer deficit from 1995 to 2025

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Developing Indicators of Freshwater Ecosystems
Dan Tunstall WORLD RESOURCES INSTITUTE
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WRI Indicators

• Value Indicators
• Condition Indicators
• Risk indicators

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Value Indicators

• What is the extent and location of each ecosystem
  or habitat type?
• What is the distribution of goods and services
  derived by the ecosystem (e.g., priority areas
  for the conservation of particular species)
• What is the quantity and value of the good or
  service being produced?

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Condition Indicators

• How has the ecosystem changed through time?
• What pressures and changes is it experiencing
  today?
• Is the capacity of that system to provide that
  service being enhanced or diminished over time?
• What is the condition and changing capacity of
  the ecosystem?

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Risk Indicators

• What pressures and changes is the ecosystem
  experiencing today?
• What are the potential threats to species or
  ecosystems?
• Where are the areas at risk? (Projections of key
  threats and pressures)

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Summary

• Sustainability must take into account the
  environmental, economic, and social sectors

• Criteria and indicators are useful ways
• to characterize and track sustainability

• Recommend that the council develop
• groundwater criteria and indicators
• to assess sustainability for final report