Winners of the International ReSource Award for Sustainable Watershed Management 2005
Announcing the winners of the ReSource Award winners 2005
The winner of this year’s International ReSource Award for Sustainable Watershed Management is a project in the Philippines, which received USD 80 000. A further USD 50 000 each was donated to projects in Cameroon and Bolivia. This year marks the fourth anniversary of the award.
Winner: compensating local people for their upstream activities in the Philippines
This year’s winning project comes from the Philippines and focuses on sustainable watershed management and poverty alleviation in the Philippine Uplands. The project is based on a “Payments for environmental services (PES)” system, compensating the local people for their upstream activities to the benefit of the downstream communities, such as domestic water users, farmers and tourists. The project foresees training support on sustainable upland farming practices and places strong emphasis on practical dialogue between providers, beneficiaries and intermediaries. The winning project was submitted by the Resources, Environment and Economics Center for Studies, Inc. (REECS), Quezon City, Philippines.
Background
The Peñablanca Protected Landscape and Seascape is part of the Municipality of Peñablanca. It is located in the Northern Sierra mountain range, 508 kilometres north of Manila. Satellite image analysis has shown that forest cover receded by 6% and agricultural areas expanded by 17% from 1998-2002. A rapid hydrologic functions assessment also revealed that there is increasing variability in the Pinacanauan River’s stream flow. Further analysis through simulation modelling suggested the receding forest cover during the period under review was directly influenced by the observed changes in stream flow patterns.
Project description
The general objective of the project is to initiate a PES programme in the proposed project site. The approach will involve the following activities in preparation for the PES programme:
- provide training support to upstream communities on sustainable upland farming practices and community organising;
- identify and promote alternative livelihood programmes for upland communities;
- undertake an extensive information, education and community programme;
- provide training on forest patrolling and monitoring for upstream communities;
- implement practical dialogue between providers, beneficiaries and intermediaries;
- conduct consultations with all key stakeholders to assess and redesign the PES institutional structure;
- finalise and initiate the PES system
Evaluation
Payments for environmental services (PES) is a relatively young market-based instrument that addresses the twin goal of environmental protection and poverty alleviation.
The project in the municipality of Peñablanca, Cagayan Province supports the award’s goal to contribute to raising awareness of the ecological, social and economic significance of water sources and watersheds in the local community. The project demonstrates innovative preventative measures for protecting water resources.
|
|
|
| Peñablanca view | Women's group in the area | Pinacanauan river |
Download Final Review Philippines.pdf
Runner-up: water conflict mitigation in Cameroon
This is the first time Swiss Re has made an award to a project from Africa. The Ntunir watershed project in the Jakiri Council municipality of the North West Province, Cameroon, will receive USD 50 000. It was submitted by KivenK development, a local NGO. The project mitigates conflict among people of different cultures who are either concerned about protecting the catchment areas for quantitative and qualitative water supplies or grazers who need the catchment areas to provide their animals with fresh grass.
Background
Ntunir watershed in Jakiri Council municipality of the North West Province, Cameroon, is spread over 700 hectares in a moorland landscape. The watershed lies at distinct altitudes between 1 500 – 2 000 metres above sea level at the foothill of the second highest point in Cameroon (mount Kilum, 3 011m). The quest for land has increased within the past 15 years as a result of the ever-increasing population. As a result, cattle breeders and short-term crop farmers have invaded the watershed.
Today, the vegetation is overgrazed and burnt annually. The inhabitants of Nkar, Mantum, Wainamah-II and Ngwatang villages (15 000 people), who have harnessed their water supply schemes from the different catchment areas in the watershed, face increasing water shortages, water-borne diseases, land ownership questions, and farmer-grazer conflicts.
Project description
The project attempts a holistic approach to effective and preventive watershed development measures, through capacity building of stakeholders, immediate catchment area protection by applying appropriate physical and bioengineering techniques, as well as land use strategies and conflict management between those who are interested in the land to browse their cattle and the population, which is interested in catchment protection to secure reliable water supplies in quality and quantity. The projects in particular attempts to:
- sensitize and educate all the stakeholders in land use patterns and catchment area protection;
- involve the beneficiaries to participate fully in all the stages of the project (planning, implementation, monitoring and evaluation, and maintenance);
- avoid being too ambitious in planning the activities;
- draw examples from successfully implemented projects, elsewhere.
Evaluation
The project applies a very pragmatic step-by-step approach and avoids being too ambitious. The project mainly treats the protection of four immediate catchment areas for Nkar, Mantum, Wainamah-II and Ngwatang water supplies, alongside alternative land use activities, such as pasture improvement, thereby implementing the principles of sustainability in watershed management.
Runner-up: Sustainable Water Resources Management through the Recuperation of Traditional Knowledge in the Bolivian Andes
A contribution of USD 50 000 was granted to a project in the Suches River basin, in the Bolivian highlands. This proposal aims to establish best practices in water management along the full length of the Suches River, from Alpaca grazing grounds at 4,800 meters to the shores of the Lake Titicaca. The project is unique in its mix of traditional farming techniques, culture and modern approach to sustainable use of natural resources. It was submitted by Grupo de Voluntariado Civil (GVC), La Paz, Bolivia.
Background
The Suches River watershed is located in Bolivia’s Camacho Province in the Department of La Paz. The Suches River descends from the Eastern Cordillera of the Andes, collecting rain water from the watershed and flows into Lake Titicaca at an altitude of between 3 800 to 5 000 meters above sea level. The climate in the area is characterised by low temperatures during the night, intense solar radiation during the day and periodic frosts during autumn and winter. The seasons of the year are clearly marked, with a decidedly dry period contrasted with the rainy season. Average annual rainfall is approximately 728.1 mm and is concentrated exclusively in the months from December to March. The average temperature throughout the year is 9°C, giving way to some 88 days of frost in a year.
Project description
The project seeks to restore the Andean vision of equilibrium between man and the environment through the development of economic activities and social tradition. Archaeological evidence shows that pre-Columbian indigenous populations developed techniques adapted to the physical conditions of their environment, with sukakollos in the areas prone to flooding and taqanas on hillsides, and designed systems of irrigation, rotation, combined cultivation and genetic selection of plant varieties. These techniques allowed them to reduce the effects of the Andean climate and achieve abundant harvests. The landscape of the Suches River watershed allows for the reintroduction of sukakollos and taqanas and their subsequent use for intensive farming.
Evaluation
The project has many convincing features due to its integrated and innovative approach:
- construct of sukakollos with the help of a tractor and farmers’ manual labour. These farmers will receive a loan of certified potato, pea and fava seeds, on condition of returning the loan with an additional 50% to feed the fund for the next season. They will also have access to forage seeds at below-market cost, thanks to support from the project;
-
establish of Taqanas, representing a traditional practice that helps reduce erosion, preserve humidity and make better use of the land. Known as slow-forming terraces, taqanas take three to five years to reach their optimal production potential, accumulating soil and vegetable matter that form barriers against soil erosion. Taqanas are, however, productive from year one.
|
|
|
| Suches River | Water pump | Teaching traditional farming techniques |
