Growing spatial overlap between dam-related flooding, cropland and domestic water points: A water–energy–food nexus management challenge in Malawi and Ghana
Growing spatial overlap between dam-related flooding, cropland and domestic water points: A water–energy–food nexus management challenge in Malawi and Ghana
In sub-Saharan Africa, land cover change, expansion of hydropower infrastructure, and increased flooding complicate country-level efforts to meet the Sustainable Development Goal target concerning access to safe water. The Water, Energy and Food (WEF) nexus approach recognises that addressing these complex challenges requires cross-sectoral analyses at multiple scales. Building on such an approach, our study examined the interrelationships between land cover change, dam-related flooding and access to safe water via a national-level spatial analysis with local case studies in Malawi and Ghana. Our assessment of the water–food interactions found that areas of overlap between water points and cropland increased from 2000 to 2020 for both countries at national scale, but overlap extent varied greatly depending on the land cover product used. Local-scale exploration of water point installation patterns in Zomba, Malawi confirmed this pattern, highlighting increasing non-governmental funding of borehole installation programmes. Our assessment of water–energy interactions found that flooding mediated by hydropower dams increased for the White Volta Basin in Ghana, thereby increasing inundation of groundwater points. Local-scale focus group discussions revealed flooding resulted in contaminated water sources and high risk of injury or drowning whilst fetching water. Overall, our study highlights how socio-economic drivers are bringing water points, flooding and cropland into closer proximity, requiring flood mitigation measures at water points and agro-chemical management to minimise potential water quality impacts. Given differences between land cover products, we recommend more robust integration of existing land cover products to better monitor these phenomena.
WEF nexus application, geographical information systems, land cover change, resource scarcity, spatial modelling, water safety planning
Li, Chengxiu
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Yu, Weiyu
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Dzodzomenyo, Mawuli
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Asamoah, Moses
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Kerapetse, Catherine Tlotlo
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Kandel, Matthew
99bc706c-5e04-4a9d-8687-79fca960cd76
Wright, Jim
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8 October 2021
Li, Chengxiu
adaf46fc-1573-4c50-bd7f-b2e7ed048f7e
Yu, Weiyu
4cca6f0a-badb-4f1c-8b38-da29ba0b9e09
Dzodzomenyo, Mawuli
f7969c6b-5999-448b-befa-e1c2e0287895
Asamoah, Moses
8bc7f17a-7432-44e0-ab9f-c2dd1cee1aaf
Kerapetse, Catherine Tlotlo
e2509900-e851-463e-9551-7e8c262cde63
Kandel, Matthew
99bc706c-5e04-4a9d-8687-79fca960cd76
Wright, Jim
94990ecf-f8dd-4649-84f2-b28bf272e464
Li, Chengxiu, Yu, Weiyu, Dzodzomenyo, Mawuli, Asamoah, Moses, Kerapetse, Catherine Tlotlo, Kandel, Matthew and Wright, Jim
(2021)
Growing spatial overlap between dam-related flooding, cropland and domestic water points: A water–energy–food nexus management challenge in Malawi and Ghana.
Frontiers in Water, 3, [730370].
(doi:10.3389/frwa.2021.730370).
Abstract
In sub-Saharan Africa, land cover change, expansion of hydropower infrastructure, and increased flooding complicate country-level efforts to meet the Sustainable Development Goal target concerning access to safe water. The Water, Energy and Food (WEF) nexus approach recognises that addressing these complex challenges requires cross-sectoral analyses at multiple scales. Building on such an approach, our study examined the interrelationships between land cover change, dam-related flooding and access to safe water via a national-level spatial analysis with local case studies in Malawi and Ghana. Our assessment of the water–food interactions found that areas of overlap between water points and cropland increased from 2000 to 2020 for both countries at national scale, but overlap extent varied greatly depending on the land cover product used. Local-scale exploration of water point installation patterns in Zomba, Malawi confirmed this pattern, highlighting increasing non-governmental funding of borehole installation programmes. Our assessment of water–energy interactions found that flooding mediated by hydropower dams increased for the White Volta Basin in Ghana, thereby increasing inundation of groundwater points. Local-scale focus group discussions revealed flooding resulted in contaminated water sources and high risk of injury or drowning whilst fetching water. Overall, our study highlights how socio-economic drivers are bringing water points, flooding and cropland into closer proximity, requiring flood mitigation measures at water points and agro-chemical management to minimise potential water quality impacts. Given differences between land cover products, we recommend more robust integration of existing land cover products to better monitor these phenomena.
Text
frwa-03-730370
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Published date: 8 October 2021
Additional Information:
Funding Information:
We wish to thank Ghana's National Disaster Management Organisation (NADMO) for their support for fieldwork in Talensi and Savelugu Nanton Districts. We acknowledge the ESA CCI Land Cover project for providing land cover products ? ESA Climate Change Initiative?Land Cover led by UCLouvain (2017).
Funding Information:
This work was funded through the Building REsearch Capacity for sustainable water and food security in drylands of sub-saharan Africa (BRECcIA) which is supported by UK Research and Innovation as part of the Global Challenges Research Fund, grant number NE/P021093/1.
Publisher Copyright:
Copyright © 2021 Li, Yu, Dzodzomenyo, Asamoah, Kerapetse, Kandel and Wright.
Keywords:
WEF nexus application, geographical information systems, land cover change, resource scarcity, spatial modelling, water safety planning
Identifiers
Local EPrints ID: 451673
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/451673
PURE UUID: f3d2d7bf-b8f8-424b-846f-a3da7805db4c
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Date deposited: 19 Oct 2021 16:31
Last modified: 17 Mar 2024 02:59
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Author:
Mawuli Dzodzomenyo
Author:
Moses Asamoah
Author:
Catherine Tlotlo Kerapetse
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