Integrated water resources management and the land‐water nexus: A South African perspective

Abstract

AbstractAs a source of diffuse pollution, land use/land cover (LULC) can have profound impacts on water quality. Accordingly, the importance of managing the land‐water nexus is often emphasized in the rhetoric of Integrated Water Resources Management (IWRM). Several authors, however, have cautioned that this need is frequently overlooked in practice. This is partly because stakeholders and policymakers are not equipped with clear and accessible information about the impacts of LULC on water resources and the consequent need to manage both in a sustainable and coordinated manner. The result is persistent sectoral fragmentation in the management of these two resources, and a concomitant failure to develop proactive and data‐driven catchment management strategies. Aimed principally at academics, researchers, and policymakers, this article argues that there is an urgent need, especially in developing countries such as South Africa, for ongoing research into the impacts of LULC on water resources. More particularly, there is a need to develop accurate models that will provide stakeholders and policymakers with the motivation, knowledge, and understanding necessary to develop effective, informed, and coordinated management strategies. A failure to do so, as illustrated by the current situation in South Africa, may have dire socioeconomic and ecological consequences.