Water Resources Management in Ethiopia: Implications for the Nile ...

determinants of land degradation and water scarcity in the highlands, with particular emphasis on the ecologically fragile mountain environment, different land use systems and practices, indigenous and government soil and water conservation strategies, resettlement, villagization, and food relief programs. Chapter 9 summarizes the history of river basin development, particularly the construction of dams and irrigation systems, on pastoralists and the environment in the Awash Valley and makes predictions of the possible impact of these activities in the lower Omo Valley and around Lake Turkana, where the huge Gibe III Dam is currently under construction. Chapter 10 briefly outlines the recent history of flooding in Ethiopia and, from a hydrological perspective, analyzes the distribution, main causes, and consequences of the 2006 floods in three Ethiopian watersheds (Omo, Lake Tana, and Dire Dawa) and makes recommendations for flood mitigation. Chapter 11 presents a case study of the 2006 flood in Dire Dawa Town, the most severely affected community during that year, and addresses the problems of disproportionately high impacts on the poor and difficulties with using an integrated flood control approach at the river basin level. Chapter 12 reviews the growing literature on water pollution by chemicals and heavy metals in Ethiopia within a development and policy context and considers some treatment and mitigation options. Chapter 13 describes major negative health impacts of water resources development in Africa, examines the role of different water development programs and activities in Ethiopia in the transmission of vector-borne parasitic and geochemical diseases and evaluates some preventive and mitigating strategies. The concluding chapter 14 highlights major challenges to achieving equitable and sustainable water security in Ethiopia and offers cautious prospects for the future.

We have tried to minimize repetition in this multiauthored volume by asking all contributors to emphasize water resource management and by editing each chapter. We believe that the information presented here will be most helpful to policy makers, managers, and researchers interested in a broad perspective of urgent water issues in Ethiopia and the Nile Basin and hope that the book will contribute to some real, if modest, progress toward the beneficial management of the waters of this region.