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Groundwater plays a critical role in arid West China where water is the limiting factor for development. This paper first describes groundwater characteristics in a region of four arid inland river watersheds and the problems associated with groundwater consumption. This region exhibits a unique alternating pattern of high mountains and depressions, which results in extensive interactions of surface water and groundwater. Then the authors propose six strategies to support adequate exploitation and use of groundwater in the region. These strategies are: 1) setting up a groundwater monitoring system; 2) forming a unified watershed authority, 3) protecting mountain ecology; 4) increasing the efficiency of groundwater usage; 5) protecting groundwater; and 6) supporting advanced research. The implementation of these strategies should be built upon the promotion of sustainable economic development and broad public support. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A framework that integrates two data-driven techniques is proposed and developed to assess fecal coliform loadings in natural streams. A relationship between transport medium (streamflow) and non-conservative pollutant (fecal coliform) load is first developed using conventional regression technique. The spatial distribution of the fecal load over watersheds is then captured using artificial neural networks through a disaggregation scheme. Streamflow, as a surrogate for non-conservative fecal load, has been used in the disaggregation process. The framework is applied to an area that encompasses four USGS 8-digit Hydrologic Unit Code (HUC) watersheds in the southeastern region of Kentucky, USA. The study attempts to address two major issues: (i) assessment of relative pollutant loads from watersheds and (ii) evaluation into possible reduction in the number of monitoring stations to meet the budgetary constraints. Preliminary results indicate the potential of this approach in assessing the relative fecal loading contribution from different watersheds with the help of conservative hydrological parameters, especially in data-poor conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

It is generally accepted that conflicting demands over international rivers will intensify. There is an active debate on whether this will lead to "water wars" or to unprecedented cooperation. Framing the debate in this manner, however, tends to cast the concept of cooperation as all-or-nothing, imp lying that "cooperation" is an extreme, in direct opposition to "war." This conceptual construct obscures the many practical levels of cooperation that states can undertake to their mutual advantage. It is important to recognize that it is entirely rational that states will always have a "national agenda" for a river that they share with other states, and that they will cooperate if it serves that national agenda. In practice, there can be a continuum of levels of cooperation,from simple information sharing, to joint ownership and management of infrastructure investments. Furthermore, it may not necessarily be the case that "more" cooperation reaps "more " benefits in all river basins. There are many different types of benefits that can be secured through the cooperative management of international waters, with each individual basin offering different potential cooperative benefits with different associated costs. For each international basin, the optimal mode of cooperation will depend on a mix of factors including hydrologic characteristics, the economics of cooperative investments, numbers and the relationships of riparians, and the costs of parties coming together. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]