ifwfabs22

=2-Pager Abstract Template for NBDC Contributions to South Africa Forum=

1. Authors
Authors names:Matthew McCartney, Solomon Seyoum and Michael Menker Project Number: N2 and N4 E-mail address of lead author: m.mccartney@cgiar.org

2. Forum session
3. Emerging TWG: RMS



3. Title

 * Assessing the impacts of existing and planned water storage development in the Ethiopian Highlands under current and projected future climate **

4. Key message/highlights
By altering patterns of rainfall and runoff, future changes in climate will constrain agricultural production and economic growth in many developing countries. Methods to evaluate the possible impacts of climate change in water resources planning are a prerequisite for successful adaptation.


 * //Short abstract//** //(150 words) including://

There are plans for significant expansion of hydropower and irrigation in the Ethiopian portion of the Blue Nile River basin. However, the possible consequences of climate change on the performance of schemes have not been evaluated. In this study, several models were combined to provide an assessment of the possible impact of one downscaled mid-range climate change scenario (A1B) on the performance of existing and planned irrigation and hydropower schemes, and downstream flows. Model simulations were run from 1983 to 2100. The results indicate that, although there are variations within the basin, under this scenario rainfall will be reduced and evaporation will increase, particularly in the second half of the century. This will in turn result in: i) increased irrigation water demand; ii) reduced hydropower production; and iii) reduced downstream flows. Although significant uncertainty remains, this has important implications for the future planning, design and management of water resource schemes.


 * //Add a visual representation (i.e. graph, chart or figure to highlight emerging results)//**

Climate change will severely impact the performance of water resource schemes and needs to be considered in current planning of future hydropower and irrigation schemes
 * //Your preliminary highlights for the Forum capitalizing sessions//**