Addressing Climate Change Impacts Through Community-Level Water Management: Case Studies from the South-Eastern Coastal Region of India

Abstract

With regional variations, climate change has significant direct and indirect impacts on the water sector in coastal south-east India. In most cases, it is a combination of changes in different climate signals such as temperature and precipitation as well as non-climatic factors that exacerbate water-related problems for rural communities. Overall, the data from 18 villages show how climate change affects the most basic needs of vulnerable coastal communities, namely water, occupation and health. Thus, adapting to water management is one of the major challenges for rural development in the region. In many communities, significant changes in local water resources have been observed during the last decades that can be linked to changing climatic conditions indicating risks for water management in the future. Combining scientific and local perspectives, the major climate-related challenges for the water sector can be prioritised as growing water scarcity, decrease in water quality and the risk of increased floods. Following vulnerability and needs assessment at community level, the AdaptCap project together with communities, developed and implemented a set of adaptation measures to address the most pressing challenges faced by the water sector: Mitigating water scarcity by introducing effective irrigation technologies in Poovula (a) Doruvu and rainwater harvesting for irrigation and domestic water usage in Motumala; (b) Improving water quality in the drinking water supply in Desarajupalli and providing a sanitation infrastructure in Govupetta; (c) Reducing flood risks from sea water and backwater through the construction of bunds in Kaduvetti and Perumalpettai.