Early warning is an essential element of any functioning civil protection system. The concept of civil protection refers to the protection of people, the environment and property in the event of man made, technological and natural risks or emergencies. The issue is to single out early warning signals as early as possible in order to have more reaction time for preventive action, preparatory measures or a timely response. Therefore, focus on early warning and civil protection is on capacities and possibilities, particularly related to information processing.
Hydrological networks have an important part to play in all this. On the one hand they form the basis for the required analyses and on the other they help the application of the procedures. Further progress in the modelling of runoff processes in mountain areas may not be expected until it is possible to identify the relevant affecting factors and to spot them in greater detail regarding both space and time. Hydrological networks are indispensable for this purpose.
Droughts and floods are threats that require constant vigilance. Our ability to predict flood-ing, plan for droughts and support healthy ecosystems are challenged by land use and climate change. Safe drinking water sources and entire ecosystems depend on continuous im-provements in our understanding of, and efforts to protect, our water resources. In fact, it is difficult to overstate the importance of the availability, reliability, and accuracy of data from water monitoring. Today’s hydrometric monitoring networks range from volunteer stewardship of small watersheds to continental scale initiatives. Collectively, they are the basis for every action taken to support beneficial uses of water and to minimize threats from climate change.
The day to day work of the stream hydrographer has changed substantially from even a decade ago. It is essential to review how these changes impact the end to end system for collecting and publishing credible and valid data. The proposed project for early warning and civil protection would present a modern ‘best practices’ approach to hydrometric monitoring.
A hydro metrological station is an organized system for collection of information of specific kinds such as precipitation, run off, water quality, sedimentation and other climate parameters. The accuracy in the estimation of both quality and quantity of water resources and thus for making the decisions for integrated water resources development and management depends on how much data/information is available for the region concerned. Data on temporal and spatial characteristics of water resources of a region is obtained by an observational station. Setting up a station requires investment for infrastructure equipment, logistics, and for operation and maintenance.
The specific objectives focus on defining the necessary works to produce a design defining the future information exchange network, the works and installations to be implemented, and the communications system and presentation in real time, based on the capture, transmission and processing of the values obtain, in the Manicaland Province and Zimbabwe as a whole.
Scientific planning is necessary for station design so that the desired results could be achieved with minimum cost. Having enough relevant and accurate hydrologic information reduces the chances of under design or overdesign and thus minimizes the economic losses, which leads to the overall increase in the benefit/cost ratio. It has not, so far, been possible to define the optimum level of hydrologic information required for planning, design and development of this specific project in Honde Valley, due to difficulties in developing a benefit cost function of hydrologic information. Furthermore, the requirement of water resources data depends on their end use therefore, it is difficult to formulate general rules on network design.
While designing a hydro-meteorological station, the decisions to be taken are:
Since the hydro-meteorological data networks in the district are operated by a number of agencies that include the Meteorological Services Department (MSD) and Environmental Management Agency (EMA), a good coordination among them is important. This will reduce the expenditure and improve data quality. Of particular importance is the coordination between hydrometer, water quantity and quality data networks. Data availability is extremely important for water management. Without data it would not be possible to know how much water is available or how often extreme events are likely to occur. The usually available hydro-meteorological data often have a limited representativeness and are affected by errors and uncertainties. Additionally, their collection is resource intensive and, thus, many areas of the country are severely under monitored. Additionally, the spread of new technologies together with the integration of different approaches to water management science and practice have uncovered a large amount of soft information that can potentially complement and expand the possibilities of water management.
The objectives for an observation station should be identified and decided before the designing is taken up. Some of the important objectives are listed as:
The worth of the data that derive from a station is a function of the uses that subsequently are made of them. Nevertheless, many of the uses of hydrological data are not apparent at the time of the station design and, therefore, cannot be used to justify the collection of specific data that ultimately may be of great value. In fact, few hydrological data would be collected if a prior economic justification were required. However, modern societies like Sweden have developed a sense that information is a commodity that, like insurance, should be purchased for protection against an uncertain future.
Such an investment in the case of hydrological data is the basic station, which is established to provide hydrological information for unanticipated future water resources decisions. The basic station should provide a level of hydrological information at any location within its area of applicability that would preclude any gross mistakes in water resources decision making. To accomplish this aim, at least three criteria must be fulfilled:
The suitable station is one that will avoid serious deficiencies in developing and managing water resources on a scale commensurate with the overall level of economic development of Honde Valley. It should be developed as rapidly as possible by incorporating existing stations as appropriate. In other words, a suitable station will provide the basic framework for network expansion to meet future needs for specific purposes. It is emphasized that a suitable station will not be adequate for the formulation of detailed development plans and will not meet the numerous requirements of a developed region for the operation of projects and the management of water resources
Design of stations is not a one-time affair. Factors affecting station design go on evolving with time and thus the networks in the area also require periodic review and adjustments. Often rainfall records are more comprehensive and reliable than stream flow records. Data are the life blood of hydrological models and the heart of the systems which can simulate river flow conditions upon which good water management decisions can be made. With reference to Honde Valley, data may include rainfall, stream flow, temperature, humidity, cloud cover, radiation, evaporation or evapotranspiration, groundwater levels and wind.
Station design activity begins with the collection of basin maps and background information about the area/region. Usually 1:250,000 scale topographical maps of the river basin showing basin boundaries and river network will form the base map for the design. Smaller scale maps are of limited use because it is difficult to identify the location of the station relative to key features. It is also important to use an updated map. Ideally, the following maps should also be collected:
In addition to technical, financial considerations are also important in station design because the station cannot be established without adequate money, equipment cannot be purchased and operated, and staff cannot be hired. Hence, after the preliminary design of the station has been completed, the expenditure to establish the station and the cost of operating it should be estimated. These monetary requirements should match with the budget so that the proposed station is sustainable. As a way forward, the evolving project on water resources harmonisation in Ward 10 that involves designing and construction of proposed mega water tanks should include this concept: the integrated water resources development and management.
Surface weather observations are widely expanding for multiple reasons:
One of the main objectives for the installation of hydrometric monitoring is to provide data for climate predictions. Despite the increasing number of AWS’s (Amazon Web Services) deployed, many remote sites are still not covered by surface observations. The goal is to improve AWS network planning, especially in regions like Honde Valley where the scarcity of local trained personnel and funding availability to manage the instrumentation are relevant issues.
Some consultancies performed in the past aimed to support, remotely and/or locally, national weather services, public agencies, Local authorities and international organizations in defining and evaluating AWS’s siting and selection. The efficacy of the results mainly depends on the accurate choice of the sites of installation (network plan), on the correct selection and description of instrumentation type to prepare the international tenders, on the training process to improve the AWS’s management efficiency.
National and international investments in climate observations, research and modelling have greatly improved climate predictions and projections over the past decades. They have also helped to advance overall scientific understanding of climate variability and change. This progress has provided a robust scientific foundation for climate services.
The key issues facing the global community of hydrological services include:
A good ‘early warning culture’ means giving the highest priority to safety over other factors, for instance, profit making. It should also be reflected in the community’s willingness to raise safety concerns and to learn from errors, incidents and accidents, cyclones and droughts. If an early-warning culture fails, it automatically means that some potential early warning signals are, or can be dismissed or downplayed.
Climate change has led to changes in weather patterns and efforts of adapting and containing weather shocks such as drought, heat waves and floods linked to climate change should be intensified. At a meeting of NGOs to review preparedness of civil protection units in the Mutasa rural district at the Mutasa Rural District Council in November 2019, it was revealed that Ward 10 has no established Civil Protection Unit. Therefore, it was resolved to take an initiative to form a Civil Protection Unit in Ward 10 of Honde Valley. Its objectives were laid down as:
The question of preparedness in disaster management came under the spotlight after a number of disasters were reportedly not well articulated with a good number of families being left exposed. It was revealed during the course of discussion that there have not been awareness campaigns. It is necessary to teach our Ward 10 inhabitants how to identify hazards that may happen in our area as well as resilience building and hazards managing. Risk profiles and risk maps with identified safety points should be developed based on the main hazards that affect Ward 10. Emergency search and rescue kits comprising first aid boxes, stretcher beds, ropes, high-powered torches as well as picks and shovels should be procured for our ward.
Disaster risk reduction is a broad and cross-cutting issue which requires political commitment and public understanding to achieve. It should aim to lessen the vulnerability of people and property to the adverse impact of hazards. Realizing the stipulated objectives will require systematic efforts to analyse and manage the causal factors of disasters that include reduced exposure to hazards; wise management of land and the environment; the establishment of solid early-warning systems; and improved preparedness for adverse events. It implies the involvement of different actors, ranging from community-based organisations to national governmental agencies and regional and international bodies.
.jpg)
