Climate risk assessment in hydropower

• Organiser: KDKH Hydropower TWG
• Deadline: 04 January 2022

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About the training

The Hydropower Transboundary Working Group under the Koshi Disaster Risk Reduction Knowledge Hub (KDKH) is organising this training as a part of its regular activities. The training aims to familiarise the participants with the concept of resilience, vulnerability, and reliability of a water resources system; provide exposure to online resources/tools on climate data and climate risk assessment; and strengthen the capacity on the bottom-up approach for climate risk assessment in hydropower (or water-infrastructure) projects. This training will provide insights on the potential ways to address climate risks.

The training programme is a combination of lectures on theoretical concepts, demonstration through case studies, and hands-on exercises. This training will also introduce the Climate Resilience Guideline developed by the International Hydropower Association (IHA) and the Sustainable Hydropower Guidelines developed for Nepal.

This training is supported by the Japan-World Bank Program for Mainstreaming Disaster Risk Management in Developing Countries under the Dame Safety and Disaster Risk Management Project.

Koshi Disaster Risk Reduction Knowledge Hub

The KDKH is a platform led and driven by its members to foster transboundary collaboration on disaster risk reduction and explore the interlinkages between science, policy, and practice. Its vision is to contribute to a resilient Koshi Basin through better understanding and evidence-based decision making on transboundary water-related DRR.

KDKH is hosted by the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Authority (NDRRMA), Nepal; the Bihar State Disaster Management Authority (BSDMA), India; and the Institute of Mountain Hazards and Environment (IMHE), Chinese Academy of Sciences; with secretariat support from ICIMOD.

Hydropower Transboundary Working Group

The Hydropower Transboundary Working Group is one of the eight transboundary working groups of the KDKH.   The Hydropower Transboundary Working Group is one of the eight transboundary working groups of the KDKH. This group is led by the Centre for Water Resources Studies (CWRS) at the Institute of Engineering, Tribhuvan University.

The Group focuses on assessing multi-hazard vulnerability and risk in hydropower; identifying potential ways of enhancing the resilience of hydropower to changing climate; enhancing collaboration in terms of research, publishing, advocacy; and dissemination to promote the concept of resilient hydropower. The group also organizes webinars, capacity building, and knowledge co-creation and sharing activities on a regular basis.

Resource persons

Patrick Ray is an Assistant Professor at the University of Cincinnati, USA. He is a specialist in the development and application of numerical models of the integrated hydro-economic system for risk management under the uncertainty of climate (and other) change. Ray is also the lead author of the World Bank’s Decision Tree for Confronting Climate Uncertainty in Water Resources Planning and Project Design (2015), and a primary scientific contributor for the International Hydropower Association’s Climate Resilience Guide (2019), California Department of Water Resource’s Climate Change Vulnerability Assessment (2019), and UNESCO’s Collaborative Risk Informed Decision Analysis (2018). In 2022, Ray also served as the Climate Resilience Lead for the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa.

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Asphota Wasti is a PhD Researcher with a specialisation in risk (climate and non-climate) analysis of water infrastructures. Wasti is the lead author of the ‘Climate Change and the Hydropower Sector: A Global Review’, contributor for the International Hydropower Association Climate Resilience Guide (2019). She is also an independent consultant for the World Bank Group and a member of the technical committee of climate change for the International Commission on Large Dams.

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Garima Mandavya is a PhD student in Environmental Engineering at the University of Cincinnati. Her broad research focus includes hydrology and climate change uncertainties. Mandavya’s work experiences include collaboration with P&G for Priority-Basin Water Stewardship Assessment for basins in Spain and Turkey and collaboration with UNESCO for Identification of Climate-Related Risks to South African Biosphere Reserves. She is also involved in risk assessment, nature-based solutions, hydrologic modelling, and weather generators along with stakeholder engagement, and communication with partners in research projects. She is passionate about learning new techniques in the field of climate science and hydrology.

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Gaurav Atreya is a graduate student in Environmental Engineering specialising in hydro-systems at the University of Cincinnati. His research specialisation includes hydrology, hydraulics, geographic information systems, data analysis, and data visualisation. He is the author of “Determination of Forces on Anchor Blocks and Stability Analysis in a 3-Dimensional Plane with Vector Approach”. Atreya advocates for free and open-source software and open access to knowledge.

Expected participants

• Early mid-career professional working in the areas of water resources, hydropower, and disaster risk management
• Representatives of Arun hydropower developers
• Relevant personnel from various government-agencies (NDRRMA, DHM, NEA, DoED, DWRI)
• IPPAN, consultants, research scholars, academicians, and graduate students
• Relevant stakeholders from South Asia

Agenda

Facilitator: Neera Shrestha Pradhan, Koshi River Basins and Cryosphere, KDKH Secretariat, ICIMOD