Integrated Water Management Plan of Mongolia.

This Plan is developed within the framework of the “Strengthening Integrated Water Resources Management in Mongolia” project". The Law on Water of Mongolia states that an Integrated Water Management Plan should be developed and approved by the Government. The Plan can also be considered as a follow-up, through the Water National Programme, on the MDG-Based Comprehensive National Development Strategy of Mongolia. The objectives of the MDG-Based Strategy can be summarized as: (i) Social improvement, (ii) Economic development and (iii) Environmental conservation. This Plan in particular aims to support these objectives. It identifies import issues for IWRM and provides for the actions at national level that are proposed in the Water National Programme, providing a scientific basis, regional detail, and a methodical approach for ranking the actions including their impacts assessment and risks. The main challenges are: Improving water conditions in and around urban centres; Mining, water supply and safeguarding environmental impacts; Supply of water for herders; Developing the national hydropower potential; developing an institutional framework for water management; integrated policy development for water management. Through analysis of these challenges, the Plan formulates a total of 88 measures to address the 96 issues that have been identified.
The Plan in Chapter 2 outlines the state of general natural conditions of Mongolia and in Chapter 3 describes water resources of Mongolia and their use. Chapters 4 an 5 analyse the demand for water in Mongolia (domestic, agriculture, industrial, energy, municipal, tourism, transport, defence, environment) and provides also a water demand overview. Water subsectors are identified as water for the people, water for food and agriculture, water for industry mining and energy, water for environment and cross sectoral integration (principally a governance issue). Part 6 concerns the institutional, legal and policy settings for water resource management. Chapter 7 outlines water sector issues and, finally Chapter 8 and 9 concern strategies for the Integrated Water Management and implementation of the Plan. Measures for the water subsectors will fall within one of these five categories: 1. Providing sufficient water of adequate quality; 2. Improving water use efficiency 3. Protecting the water resources 4. Improving the management of water 5. Preventing, and mitigating impacts of, water calamities.
Chapter 8 describes strategies for achieving the objectives of the Integrated Water Management Plan for the period up to 2021. The strategies fit within the policy contexts as mentioned in Chapter 6 and address the present and anticipated issues described in the previous Chapter 7. Strategies are defined with high and low scenarios, but at the end of this Chapter a number of possible risks to planning are discussed. Strategies, translated into measures, are proposed for, among other things, safe drinking water and optimal waste water treatment in urban areas and in rural areas, water for tourism and sanatorium, water for livestock and for irrigation, water for mines (including environmental issues), hydropower and water supply to industries, conservation of water resources, pollution of water resources, sufficient and clean water for the environment, restoration of water resources, hazards due to floods, droughts, dzuds (harsh winter conditions) and other disasters. in addition to these strategy issues, legislation for water management, institutions for water management, financing of the water sector, capacity building for water management and monitoring and research for water management, data and Information management, and public awareness of water management and public participation are taken into account.
The National Water Committee was appointed by Decree No. 75 of the Prime Minister of Mongolia, dated 26 November 2012 also for conducting and monitoring of the implementation of the National Integrated Water Resources Management Plan. This makes the NWC the custodian of the IWM Plan.