89824 Issue # 6 – July 2014 Decision-Making and Investment Strategies for Managing Flood Risk in Guyana “I myself have gone in those areas in times when there were flood-defense system are still necessary. The Ministry’s greatest challenge floods… I remember going at one time and speaking to people is therefore to reduce flood-risk in this highly exposed, flood-prone area right up to their step from a boat… It was those conditions that in Guyana’s Region 4, and to develop a baseline understanding of how the formulated the ideas that we had to do something.1” complex drainage system functions in order to identify and carry out a set —Donald Ramotar, President of Guyana of prioritized, strategic interventions for future investments to protect its citizens’ livelihoods and economy. Challenge In January 2005, extreme and prolonged rainfall caused widespread flooding in Guyana with flood levels reaching over one and a half meters in some coastal villages. Approximately 290,000 people (39% of Guy- ana’s population) were affected, including the capital city Georgetown, with many areas remaining inundated for up to three weeks. The 2005 flood disrupted livelihoods and resulted in long-lasting economic impacts that are estimated to amount to US$465 million (59% of Guyana’s GDP2). A large proportion of the losses were due to damages to thousands of acres of rice and other sources of economic activities that are concentrat- ed the low-lying coastal plains in Regions 4 and 53, the county’s most fer- tile agricultural land. The 2005 rains exposed structural vulnerabilities in the flood mitigation infrastructure, but even less intense rainfall often causes flooding along the coast, which is mostly situated below sea-level. An intricate and unique system of canals, originally constructed by the Dutch during the colonial period, allows for drainage to mitigate flood im- pacts, and irrigation to support agricultural production across the coun- try’s low-lying territories. This canal system provides critical irrigation Figure 1. Schematic map of coastal area of Guyana’s Region 4. mechanisms that serve to increase agricultural output and depends on a water storage basin known as the East Demerara Water Conservancy. The Conservancy, one of the country’s primary water reservoir and dam, Intervention is situated inland and serves as a flood control mechanism during the In an effort to tackle persistent flooding and economic vulnerabilities in wet-season, and a water storage basin providing irrigation during the the agricultural sector, the Government of Guyana’s Ministry of Agriculture, dry-season that allows for biannual harvests of rice and sugar, accounting along with the World Bank and other international development agencies, for approximately 27% of the nation’s GDP. In 2005, water levels in the initiated the US$3.8 million Conservancy Adaptation Project (CAP). One of the top priorities identified under this initiative was the strengthening Conservancy were elevated well above safe operating levels, putting the of the Conservancy and coastal drainage systems to protect the country’s dam at risk of overtopping and catastrophic breaching, which highlighted key economic and most populated regions. The CAP focused on four main vulnerabilities in other flood mitigation infrastructure (e.g. canals, sluic- areas: es, pumps) to adequately drain floodwater away quickly. I. Pre-investment studies and data collection for engineering Every year, floods impact Georgetown and around the Mahaica River area, design of works the region’s economic centers, warning government authorities and cit- izens of mounting flood and agricultural risks due to predicted increase One key aim of the CAP was the development of a hydrologic baseline, in- in the frequency and intensity of hydro-meteorological events and rising cluding a comprehensive hydrological and topographical dataset that was sea-level. The Ministry of Agriculture, responsible for the operations, necessary to determine rational interventions and improve understand- maintenance and construction of the dam, is seeking to address these ing of how to increase the discharge capacity of the flood control system. flood and agricultural risks, and identify key investments to improve the These include: resilience of its economy and population. Since 2005, the Government ◆◆Detailed aerial surveys including LiDAR (Light Detection And Ranging) of Guyana has worked to improve flood management infrastructure by airborne laser mapping and altimetry to produce high-resolution maps rehabilitating sluices and canals and installing new infrastructure such as to understand water flow over the relatively flat terrain, and detailed the Hope-Dochfour Canal (see Figure 1), but further improvements in the high-resolution, aerial ortho-photography to analyze land-cover; www.worldbank.org/lcrdrm/insights insightsinDRM A Practitioner’s Perspective on Disaster Risk Management in Latin America & the Caribbean ◆◆Extensive ground-based bathymetric surveys to establish channel Outcomes cross-sections and water depths; The Ministry of Agriculture designed the Conservancy Adaptation Project, ◆◆A new hydro-meteorological monitoring system installed in and around in the wake of the 2005 flood, to help Guyana adapt to climate change and the Conservancy, with flow measurement surveys to help understand ensure the stability of its agricultural sector by reducing the vulnerability of hydrological behavior; the coastal area in region 4 to catastrophic flooding. Completed in 2013, the CAP has been a flagship project and launching pad for significant progress ◆◆A comprehensive analysis of dam stability; and in flood risk mitigation measures for Guyana and the Caribbean region. Key ◆◆Computer models of outcomes of the project include: the Conservancy and ◆◆A hydraulic engineering foundation, including real-time information and East Coast drainage predictive modeling of the Conservancy and East Coast drainage areas; areas to show how the hydrological system ◆◆Increased safety of the Conservancy and reduced vulnerability to varies under extreme catastrophic flooding through physical investments; weather scenarios and ◆◆Enhanced government knowledge and capacity to manage the test the impact of various Conservancy and coastal drainage systems; proposed interventions (See video animation4). ◆◆Comprehensive scenario analyses and dam stability to improve decision-making of Conservancy investments; and Figure 2. Video for policy makers to show flood impacts, models and investments. ◆◆ A US$123 million package of pre-designed infrastructure and non- structural investments critical for flood risk management. II. Critical drainage infrastructure investments Targeted infrastructure investments were carried out within the CAP to The data generated through the CAP’s pre-investment studies are being improve the management of the Conservancy. Improvements included utilized for a variety of purposes. For example, the Digitial Elevation the installation of a real-time hydro-meteorological monitoring system in Model (DEM) produced by the project can be used as a basis for further the Conservancy and complete rehabilitation of two sluices at Lama that modeling studies, line of sight studies, biomass measurements, 3D build- enhance the ability of the Ministry of Agriculture to manage water levels, ing-modeling, further climate change impact studies and visualizations especially during heavy rainfall events. A pontoon and hydraulic excavator for land-use planning and agricultural production. There is also signifi- were also acquired to facilitate rapid access and repairs to the dam and cant government interest in developing a data-storage and an open da- especially hard to reach areas of critical drainage infrastructure. ta-sharing platform to make data such as the LiDAR, easily available to government agencies and other interested organizations. When implemented, the US$123 million portfolio of strategic III. Institutional strengthening and capacity building investments will serve to effectively reduce Guyana’s flood risk in the A series of workshops were undertaken with various government short to medium term. This portfolio has already been incorporated into agencies, national stakeholders, donors and practitioners involved in the Government’s Drainage and Irrigation Master Plan and designed to flood and drainage management systems, to ensure broad consensus be easily implemented by the Government, in collaboration with the and facilitate coordination on future actions. One such activity is the donor community who may finance one or many of the recommendations. development and implementation of the World-Bank financed Guyana Some works being considered in the portfolio, including the World Disaster Risk Management Project starting in mid-2014, which includes Bank-financed Disaster Risk Management Project (expected 2014-2019) some of the strategic infrastructure investments resulting from the CAP’s involve the reconstruction of part of the Conservancy’s North-East Dam, recommendations. identified in the CAP as the segment most critically in need of attention, and the installation of new pumping stations in various catchments Government agencies also received technical training on hydro- along the East Coast. These investments will generate increased meteorological monitoring, use and application of LiDAR datasets, data capacity to manage water levels in the Conservancy and lessen the management, and computer-based hydrological modeling to facilitate high vulnerability of the people and agricultural areas in the region to understanding and management of the hydrology and hydraulics of the moderate and extreme climate events. Conservancy and its drainage systems. IV. Building national awareness of flood risk Endnotes http://www.kaieteurnewsonline.com/2014/02/18/hope-canal-project-long-term-solution-to- 1 Significant efforts were channeled into developing a communication flooding/ strategy designed to increase public awareness and understanding of 2 UNDP-ECLAC 2005. Subregional Headquarters for the Caribbean. Guyana. Macro-Socioeco- flood risk, especially with relation to the Conservancy. The initiative nomic Assessment of the Damage and Losses Caused by the January-February 2005 Flooding. included the creation of two short animations, aimed at general 3 Guyana is made up of ten administrative regions. audiences5 and policymakers, to depict the risks facing the Conservancy, interventions undertaken by the government, future rainfall scenarios, 4 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nZdwTCRZtkQ and disaster risk reduction needs for Region 4. A booklet on the CAP6 5 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4bF4hQPtTqU also served to educate the public on the challenges and improvements 6 http://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/2013/12/19356954/managing-flood-risk-guy- being made to the Conservancy. ana-conservancy-adaptation-project-2008-2013 Contacts Armando Guzman – Senior Disaster Risk Management Specialist, aguzman@worldbank.org Isabella Bovolo – Hydrological Modeling Consultant, cbovolo@worldbank.org