Large scale water-management infrastructure in Central and South Asia - to what extent have policies been based on flawed or incomplete economic analy

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To address today's freshwater challenge, governments are investing in large-scale infrastructure projects. Historically this has resulted in environmentalissues. In the 1960s the Aral Sea was drained for irrigation, undermining public health, the fishing industry and the environment. In the WesternHimalayas of India, Nepal and Bhutan, investments have sometimes been made in piped rather than traditional spring-fed systems, with potentiallynegative environmental consequences. In both cases plans to divert water was based on economic analyses. In the first case, a cost-benefit analysiswas undermined by omitting economic impacts on the environment. In the second case, cost-effectiveness was assessed, but often for just oneengineering option. Understanding the environmental economics behind water-management decisions taken under a spectrum of political regimes(authoritarian/democratic) will be critical to constructive engagement with governments on environmental issues. Subsequent insights from econometricanalysis and data collection on past projects can inform current plans, e.g. India's plan to divert the Ganges and Brahmaputra rivers. I will research theextent to which large-scale water management plans in Central and South Asia has been based on flawed economic analyses and if excludingenvironmental concerns has led to unexpected economic losses. I will also address how to best engage decision-makers in different political regimes(authoritarian and democratic).