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World Bank to Support Water Security in Espírito Santo, Brazil

The USD 86.1 million project has a final maturity of 25 years, including a 5-year grace period.

The USD 86.1 million project has a final maturity of 25 years, including a 5-year grace period.

WD News: The World Bank has approved a USD 86.1 million project with the Government of the State of Espírito Santo in Brazil to strengthen the state’s water security management in a changing climate environment and reduce risks in selected areas. The project also contains a rapid response mechanism in case of an eligible hydrological crisis.

Historical records and available projections for Espírito Santo reveal that climate change is playing a pivotal role in the increased frequency and intensity of water-related disasters such as floods, droughts, landslides, and water deficits. Unplanned and unregulated urban spread, as well as change in land use, increase these vulnerabilities. The Espírito Santo Water Security Management Project will help the state mitigate and oversee these risks, leading to a more sustainable water management framework.

The project will help state institutions to improve the integration and application of water resources and disaster management policy instruments, allowing for increased quality and availability of information for decision making. This includes the modernisation and operationalisation of the state’s water resources information system (Sistema Estadual de Informações sobre Recursos Hídricos – SEIRH) and related hydrological and hydrogeological monitoring networks, as well as capacity building efforts, the sourcing of better equipment, and the implementation of early warning systems.

The project also aims to reduce water security risks by expanding the support to the Reflorestar Program in selected river basins, and by improving flood and drought management in priority river basins and municipalities, combining green infrastructure (that harnesses natural systems) and grey (traditional infrastructure), with an emphasis on nature-based solutions (NBS).

Source: World Bank
Image courtesy: Pixabay

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