WMO Commission for Hydrology, USDEL Readout

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 GENEVA 001033 STATE FOR IO/T FOR MGOLDSTEIN STATE PASS NOAA FOR GENERAL J. KELLY, CBARRETT, NOAA IA FOR SWAREHARRIS, NOAA OAR FOR REPPI, NOAA NWS FOR GCARTER and PRESTREPO STATE PASS USGS FOR MLARSEN STATE PASS US ARMY CORPS OF ENGINEERS STATE PASS US BUREAU OF RECLAMATION STATE PASS NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION SIPDIS E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: SENV EFIN WMO UN ECOSOC SUBJECT: WMO Commission for Hydrology, USDEL Readout ¶1. SUMMARY: At the WMO Commission on Hydrology (CHy) November 4-13, the U.S. delegation achieved USG objectives of becoming a member of the Advisory Working Group (WWG),getting technical experts on the working teams, and advancing the coordination with UNESCO/IHP on climate issues. END SUMMARY. ¶2. The United States participated in the WMO Hydrology Commission (CHy) November 4-13 in Geneva. 52 CHy members participated. Bruce Stewart (Australia) and J. Wellens-Mensah (Ghana) were elected CHy president and vice president, respectively. Outputs & activities are presented below by topic areas. -------------- Climate and Water Issues -------------- ¶3. Regarding climate and water issues, the Commission decided to actively participate in the development of the WMO initiative to encourage provision and dissemination of climate and hydrological information in support of adaptation to climate variability and change, and to provide feedback to WMO from the water community. It further decided that its collaboration with the water tasks of GEO be facilitated largely through the Integrated Global Water Cycle Observations (IGWCO) theme. The Commission also recommended establishing a joint CHy-CCl (Commission for Climatology) task team to guide hydro-climatic activities that would replace the World Climate Program (WCP)-Water, including issuing an invitation to UNESCO to participate. A recommendation was also made to promote the active involvement of water managers and members of CHy in the Third World Climate Conference (WCC-3). -------------- Hydrologic Forecasting and Flood Management -------------- ¶4. The Commission adopted the text of the "Hydrologic Forecasting and Flood Management" document following discussions on the need to move the WMO statement on the "scientific basis for, and limitations of, hydrologic forecasting" to the quality management framework. Several interventions indicated that such a document needed review before its incorporation. In addition, there was concern from several countries to incorporate drought discussions into the document; thus, the commission recognized that hydrological aspects of drought are an important component of hydrological forecasting and prediction services provided by National Hydrologic Services. The Commission further expressed the need to better integrate Quantitative Precipitation estimates and probability factors into flood forecasting practices together with multi-model forecasting techniques and numerical weather predictions. The adopted report is consistent with U.S. interests and goals. -------------- -------------- Statement on Hydrological Forecasting Limitations -------------- -------------- ¶5. The Commission was presented with a statement on the limitations of hydrological forecasting. Delegates welcomed the information as useful for explaining uncertainties affecting hydrological forecasting to government officials. However, many delegations expressed the opinion that the document should be improved, and so a special working party was established to redraft the statement. Members of USDEL, through the special working party, drafted a new statement considering the input of the special working party and written contributions from the Canadian delegation. The draft will be reviewed by commission members and submitted to the AWG for adoption in February 2009. The redrafted statement is consistent with U.S. interests and goals. -------------- WMO Quality Management Framework (Hydrology) -------------- ¶6. The Commission adopted a Quality Management Framework-Hydrology (QMF) that provides strategy and tools for National Hydrological Services to use in gaining efficiency and effectiveness in the conduct of their operations. It also adopted a peer review process for all CHy Technical Guidance Documents, including a call to collaborate with the Inter-Commission Task Team on Quality Management Framework (ICTT QMF). It further recommended that the Executive Council (EC) review the concept of mandatory publications in light of the WMO QMF, and that EC adopt a revised glossary on terminology related to QMF including the term 'standard.' -------------- -------------- GENEVA 00001033 002 OF 002 Future Program of Work and Structure of the Commission -------------- -------------- ¶7. Four thematic areas were adopted by CHy as the focus of its work for the forthcoming inter-sessional period: quality management framework - hydrology; water resources assessment; hydrological forecasting and prediction; and water, climate and risk management. To manage the activities associated with each theme, the Commission re-established the Advisory Working Group (AWG) with nine members (including the CHy President and Vice-President) supported by five Open Panels of CHy Experts (OPACHE). A member of the U.S. Delegation, Dr. Harry F. Lins (USGS),was approved by the Commission as a member of the AWG with responsibility for Quality Management Framework - Hydrology. This is Lins' second term on the AWG. All elements of the program approved by the Commission are consistent with U.S. interests and goals. -------------- -- WMO Strategic Plan 2012-2015 and Monitoring and Evaluation of HWRP -------------- -- ¶8. With respect to the WMO Strategic Plan 2012-2015, the Commission recommended that its members, particularly the Advisory Working Group, continue involvement in all stages of the development of the Strategic Plan, including the identification of Key Performance Indicators (KPI's) and the monitoring and evaluation process for the Hydrology and Water Resources Program. It also encouraged the WMO hydrological community to take advantage of every opportunity to provide prioritized proposals and suggestions to the formulation of the Strategic Plan for the period 2012-2015 through, for example, the deliberations of such WMO bodies as Regional Working Groups on Hydrology and Regional Associations. Tichenor#