Using remote sensing data for water depletion assessment at administrative and irrigation-system levels: case study of the Ferghana Province of Uzbekistan

Efforts aimed at improving regional water management are often frustrated due to the paucity of reliable and consistent information. This paper assesses the scope for remote sensing information, freely available on the Internet, to help water managers in obtaining reliable and consistent information at large (sub) system level. In the Ferghana province of Uzbekistan, belonging to the Syr-Darya river basin, water is managed across administrative units rather than along hydrological boundaries (the basin approach). Using recent developments in the field of remote sensing application in water management, this paper shows that remote sensing tools can help in improving water management in three ways: (a) by providing information on the existing patterns of water use; (b) by identifying the weaknesses in the approach to water management; and (c) by assisting in identifying the potential areas where there are opportunities for water savings or improving water use efficiency.