ISSN 0912-7410

No.41 August 2002

NEWSLETTER

International Lake Environment Committee=Promoting Sustainable Lake Management=This Newsletter is also available in Japanese.

A Call for Session Topics and Chairs for the 10th World Lakes Conference
Planning for the 10th World

threats to the health of lakes

Lakes Conference is well under way. The conference willthat originate outside respective
catchments. This realization is

be held on the shores of
Lake Michigan at the Lincoln

one of the major thrusts behindthe development of the World

Park campus of DePaul University in Chicago, USA on

Lake Vision discussed in this andprevious newsletters.

22-26 June 2003. ILEC will
co-host the conference withCurrently, ILEC is looking for

the International Association
for Great Lakes Researchsuggestions for session topics
as well as nominations for ses-

(IAGLR). The theme will be"Global Threats to Largesion chairs. The conference planning committee intends to iden-

Lakes: Managing in an Environment of Instability andwill have approximately 56 scientifictify session topics and chairs by
31 August 2002 so if you haveany suggestions and/or nomina-

sessions and two plenary sessions
featuring keynote speakers.

tions, please send them to ILEC assoon as possible. Our address for

We expect the theme of "Global

this and any other conference-related
issues is chicago2003@ilec.or.jp

Unpredictability". Additional information on the conference, including a
conference flyer in PDF form, can befound on IAGLR's homepage at
www.iaglr.org
The conference will be somewhat ofa homecoming for ILEC: the 2ndWorld Lake Conference was also heldat Lake Michigan in 1986. That conference focused on toxic contamination of large lakes; therefore, we expect to take this opportunity to havea special session that looks at the
progress made since 1986 on thistimely topic. Overall, the conference

Threats to Large Lakes" to draw many
participants. In the last few years,

We expect abstracts for papers tothere has been a growing realizationthat "every lake is a global lake" be-be due by 15 December 2002. Submission guidelines as well as regis-

cause an effective management plan
for a given lake cannot end at thetration information will be madeavailable shortly at www.iaglr.org andwatershed. Whether it is climatechange, increased UVB irradiance,on the ILEC homepage at
www.ilec.or.jp We look forward to

exotic species invasions, acid precipitation, etc., we are constantly re-your suggestions over the coming
months as well as to seeing you inminded that there are numerous

Chicago in 2003!

- The 10th World Lakes Conference Coming Up!

IN
THIS
ISSUE

- The 3rd World Water Forum & The World Lake Vision- Scientific Committee and ILEC Secretariat New Members- Logos and catchphrases for 'Biwako Declaration 2001'- GLOW III (Tanzania) Conference Report- Kunming Conference Report- Board of Directors and Council Meeting Reports- Lake Chapala in Mexico- General information on the 12th Biwako Prize for Ecology- New World Lake Vision Website

1

The 3rd World Water Forum (WWF3) & The World Lake Vision (WLV)
1. The purpose and history of 'The World Water
Forum'The ministerial conference will be held in Kyoto, themain venue of the Forum. In addition to Kyoto, there will

(1) Purposebe a Shiga Day and Osaka Day and various programs
relevant to each region will be organised. During the

The purpose of the World Water Forum proposed by
the WWC (The World Water Council) is to support the
deepening of discussions towards the solution of international water issues in the 21st century and to bring
their importance to the world's attention with all water
resources stakeholders, such as NGOs and citizens andnot just experts or professionals, from all water-relatedareas.
(2) History① The 1st World Water ForumThe 1st World Water Forum was held in Marrakech, Morocco in March 1997 with about 500 participants from63 countries. At the Forum, the 'Declaration of the
Marrakech' was adopted and it was decided then to establish a 'The World Water Vision'.
② The 2nd World Water ForumThe 2nd World Water Forum was held in The Hague,
Holland in 2000 with approximately 5,700 participantsfrom 156 countries. 'The World Water Vision' was presented at this Forum and a 'Framework for Action' wasproposed by the Global Water Partnership (GWP) toachieve 'The World Water Vision'.
③ The 3rd World Water ForumThe 3rd World Water Forum will be held over 8 days
from 16th to 23rd March, 2003 in Kyoto, Osaka andShiga.

2

Forum, 'The Water Fair/Festival', consisting of a seriesof water-related events, will take place at the three venues of Kyoto, Osaka and Shiga.
Furthermore, the outcomes of the Forum will be compiled as 'The World Water Action Plan', 'The Ministerial
Declaration' and 'The Report of Sessions'.

2. Joint Programs by ILEC, Shiga Pref. and UNEPIETC for WWF3ILEC will be involved in the following programs jointlywith Shiga Pref. and UNEP-IETC for Shiga Day on 20th
March, 2003.

3. Preparation and presentation of the 'World
Lake Vision' (WLV)
To settle fresh water resources problems from the pointof view of lakes and to promote further efforts to conserve world lakes which will not be covered sufficiently
by the 'World Water Action Report' (due to be compiled
as one of the outcomes in WWF3), we have decided toestablish a 'World Lake Vision' (tentative name) with Shiga
Prefecture and UNEP-IETC collectively and to present it
on Shiga Day. We hope to have active discussions, promoting the preservation of lakes and the use of the lakes.

New Faces at ILECGenjiro Furukawa, Secretary General

Katsunori Takagi, Chief of Support & Training andResearch Division

Mr. Furukawa worked in the Water Administration
Division of the Shiga Prefectural Government for 12

Mr. Takagi has been seconded to ILEC from the Kansai

years where he did work related to Lake Biwa. With
ILEC's focus on research and preservation of lakes

Regional Bureau of Water Resources Development Public Corporation (WRDE). He says he is very much look-around the World, he hopes to both use his experience and also gain a broader perspective on a wide

ing forward to adding his efforts to further the development of ILEC during his two-year stint with the or-variety of lake related issues.

ganization.

New ILEC Scientific Committee Member
Professor Eric O. Odada, a Kenyan, joined the ILEC Scientific Committee on
June 25, 2002. Dr. Odada has a background in geochemistry and is a Professorof Geology at the University of Nairobi. His current interest is in global change
research. He heads the Pan-African Secretariat of START (global change SysTem
for Analysis Research and Training). START fosters a regional approach to interdisciplinary global change research. Dr. Odada is also the Scientific Coordinator, International Decade for the East African Lakes (IDEAL) Program, which is amulti-national, multi-disciplinary investigation of the limnology of East African
Lakes. The mission of IDEAL is to contribute to understanding of the African
Great Lakes, to facilitate the transfer of this knowledge to resolving environmental issues, and to build scientific partnerships between international andregional scientists in order to exchange knowledge and facilitate capacity building in the region. Dr. Odada was a member of the Global Environment Facility(GEF) Scientific and Technical Advisory Panel between 1998 and 2000. He is also
involved in several other regional and international programs. Dr. Odada’s expertise in geology will enhance the range of expertise available within ILEC’s Scientific Committee. In addition,
it is expected that Dr. Odada will play a vital role in organizing the 11th World Lake Conference in Kenya in
2005.

Logo and catchphrase for 'Biwako Declaration 2001'
At the 9th International Conference on Conservation and Management of Lakes held in Otsu, Shiga in November
2001, the Biwako Declaration was adopted to address the importance of cooperation between all people with aninterest in keeping lakes in optimum condition. To diffuse the spirit of the declaration and to develop further
international conferences on lakes, a competition was held to find a logo and catchphrase that would symbolize
the significance of the Declaration. The winner of the best logo was Ms. Ryoko Yasui from Osaka, Japan andthe winner of the catchphrase competition was Mr. Koichi Imakita of Shiga Japan. (The catchphrase isshown here below the logo.)[Other Outstanding Entries]

Glittering Water, Vibrant Fish
Biwako Declaration 2001

Logos
-Ms. Valentina Khaydarova (Uzbekistan)-Mr. Yuji NAKAYAMA (Hikone city, Shiga Pref.)-Ms. Ma.Victoria P. Migo (Philippines)-Ms. Keiko HAGURO (Hino town, Shiga Pref.)-Ms. Hiromi OGURA (Takatsuki town, Shiga Pref.)Catchphrases-Mr. Osamu FUJIMOTO (Nagahama city, Shiga Pref.)-Mr. Van der Helm, Ruud (France)-Ms. Lemeshko Natalia (Russia)-Mr. Akio MAENO (Kyoto city, Kyoto Pref.)-Mr. Kazuyuki HANO (Otsu city, Shiga Pref.)

The ILEC Guideline Books
on Lake Management are
now available in PDF format on the ILEC website.
The Guideline Books havebeen separated into
chapters for easy downloading and can be obtained by going to thefollowing URL:http://
www.ilec.or.jp/eg/

3International Symposium on Comparing Great Lakes of the World (GLOW III)(by Victor Muhandiki, ILEC, February 18 - 20, 2002, Arusha, Tanzania)
The third international symposium
on comparing Great Lakes of theGreat Lakes were also made. For the
African Great Lakes, the main topic

World (GLOW III) was held in Arusha,
Tanzania, between February 18 - 20,of discussion was fisheries and fisheries management, because of the

2002. GLOW III was part of a continuing series of international symposia

important role fisheries plays in theeconomies of the riparian countries.

being organized by the Aquatic Ecosystem Health and Management So-

Other topics discussed included
biodiversity, impact of climate

ciety (AEHMS) to promote interaction
and communication between Greatchange on the Great Lakes, structure,functions and performance of theLakes scientists and communities
across the world. The first two con-Great Lakes food webs, exotic invasion of the Great Lakes, eutrophica-

ferences were held in Zimbabwe andIreland. GLOW III was organized bytion, pollution and its impacts on theecosystem, and integrated manage-

AEHMS, the Lake Victoria Fisheries
Research Project (LVFRP) and thement of the Great Lakes.

Lake Victoria Fisheries Organization(LVFO). About 80 participants fromAfrican Great Lakes and other lakesof the world attended the symposium. ILEC was represented by Dr.
Masahisa Nakamura (ILEC ScientificCommittee Member) and myself.
Discussions at GLOW III centered on
the three African Great Lakes Malawi, Tanganyika and Victoria. Presentations on other Great Lakes of
the world, including the Laurentian

4

In the panel discussion held at theconclusion of the symposium, theneed to link science (research) andmanagement was emphasized. It wasnoted that scientists should communicate their research findings (withappropriate recommendations for
management action) to managers ina language that the latter can easily
understand. There is need for continuous interplay and networking between scientists and managers at the
local and regional levels. It was also

observed that many projects on the
African Great Lakes are donor driven
and tend to be short-term problem
solving projects that lack continuity
when the projects end. To ensuresustainability of such projects, theneed for country drivenness on thepart of the riparian countries wasemphasized. There was a strong objection by a researcher from East Africa to the suggestion that researchshould be market driven. He notedthat while biodiversity may be a market driver in the West, this is often
not the case in Africa.
All in all, the symposium was a great
opportunity for ILEC to interact with
scientists working on African Great
Lakes. We were able to build new
networks with these researchers. We
were also able to share with the participants ILEC's current activities, including the "Towards a World Lake
Vision" process and preparations forthe 3rd World Water Forum in Japanin March 2003. We look forward to
the contributions of the GLOW III participants to these activities.

GLOW III participants3 Days in Kunming(by Thomas Ballatore, ILEC, March 25-27, 2002, Kunming, China)
An exciting 3-day workshop was heldin late March in Kunming, China on

Dianchi remains in poor shape: thelake is devoid of fish; the water sup-found at http://www.aeetc.org/
workshop_recommendations.pdf

eutrophication of lakes in China. The
Asia-Europe Environmental Technol-

ply is threatened; pea-soup conditions exist in certain areas; water

In short, the recommendations callfor integrated management stress-

ogy Centre (AEETC) (www.aeetc.org)
and the Yunnan Environmental Pro-hyacinth has invaded, etc. Simply put,the lake embodies most of the prob-

ing the need to control all sourcesof pollution (point, diffuse, and in-tection Bureau (YEPB) organized themeeting that drew over 50 partici-

lems that are facing lakes in highly
developed catchments around theternal). Recommendations for specific future studies and cooperation

pants from Asia and EU countries.

world.

were also made.

The meeting was notable because

It will be interesting to see how thesituation at Dianchi develops. The

The meeting was held in Kunming,a city of several million on the shoresof Lake Dianchi, a highly eutrophic
lake. Participants were taken on aboat tour of the lake as well as tosome of the pollution control
projects in the watershed. The experience was sobering. Despite recent conservation efforts, Lakeof its atmosphere: cordial and infused with a sense of mission withmost time spend in productive discussions. The participants werecalled on to give recommendations
to the YEPB about how to best remedy to situation as well as how totreat eutrophication in general in
China. A summary report can be

The 50th meeting of the Board of
Directors of ILEC
The 50th meeting of the Board of Directors washeld on May 27 at ILEC’s offices by Lake Biwa
attended by 5 of 14 directors and one auditor.
Before starting the board meeting, the Director
General presented letters of appreciation andframed paintings by Hiro Yamagata to twogroups as thanks for their large donations tochallenges are immense, but it
seems that the local and national
governments as well as a large groupof foreign organizations are endeavoring to save the lake. For these reasons, ILEC has included Lake Dianchi
in the LakeWatch 25 report to appear
in 2003.

The 46th meeting of the Councilof ILEC
The 46th meeting of the council was held on
May 30 at ILEC's offices and was attended by 5of 13 councilors. At the meeting, the statementof balance in the fiscal year of 2001, which had
been approved by the board of directors, wasalso approved.

ILEC funds. The groups were Japan Chuo Regionof Soroptimist International of the Americas, andShiga DC Card Co., Ltd.
At the meeting, two main issues were submitted and approved unanimously. The first was
the statement of balance in the fiscal year of
2001 and the other the election of Mr. Goshi,
the director general of National Institute forEnvironmental Studies, as a new councilor to
succeed Mr. Ooi, who had resigned the position.

5

LAKES OF THE WORLD
LAKE
LAKE CHAPALACHAPALA -- MEXICOMEXICO

○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○Lake Chapala in the State of Jaliscooois located at 20.1 N, 103.6 W at analtitude of 1520m and is one of theoldest tectonic lakes in North
America. With a surface area of
1,112km2 it is the largest lake in
Mexico and is believed to be the largest shallow lake in the world.
The area around the lake is temperate/subtropical with temperaturesooranging from 32 C to 15 C, but noro

mally about 24 C. This mild climate
has made Lake Chapala a resting
place for millions of migratory birds.
Water flows into the lake from the
Rio Lerma-Santiago catchment areaof 54,400km2, which stretches overthe states of Jalisco, Michoacan,
Guanajuato, Queretero, Mexico andNayarit.
Over the years, excessive water exploitation of both the watershed andthe lake itself has resulted in a drastic retreat of the shoreline and a 5m
drop of the mean water level. Currently, the lake has a maximum depthof 10.5m and a mean depth of 7.2m.
The shallowness of the lake is a major physical factor affecting the limnetic ecosystem. This shallowness
generates an almost continuous bottom stirring of the fine volcanic clays
and anthropogenic materials introduced from the Rio Lerma and thevillages surrounding the lake.
The land encompassed by the Rio
Lerma-Santiago watershed contains
1/8 of Mexico's irrigated land andprovides the water supply for over 10
million people. The population density is 118.7 persons per km2. Over
28,000 deep water wells pierce the
38 aquifers beneath this watershed;6

it is estimated that 70% of these aquifers are being over exploited.

to 51,400 in 1999. Rather than increasing the catch, a combination of

The entire area is an important

over fishing, lack of regulatory controls and rapidly declining water volume and quality resulted in a decline

source of agricultural (13% of National production) and forestry products, however only 70% of agricultural water needs are being met. In
the past decade over 50,000 hectares of forest land has been removed
to provide for more irrigated agricultural land. This growth of irrigatedagriculture, relative to seasonal agriculture has increased agricultural
production at the expense of a diminishing water supply. Industrial
facilities within the area contribute
19% of the national total.
Fishing on the lake is a small but
economically and traditionally important part of lakeside life. Fishermen
ply the waters daily searching for theendemic Chirostoma (Charales),Carp, and Catfish, the primary catchbeing Charales and exotic Tilapia.
Over the past decade the number offishermen has slowly declined from2041 in 1987 to the current 1699.
The number of fishing implements
employed rose from 25,000 in 1987

in catches from 13,711 tons in 1990
to 3,484 tons in 1998.
Rapid growth of huge floating matsof water hyacinth (Eichornia
crassipes) eventually covered 13%of the lake surface (135km2) and increasing blooms of blue-green algae(Anabaena flos-aquae) in the early
1990's signaled increasing eutrophication of the lake.
This floating biomass hinderedfishermen, water transportation,water fowl feeding and water sports.
In 1993 a cooperative program using unemployed men to manually remove water hyacinth from the lake
proved that local action could achieve
results. This program has kept thelake reasonably clear of hyacinth.
Today, this area of rich agricultural,fishing, and recreational resources
is rapidly reaching an ecologicalpoint of no return. Only throughtimely, caring intervention by international, national, state, NGOs, andlocal authorities can this downward
cycle be halted and the process ofand the agro-industrial complex
must now be put aside. Not surpris-equitable means to deal with water
allocation and use, tertiary treatment

healing the lake begin. The loss of
Lake Chapala would be an unthink-

ingly, the current crusade is being
led by a loose coalition of 62 pro-of effluents entering the Rio Lerma
and the lake, and more efficient andable tragedy, resulting in incredible
hardship on the indigenous people,

lake organizations representing every sector of society. The most ac-

sustainable techniques of fishing andfarming.

a blow to the Mexican economy andthe destruction of a precious ecosys-

tive and visible of these groups is
the NGO "Sociedad Amigos del Lagotem. The effects of this ecologicaldegradation are seen today; a con-de Chapala" which has been fighting
for Lake Chapala for the past 15

tinuing decline will negatively affectthe region for generations to come.

years. Amigos del Lago made a wellreceived presentation to the ILECIn spite of a gloomy picture andJoint Symposium at Lake Biwa in Japan. Amigos del Lago and the otherimpossible barriers, growing concern
on international and local levels havegroups have agreed to work collectively to propose programs to bothforced both national and state law
makers to seriously address thethe private and public sectors calling for prompt action to launch edu-

problem. Battles between states,
different socio- economic groups,

cational and public works programs
leading to better, more efficient, and

SOCIEDAD AMIGOS DEL LAGO DE
CHAPALA, A.C.
John Bragg
Member of President Board
Note: Statistical data has been derived
from various governmental and academic
sources which were often not in agreement or perhaps dated. I have attempted
to select and extrapolate data to reflect
the current status and apologize for any
errors or omissions.

General Information on the 12th Biwako Prize for Ecology<Outline>
In order to improve the quality of the Biwako Prize and the awardees, much more time is going to be spent on
deliberation of selecting papers from this April of this fiscal year. Therefore the announcement of the names of
the awardees and award presentation ceremony will be held in May and in July respectively next year.
<Duration>
From July 1, 2002 to October 30, 2002
<Description of the Prize>(1) Eligible Nominees(a) Individual person, in principle.
(b) Nominees must reside in East and Southeast Asia, including the eastern part of Russia, and Western
Pacific
Area, but excluding Australia and New Zealand, whose research achievements in these areas are highly acclaimed.
(c) Nominees should be those who have made significant achievements in the study of ecology or relatedsciences dealing with aquatic environments and/or related subjects, and who are expected to develop further
and advance their research. Important practical contributions of their research to mitigating water-related environmental problems will also be evaluated.
(d) Nominees should be, as a rule, under 50 years of age as of April 1,2002.
(2) Award(a) The Prizes will be conferred on two researchers.
(b) A certificate of merit and five million yen will be awarded to each researcher.
<Decision of the Awardees and Award Presentation Ceremony>
The awardees will be decided in May 2003 and the award ceremony will be held on July 1, 2003. Also the events
to commemorate this ceremony will take place concurrently.
<Address to contact for further information and to which the Nomination Form should be returned>[Address to contact for further information]
Secretariat of BIWAKO PRIZE FOR ECOLOGY
c/o Environmental Policy Division,
Department of Lake Biwa Environment
Shiga Prefectural Government
4-1-1, Kyomachi, Otsu, Shiga 520-8577 JAPANTEL: +81-77-528-3451 FAX: +81-77-528-4844
E-mail: de00@pref.shiga.jp[Address to which the Nomination Forms should be returned]
Assistant Secretariat of BIWAKO PRIZE FOR ECOLOGY
c/o International Lake Environmental Committee
1091 Oroshimo-cho, Kusatsu, Shiga 525-0001 JAPANTEL: +81-77-568-4567 FAX: +81-77-568-4568
E-mail: biwakoprize@ilec.or.jp
Homepage: http://www.ilec.or.jp/prize/e-index.html

7

Joint Programs by ILEC, Shiga Pref. and UNEP-IETC for WWF3
Name of programs
Freshwater lakes
management work-

Date

Venue

27/ 8/2002

Johannesburg

19/11/2002- UNEP center
23/11/2002 Lake Biwa Museum

shop

Expected participants

Outline of activities

Experts,Citizens, NGO

Presentation and discussion of

Administrative agent

the “World Lake Vision”.

Experts,Citizens, NGO

The main theme is “Freshwater

Administrative agent

Lakes Management”. A workshops
will be held from Nov. 19 to Nov.
22. The last day, Nov. 23, is for the
symposium.

International confer-22/ 2/2003‑

ence on water Resources Manage-

23/ 2/2003

Maibara-cho

Experts, Citizens, NGO
Administrative agent

ment of The 21st Century in Shiga

Reports and discussions will beheld under four sub-themes. The
main theme is 'The freshwatercrisis and paths to solutions'.

19/ 3/2003
Freshwater andPiaza Omi
(Otsu-city)

Experts, Citizens, NGO
Administrative agent

Otsu-city

Experts, Citizens, NGO(participants in WWF3)

lakes session
20/ 3/2003

19/ 3/2003
World conference

Piaza Omi
(Otsu-city)

Prefectural governors
and prefectural assem-

Reports and discussions will beheld for “Integerates Water Resources Management (IWRM) &Environmentally Sound Technologies (EST)”.

Reports and discussion will beheld for 'Integrated freshwaterof prefectural governors and prefec-

bly chairpersons fromareas with lakes in Ja-

tural assembly
chairpersons frompan and abroad.

lakes management'. A message
on the importance of the proper

Participants above andExperts, Citizens, NGO

management of lakes will be issued.

lake areas

20/ 3/2003

Otsu-city(participants in WWF3)

The session for “The“World Lake Vision”

20/ 3/2003

Otsu-city

Experts, Citizens, NGO

To present the “World Lake Vision”(participants in WWF3)

and to discuss its implementation.

session

New World Lake Vision Website
One of the Workshops to be held at

In preparation for the Workshop a new

the 3rd World Water Forum will be one
given by ILEC on the subject of 'The

webiste has been established throughwhich the ILEC Secretariat will dissemi-

World Lake Vision'. The Workshop will
be held on March 20, 2003 (which also

nate as much information as possible.
Please access the website (address

happens to be Shiga Day) in collaboration with the Shiga Prefectural Govern-

given under the graphic) and let us
know if you have any suggestions orment and UNEP/IETC.

comments.
www.ilec.or.jp/WWF/eng/

INTERNATIONAL LAKE ENVIRONMENT COMMITTEE-Secretariat -81091 Oroshimo-cho, Kusatsu-city, Shiga 525-0001, JAPANTEL. +81-77-568-4567, FAX. +81-77-568-4568, E-mail: info@ilec.or.jp