Pedieos river basin, Cyprus
|Prepared by Corrado Camera (CyI)|
|Open maps (PDF)|
Case study coordinator: Elias Giannakis; Pedieos society
- The cooperation of stakeholders from governmental and non-governmental organizations and from different sectors (water, agriculture, forestry, environment, urban planning, education) facilitated the development of a broad and diverse set of adaptation options.
- The presentation of the adaptation plan to the Committee of Environment of the Cyprus Parliament strengthened the political base for the implementation of key adaptation options.
- Selected adaptation options, e.g., green roofs for reducing flooding in urban areas in a semi-arid climate, are under pilot testing and demonstration.
- The active science-society interaction during the project’s lifetime and the dissemination of the adaptation options through various activities, e.g., educational and environmental fairs and events, as well as citizen surveys, increased climate change awareness of the general public, including that of the younger generation, thus establishing popular support for climate change adaptation.
- The active participation of stakeholders in BeWater meetings and workshops has facilitated the exchange of knowledge and cooperation. Formal and informal communication channels have been created (e.g., steering committees) within governmental departments but also between governmental departments and municipalities to implement integrated strategies for water management and climate change adaptation.
About the river basin
The Pedieos River is an ephemeral stream, which originates in the north-eastern hillsides of the Troodos mountain complex.
The river basin has its highest elevation at 1400m above sea level and covers a population of 192,000 inhabitants. The fractured volcanic formations in the upstream area are mainly covered by conifers, with smaller areas of sclerophyllous and shrub woodlands and few plots of rain-fed cereals, irrigated fruit trees, greenhouses and livestock farms.
At the bottom of the foothills, the 2.8million m3 Tamassos dam, which was completed in 2002, captures the runoff of the 45km2 upstream river basin. The dam provides groundwater recharge, flood protection and water supply for nearby communities. Downstream from the dam, the river basin crosses about half a dozen rural communities, which grow rain-fed and groundwater-irrigated crops in the Mesaoria plain.
The river then flows into the urban agglomeration of the capital Nicosia and its adjacent municipalities, exacerbating existing urban flooding incidents. The river basin covers approximately 120km2 at the green line in Nicosia, where it flows into the occupied areas of northern Cyprus. Average annual precipitation ranges between 320mm downstream to 670mm at the top. The area is covered by a number of rain gauges and meteorological stations of the Cyprus Meteorological Service; discharge has been measured in the upstream area by the Water Development Department.