Water Resources Management Question Paper

Water Resources Management

Course:Bachelor Of Science (Water Resources & Environmental Management) ()

Institution: Kenyatta University question papers

Exam Year:2009

KENYATTA UNIVERSITY
UNIVERSITY EXAMINATIONS 2009/2010
FIRST SEMESTER EXAMINATION FOR THE DEGREE OF BACHELOR OF
SCIENCE (WATER ENGINEERING)

SET 521:
WATER RESOURCES MANAGEMENT

=================================================================
DATE: THURSDAY 24TH DECEMBER 2009 TIME: 8.00 A.M. – 10.00 A.M.

INSTRUCTIONS

Read the instructions carefully.
Answer any 3 questions, question 1 is compulsory.

QUESTION 1
a)
Define a water resources management system.

(2 marks)
b)
What are the key and environmental problems in a modern society?
(2 marks)
c)
Kenya is currently facing serious water resources challenges. Briefly describe

any five characteristics of the water crisis in Kenya and give a proposed plan

of action that would help put water resources management on a sound footing
in
Kenya.
(12
marks)

d)
Give any 4 opportunities that Kenya can build on, in planning, development

and sustainable management of her
water
resources.
(4
marks)

Page 1 of 4

QUESTION 2
1)
a)
Define the following terms
i)
Water
policy
ii)
Institutional
framework
iii)
management
strategy
(3
marks)

b)
Mention the 3 principles underlying the National Water Resources
Management
Policy
in
Kenya. (3
marks)

c)
With the aid of a diagram, illustrate the Kenya’s institutional management

framework.

(4 marks)

2)
There are proposals for large scale water diversions in the Nile Basin. These

diversions transfer water form one river course to another. One such proposal

involves diverting water from the might Nile River to an Ethiopian water course.

There are many implications of this diversion.

a)
Mention any two implications of
this
action.
(2
marks)

b)
Given this situation, which two legal principles would you use to argue in
favor
or
against
such
diversion.
(2
marks)

c)
International and regional rules, protocols, conventions and laws regulating

the use of international river waters agree on two principles to which riparian

states should adhere to. Name these principles.

(2 marks)

d)
These principles (mentioned in c above) may be used by 2 riparian states to

argue their opposite interests. Which principle is used by which country and

why?

(4 marks)

QUESTION 3
a)
What
is
reservoir
management?
(2
marks)
b)
Briefly describe four site investigations required for reservoir planning.
(8 marks)
Page 2 of 4
c) Mention
3
characteristics
of the HEC-6 model of estimating sediment load into a
reservoir
and
its
shortcomings. (4
marks)
d)
Briefly describe at least three systems or tools that can be used by a water utility

facility to manage infrastructure failures and ensure continued protection of the
public’s
health. (6
marks)

QUESTION 4
a)
Define the following terms

i)
Time value of money
ii)
Net
Present
Value
iii)
Internal Rate of Return
iv)
Cash flow diagram
v)
Cost-Benefit
analysis
(5
marks)
b)
What is the annual equivalent cost of the following cash flow diagram?

The interest rate is 3%.

c)
You have the following three engineering potential projects to choose.

Project Initial outlay Project life Yearly after-tax project cash flows
A
250
Forever
$40 in 1, increasing at a constant rate
of 2% forever
B
500
Forever
$80 starting from year 1, forever
C
200
3 years
$100 in year 1 and 2, $300 in year 3

Page 3 of 4
The
required
return
is
10%.

i)
What is the IRR of project A.

(2 marks)

ii)
What is the discounted payback period of project B?
(2 marks)

iii)
What is the PI of project C?

(2 marks)

iv)
Suppose that you only have $500, and this is your only constraint. Which

projects would you choose? (There is no return if you invest on a partial

investment on any project. You can choose multiple projects). (4 marks)

QUESTION 5
a)
What
is
a
water
resource
model.
(3
marks)

b)
Give 4 areas where a water engineer would choose to apply modeling

techniques
to
solve
a
given
problem.
(2
marks)

c)
Distinguish between these types of models and give an example of each.

i)
Stochastic and deterministic models

ii)
Conceptual and empirical models
iii)
Lumped
and
distributed
models
(6
marks)

d)
Imagine you have been assigned the task of designing an expansion for a local

Municipality’s water distribution system. Briefly describe the steps you would follow

in modeling the water distribution system to ensure you achieve the highest level of

operatability.

(3 marks)

e)
Describe the process of calibration and indicate why it is important in the modeling

process.

(6 marks)

Page 4 of 4

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