a maximum of 93,000 ha; corresponding to 49,000 ha managed by the private sector and 44,000 ha by the public sector. the majority of irrigated surface area is located in the pacific region (76%) and 24% in the central region. in 1990, the government eliminated subsidies and liberated the price of energy. when combined with inefficient equipment, the cost of irrigating increased beyond the point at which farmers could maintain their systems. consequently, systems were abandoned and then deteriorated. as a result, irrigated area decreased to just 23,000 ha using only surface water to irrigate traditional crops such as banana, sugarcane, and rice. despite efforts, a government institution responsible for the activities of irrigation has not been established. there are no irrigation districts in the country either. a study was carried out in 1985 for the irrigation development in the pacific region and suggested the creation of 14 irrigation districts; however, these suggestions were not implemented. the state does respond to requests from the private sector for investment into the irrigation sector by selecting projects of small and medium producers for financing through the institute for rural development. drainage problems are isolated in an area north of the pacific region where issues of salinity of the soil exist; however, it is not believed there is a great risk to the land under irrigation here. fao reports that there are no statistics on work carried out in the field of drainage. it is known however, that land in the central region's sébaco valley has been recovered using surface drains and ongoing cleaning of natural drains. the atlantic region is prone to flooding, therefore, both adequate surface and underground drainage is required. it is estimated that 350,000 ha in nicaragua require proper drainage. table: potential irrigated area in both the medium and long term and area under irrigation in each department. department irrigable area: long term (ha) irrigable area: medium term (ha) irrigable area with infrastructure (ha) irrigated area (ha) chinandega-n 1,175 1,175 1,175 1,175 chinandega-s 90,000 24,609 24,609 20,591 leon 20,000 3,120 3,120 2,567 rivas 3,000 50 20 20 managua-rivas 20,000 20,200 6,200 5,106 managua 15,000 2,350 350 350 león-managua 7,000 2,150 2,150 1,688 matagalpa 15,000 12,000 8,700 6,090 chontales 80,000 23,000 11,750 10,250 río san juan 20,000 2,097 2,097 2,097 estelí 2,000 1,194 1,194 1,194 total 273,175 91,945 61,365 51,128 source: fao 1998 stormwater management of stormwater drainage is major challenge for the alcaldia of managua. sedimentation and the accumulation of solid waste in the conveyance channels are also a constant concern. investments in environmental protection and stormwater drainage works have been concentrated in one of the eight subwatersheds of the southern watershed, where most of the population and the majority of private investment have historically been concentrated. "subwatershed ii" is located entirely within the territory of managua. another important subwatershed serving managua covers 178 km2. it is the most important recharge area of the aquifer that provides drinking water to managua, with three wellfields producing 60% of the city's water supply. urban growth has developed without the use of urban planning instruments and adequate building standards, and without a corresponding increase in municipal services or an extension of the stormwater drainage system, which impacts the ecological regeneration of the subwatershed and the percolation of rainwater into the managua aquifer. the sediment and solid waste conveyed through the drainage system exposes the lower areas to floods in the rainy season. additionally, the absence of basic services in the informal settlements causes wastewater to enter the stormwater system. hydroelectricity excerpts drawn from electricity sector in nicaragua hydroelectric plants account for about 10% of the electricity produced in nicaragua. the public company hidrogesa owns and operates the two existing plants centroamérica and santa bárbara both of which generate 50 mw. nicaragua is a net importer of petroleum and its overdependence on oil products for the generation of electricity has created a long-standing energy crisis. in response, there are now plans for the construction of new hydroelectric plants. in 2006 the central american bank for economic integration (bcie) and the government reached an agreement by which the bcie will provide us$120 million in the next five years (2007–2012) in order to finance the following hydroelectric projects: the modernization of the centroamérica and santa bárbara plants; development of the larreynaga hydroelectric project beginning in 2009; us$42–45 million for the design, construction and initial operation of the 21mw sirena-los calpules hydroelectric plant. business news americas reported in the first weeks of 2010 that nicaragua's government did indeed sign the financing agreement with bcie for development of the larreynaga hydroelectric project. the bank will provide up to us$22.9 million, which will supplement the us$36.7 million originally approved for the 17-mw project. the project is located in jinotega province about 160 kilometers north of managua. spain's cobra engineering and construction firm began construction of the project in 2009, however, the plant will be operated by state power firm enel. project officials have said that larreynaga will increase the country's physical generation by 2.8 percent and installed capacity by 3.4 percent. in march 2008 the government of iran approved a us$230 million credit for the construction of a 70mw hydropower plant by the name of bodoke on the tuma river in the northern department of jinotega. according to press reports the project will be carried out by a state-owned iranian company with financing from the iranian export bank under an agreement with the nicaraguan ministry of energy and mines. legal and institutional framework the existing legal framework is inadequate and a lack of consistent institutional capacity does not favor or precipitate the ongoing development of water resources. the national constitution established the state with responsibility and obligation to regulate the handling of natural resources. the civil code recognizes water resources as a public good and this is subject to the rules that also govern the private ownership of land. the code states that the consumption of water for irrigation purposes is not regulated and the extraction of groundwater is free. the last water bill was presented to the national assembly for approval in the working agenda in 1999. that proposal introduced the concepts of integrated water resources management (iwrm) and the creation of the water authority (adagua). there is also a lack of good water rights that govern the use of water resulting in confusion about what body or individual has the right to use a particular water resource. institutions are state agencies and whenever the political atmosphere and leadership change, so does the leadership of the institutions. this constant turnover in leadership does not lend itself to successful management of water resources institutions. legal framework map of nicaragua the national water law of 2007 was approved by the national assembly and regulates water use by different sectors while prioritizing potable water supplies for domestic use. the water law aims to protect and preserve the country's water resources. furthermore, nicaragua's congressional environment and natural resources committee has also approved its 2010 work plan giving priority to the creation of the national water authority (ana). under the water law, ana will be a decentralized organization, with administrative and financial autonomy. ana will be responsible for drawing up a national water resources plan, keeping track of water levels in basins, maintaining a public registry of water rights, and promoting the use and development of water resources. the authority is also expected to monitor the construction of water infrastructure. the establishment of ana has been delayed by 2 years. the delay is due in part for two reasons: 1) implementing the water law is expensive; and 2) there exists disagreements over who should lead that agency. general drinking water and sewerage services law, law no. 297 of 1998 law-decree no. 276 of 1998 that created enacal law no. 275 of 1998 that transformed inaa into a regulatory agency. institutional framework conapas (comisión nacional de agua potable y alcantarillado sanitario) is the national council for drinking water and sanitation in nicaragua whose main function is the formulation of the objectives, policies, strategies and guidelines of the sector of drinking water. created by executive decree 51 in 1998 and later modified by decrees 33 and 75 in 2002 and 2003 respectively. conapas includes the secretariat of the presidency sepres, the ministry of health, the ministry of environment, the national utility enacal, the regulatory agency inaa, the institute for territorial studies (ineter) and the social investment fund fise. inaa (el instituto nicaragüense de acueductos y alcantarillados)is the nicaraguan institute of water conveyance and sewerage. inaa operates and maintains 148 aqueducts that supply water to 170 cities whereby a majority of the water is supplied from groundwater resources. inaa is the regulator as well and carries out procedures, inspections, and consulting activities in this regard. other duties include resolving claims, providing technical support, and coordinating efforts with partner associations. enacal (la empresa nicaragüense de acueductos y alcantarillados) is the national water and sanitation utility whose duties include implementing water policies, managing the efficient use of both surface and ground water resources that is intended for all uses. priority is given to sectors less cared for under previous governments. marena (ministerio del ambiente y los recursos naturales) is the ministry of the environment and natural resources and works with the assistance of citizen participation. marena has a responsibility to regulate environmental management efforts with effectiveness and efficiency to continually improve the lives of its citizens. marena is also charged with the duties of conservation, protection, and sustainable use of nicaragua's natural resources and environment. ineter (instituto nicaragüense de estudios territoriales) is the agency that assumes responsibility for flood control. in more general terms, ineter is a technical and scientific organization that generates mapping, weather, water, and geologic research data available to the public. the work of ineter is targeted at reducing nicaragua's vulnerability to flooding resulting from tropical storms and hurricanes. water and sanitation committees, caps (comités de agua potable y saneamiento). caps manage water and sanitation services in rural areas. they are not legal entities. adagua is the water administration and is within the ministry of development. adagua is commissioned by law to regulate the use and management of the water. in many cases; however, the presence of such an entity has been non-existent. colcibolca watershed commission is one component of an institutional base that was set up to protect the colcibolca basin and help provide for sustainable development of the area. the commission has been operational in some aspects and holds annual "cocioblca forums" on a small budget. the secretariat of this particular watershed commission has no budget and is not a fully functioning body. multi-lateral assistance world bank: dating back to the early 1970s, the world bank has worked on various water supply projects for the capital city of managua. most recently, there is project to increase access to reliable water and sanitation services to the population of the greater managua region. components include: 1) securing continuous drinking water; 2) the improvement of water supply and efficiency in selected areas where the japanese international cooperation agency (jica) has provided a water balance study showing that improvements in water supply can be significant; 3) the institutional strengthening and project monitoring and evaluation. a world bank project more focused on the entire country is also under way and aims to increase coverage of rural water supply. this project supports municipalities with investments and technical assistance. pilot water supply projects are another facet of this project and may serve as the basis for larger initiatives in rural water supply. institutional strengthening and project management is another area of focus in this us$23 million project that was scheduled to be carried until 2014. inter-american development bank also has a long history of working in the water resources management sector with nicaragua. one project underway is contributing to the preservation and sustainable development of a particular subwatershed of lake managua's southern watershed. this is being carried out through the execution of infrastructure works and by strengthening the environmental management capacity of participating municipal governments. this is a us$13 million project. ramsar convention on wetlands instituted a management plan for the conservation and wise use of the ramsar site lago de apanás-asturias. the project created a management plan for the site, with consultation and active participation of