Analysis of Grey and Natural Infrastructure for Lake Conservation Applying the Sustainable Asset Valuation (SAVi) to Lake Dal, in Srinagar, State of Jammu & Kashmir, India

The document assesses five scenarios for the conservation of Lake Dal, ranging from business-as-usual to hybrid infrastructure upgrades. Using the SAVi tool, it finds that a hybrid approach—combining upgraded sewage treatment with a 500 ha artificial wetland—yields the highest net benefits (INR 360 billion) and the best water quality improvements. Conversely, the 'business-as-usual' scenario predicts a continuous decline in water quality and severe revenue losses for tourism and fisheries by 2060. The analysis also indicates that constructing the Western Foreshore Road would reduce tourism and fishery revenues by over INR 72 billion compared to the hybrid scenario due to damage to lake integrity.

• The 'Business-as-usual' (BAU) scenario, reflecting 2018 conditions, predicts a continuous decline in water quality that will cause severe revenue losses for Srinagar's tourism industry and threaten the local fishery industry by 2060.
• The hybrid infrastructure upgrade (Scenario 3), which includes a 500 ha artificial wetland and upgraded sewage treatment, provides the highest net benefits at INR 360 billion, representing a 62% increase in net benefits over the grey infrastructure upgrade (Scenario 2) with only an 8.6% increase in investment.
• The hybrid infrastructure scenario is the most effective for water quality between 2030 and 2060, reducing nitrogen concentration by an average of 65.5%, improving water clarity by an average of 174%, and reducing chlorophyll-a concentration by nearly 90% compared to the BAU scenario.
• Constructing the 20 km Western Foreshore Road (Scenario 4) would result in lower net benefits than the hybrid upgrade, reducing revenues for the fishery and tourism industries by more than INR 72 billion by 2060 due to new encroachment and damage to water quality from the sealed road surface.
• Implementing sewage treatment exclusively for houseboats (Scenario 1) is deemed not worthwhile, as it results in negative net results and negligible benefits despite a required investment of INR 768 million.
• The grey infrastructure upgrade (Scenario 2), involving 100% connection of the lake periphery to upgraded sewage plants powered by solar PV and battery storage, is an intermediate solution with benefits of INR 237 billion outweighing an investment of INR 15.6 billion.

APA

International Institute for Sustainable Development (n.d.). Analysis of Grey and Natural Infrastructure for Lake Conservation Applying the Sustainable Asset Valuation (SAVi) to Lake Dal, in Srinagar, State of Jammu & Kashmir, India. https://www.iisd.org/system/files/publications/savi-dal-lake-india-brochure.pdf

Chicago

International Institute for Sustainable Development. Analysis of Grey and Natural Infrastructure for Lake Conservation Applying the Sustainable Asset Valuation (SAVi) to Lake Dal, in Srinagar, State of Jammu & Kashmir, India. n.d. https://www.iisd.org/system/files/publications/savi-dal-lake-india-brochure.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=International Institute for Sustainable Development |title=Analysis of Grey and Natural Infrastructure for Lake Conservation Applying the Sustainable Asset Valuation (SAVi) to Lake Dal, in Srinagar, State of Jammu & Kashmir, India |url=https://www.iisd.org/system/files/publications/savi-dal-lake-india-brochure.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{internationalinstituteforsustainabledevelopmentndanalysis, author = {{International Institute for Sustainable Development}}, title = {{Analysis of Grey and Natural Infrastructure for Lake Conservation Applying the Sustainable Asset Valuation (SAVi) to Lake Dal, in Srinagar, State of Jammu \& Kashmir, India}}, institution = {International Institute for Sustainable Development}, url = {https://www.iisd.org/system/files/publications/savi-dal-lake-india-brochure.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }