Water Scarcity Impacts and Challenges of Water Governance in the Guanting Basin, North China. Evidence from Interviews with Local Stakeholders

2016 ◽  
pp. 221-242 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ilona M. Otto ◽  
Frank Wechsung ◽  
Xiaoxi Wang ◽  
Jacob Möhring ◽  
Rong Tan
Keyword(s):  
Water Scarcity ◽  
North China ◽  
Water Governance ◽  
Local Stakeholders ◽  
Guanting Basin

scholarly journals Virtual versus real water transfers within China

2005 ◽  
Vol 361 (1469) ◽  
pp. 835-842 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jing Ma ◽  
Arjen Y Hoekstra ◽  
Hao Wang ◽  
Ashok K Chapagain ◽  
Dangxian Wang
Keyword(s):  
South China ◽  
Water Scarcity ◽  
North China ◽  
Virtual Water ◽  
Water Transfer ◽  
Qualitative Description ◽  
The North ◽  
Food Deficit ◽  
Virtual Water Flow ◽  
North Water

North China faces severe water scarcity—more than 40% of the annual renewable water resources are abstracted for human use. Nevertheless, nearly 10% of the water used in agriculture is employed in producing food exported to south China. To compensate for this ‘virtual water flow’ and to reduce water scarcity in the north, the huge south–north Water Transfer Project is currently being implemented. This paradox—the transfer of huge volumes of water from the water-rich south to the water-poor north versus transfer of substantial volumes of food from the food-sufficient north to the food-deficit south—is receiving increased attention, but the research in this field has not yet reached further than rough estimation and qualitative description. The aim of this paper is to review and quantify the volumes of virtual water flows between the regions in China and to put them in the context of water availability per region. The analysis shows that north China annually exports about 52 billion m 3 of water in virtual form to south China, which is more than the maximum proposed water transfer volume along the three routes of the Water Transfer Project from south to north.

scholarly journals Syrian Refugees, Water Scarcity, and Dynamic Policies: How Do the New Refugee Discourses Impact Water Governance Debates in Lebanon and Jordan?

Water ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (2) ◽  
pp. 325 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hussam Hussein ◽  
Alberto Natta ◽  
Abed Al Kareem Yehya ◽  
Baha Hamadna
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Water Scarcity ◽  
Water Governance ◽  
Development Projects ◽  
Water Crisis ◽  
Syrian Refugees ◽  
Governance System ◽  
Syrian Crisis ◽  
Humanitarian Interventions ◽  
The Impact

Since the Syrian crisis and the so-called “Arab Spring”, new discourses have been created, sparking the discursive water governance debates around water scarcity and hydropolitics. In Lebanon and Jordan—where most water resources are transboundary, and where most Syrian refugees have flown in—new discourses of climate change and especially of Syrian refugees as exacerbating water scarcity are emerging, shaping water governance debates. The aim of this paper is to engage in comparative discourse analysis about narratives of water crises and refugees in Lebanon and Jordan. This study is novel because of the focus on the new discourse of refugees in relation to water governance debates in both Lebanon and Jordan. This paper finds that in both countries the new discourses of refugees do not replace previous and existing discourses of water crisis and scarcity, but rather they build on and reinforce them. This paper finds that the impact these discourses had on the governance debates is that in Lebanon the resources mobilized focused on humanitarian interventions, while Jordan focused on development projects to strengthen the resilience of its water infrastructure and its overall water governance system.

scholarly journals Conundrum or paradox: deconstructing the spurious case of water scarcity in the Himalayan Region through an institutional economics narrative

Water Policy ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 22 (S1) ◽  
pp. 146-161 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rinan Shah ◽  
Shrinivas Badiger
Keyword(s):  
Water Scarcity ◽  
Institutional Economics ◽  
Water Governance ◽  
Himalayan Region ◽  
Contemporary History ◽  
Domestic Water ◽  
Water Shortages ◽  
Water Institutions ◽  
Development Trajectory ◽  
History Of

Abstract Water scarcity in mountain regions such as the Himalaya has been studied with a pre-existing notion of scarcity justified by decades of communities' suffering from physical water shortages combined by difficulties of access. The Eastern Himalayan Region (EHR) of India receives significantly high amounts of annual precipitation. Studies have nonetheless shown that this region faces a strange dissonance: an acute water scarcity in a supposedly ‘water-rich’ region. The main objective of this paper is to decipher various drivers of water scarcity by locating the contemporary history of water institutions within the development trajectory of the Darjeeling region, particularly Darjeeling Municipal Town in West Bengal, India. A key feature of the region's urban water governance that defines the water scarcity narrative is the multiplicity of water institutions and the intertwining of formal and informal institutions at various scales. These factors affect the availability of and basic access to domestic water by communities in various ways resulting in the creation of a preferred water bundle consisting of informal water markets over and above traditional sourcing from springs and the formal water supply from the town municipality.

scholarly journals A review on water governance in Sri Lanka: the lessons learnt for future water policy formulation

Water Policy ◽  
2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
S. S. K. Chandrasekara ◽  
S. K. Chandrasekara ◽  
P. H. Sarath Gamini ◽  
J. Obeysekera ◽  
H. Manthrithilake ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Sri Lanka ◽  
Water Availability ◽  
Water Scarcity ◽  
Water Policy ◽  
Water Governance ◽  
Institutional Arrangement ◽  
Policy Formulation ◽  
Water Policies ◽  
Shared Data ◽  
Regular Review

Abstract Sri Lanka has no water scarcity within the country, and per capita, water availability is adequate to cater for the country's estimated peak population. Nevertheless, the frequent variability of spatial and temporal water availability and extreme events have built up a water scarcity in Sri Lanka, which has been observed during the last two to three decades. Therefore, effective and efficient water governance is most important in today's context, and regular review and amendment of policies, laws, and regulations are crucial to mitigate water scarcity. Although a few attempts were initiated, none of them succeeded. In this study, historical and present water governance mechanisms, including coordinating mechanisms and implementing water management agencies in Sri Lanka, were comprehensively reviewed. Further, the previously proposed water policies, their status and reasons for the failures of policies were discussed. Finally, the formulation of a novel institutional arrangement or altering the existing institutional arrangement with shared data and allocating non-shared responsibilities to each institution is suggested for better water governance in Sri Lanka.

scholarly journals Privatizando o H2O: transformando águas locais em dinheiro global

2004 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
pp. 33
Author(s):  
Erik Swyngedouw
Keyword(s):  
Water Resources ◽  
Water Scarcity ◽  
Water Governance ◽  
The State ◽  
Water Markets ◽  
Water Sector ◽  
Water Privatization ◽  
Global Corporations ◽  
Global Project

O artigo aborda criticamente o projeto global de privatização e mercantilização de recursos hídricos. Na primeira seção, as políticas neoliberais de privatização são contextualizadas histórica e politicamente. Em uma segunda seção, o discurso da “escassez” da água é explorado, relacionando-o com a lógica da privatização. Na seção subseqüente, as estratégias das corporações globais que dividem o mercado de água são examinadas. Isso, por sua vez, nos leva a considerar a centralidade contínua do Estado e o controle na regulamentação do setor de saneamento, assim como a uma discussão sobre a posição enfraquecida do cidadão vis-à-vis esses modos de controle da água. Por fim, as contradições da privatização da água são exploradas.Palavras-chave: recursos hídricos; privatização; saneamento. Abstract: The paper critically engages with the global project of commodifying and privatizing water resources. In the first part, neo-liberal privatization policies are contextualized historically and politically. In a second part, the discourse of water ‘scarcity’ is explored in relation to the logic of privatization. In a subsequent part, the strategies of global corporations that share the water markets will be examined. This, in turn, leads to a consideration of the continuing centrality of the state and of ‘governance’ in the regulation of the water sector, and to a discussion of the weakened position of the citizen vis-à-vis these modes of water governance. Finally, the contradictions of water privatization will be explored.Keywords: water resources; privatisation; sanitation.

Towards a water balanced utilization through circular economy

2018 ◽  
Vol 41 (5) ◽  
pp. 572-585 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rahmi Eneng ◽  
Kris Lulofs ◽  
Chay Asdak
Keyword(s):  
Water Scarcity ◽  
Circular Economy ◽  
Water Governance ◽  
High Water ◽  
Legal Framework ◽  
Water Conflict ◽  
Governance System ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Relative Water ◽  
Access To Water

Purpose The purpose of this study is to describe and explain the relative water scarcity condition as one of the main problems encountered in Indonesia. It is caused by fierce competition between water users, water over consumption and high water price. The water conflict and increasing phenomena of relative water scarcity result in unequal access to water between the rich and the poor. This research is intended to contribute to a balanced water governance system that secures equal and fair access to water resources for all users. Design/methodology/approach A mixed method approach was used involving interviews with the owners of the established bottled water companies, the community leaders, guard for sluice gate, local NGOs and several government agencies. Findings Research results indicate that water policies and implementation are lacking coherency. It is also shown that the complex government structure with responsibilities divided over multiple agencies is responsible for this. The circular economy for water governance system used to find alternative solutions for reducing social conflicts so that the water will be made available to those who have no water access. Research limitations/implications This research used only one location with a representative number of interviewees; hence, the findings are not possibly generalizable. Originality/value The combination of water legal framework and circular economy concept was used to reduce water scarcity

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