Social learning in an environmental justice context: a case study of integrated regional water management

Water Policy ◽  
2014 ◽  
Vol 16 (S2) ◽  
pp. 97-120 ◽  
Author(s):  
Carolina L. Balazs ◽  
Mark Lubell
Keyword(s):  
Water Management ◽  
Social Learning ◽  
Environmental Justice ◽  
Structural Changes ◽  
Water Governance ◽  
Stakeholder Participation ◽  
Pilot Project ◽  
Disadvantaged Community ◽  
Project Study ◽  
Regional Water

California recently implemented a statewide effort to learn how best to outreach to and involve ‘disadvantaged communities’ in integrated regional water management (IRWM) planning. Using the case of the Kings Basin Water Authority's Disadvantaged Community Pilot Project Study, we argue that social learning is a key mechanism through which the procedural and distributive justice goals of environmental justice are integrated into water resources planning. Using interviews, focus groups and survey results, we find that social learning has short- and medium-term effects of increasing access to information, broadening stakeholder participation and developing initial foundations for structural changes to water governance. However, long-term change in the structure of IRWM institutions is, at best, in its early phases. Social learning provides a basis for changing water governance and management outcomes in ways that promote representation of traditionally marginalized groups and the water challenges they face.

REORGANIZATION OF WATER AND WASTE WATER MANAGEMENT IN ROMANIA: FROM LOCAL TO REGIONAL WATER GOVERNANCE

2009 ◽  
Vol 8 (5) ◽  
pp. 1061-1071 ◽  
Author(s):  
Joanne Vinke-de Kruijf ◽  
Valentina Dinica ◽  
Denie C.M. Augustijn
Keyword(s):  
Waste Water ◽  
Water Management ◽  
Water Governance ◽  
Waste Water Management ◽  
Regional Water

scholarly journals Strengths and Weaknesses of the Dutch Implementation of the Water Framework Directive

2017 ◽  
Vol 14 (3-4) ◽  
pp. 269-293 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lorenzo Squintani ◽  
Ernst Plambeck ◽  
Marleen van Rijswick
Keyword(s):  
Water Management ◽  
The Netherlands ◽  
Water Governance ◽  
Functional Approach ◽  
Governance System ◽  
Member States ◽  
Potential Source ◽  
History Of ◽  
Dutch Experience ◽  
Regional Water

The Netherlands has a long and fascinating history of water management. The main features of the Dutch water governance system for the implementation of the wfd are its regional water authorities based on hydrological scales and powers to regulate, decide and raise taxes for their water tasks. Their functional approach and the decentralised character make the regional water authorities very efficient and effective. It is therefore understandable that eu institutions and other Member States consider the Dutch system an interesting potential source of inspiration for other jurisdictions. Yet, it is not all gold what shines. This paper highlights the strength and weakness elements of the Dutch water governance system under the wfd. It exposes several points of concern. When considering using the Dutch experience as a source of inspiration in other Member States, these concerns should be taken in due account.

scholarly journals Developing a dynamic framework to examine the interplay between environmental stress, stakeholder participation processes and hydrological systems

2014 ◽  
Vol 364 ◽  
pp. 326-332
Author(s):  
G. Carr ◽  
G. Blöschl ◽  
D. P. Loucks
Keyword(s):  
Water Management ◽  
Resource Management ◽  
Environmental Stress ◽  
Water Policy ◽  
Water Resource Management ◽  
Water Governance ◽  
Stakeholder Participation ◽  
Institutional Conditions ◽  
Dynamic Framework ◽  
Environmental Events

Abstract. Stakeholder participation is increasingly discussed as essential for sustainable water resource management. Yet detailed understanding of the factors driving its use, the processes by which it is employed, and the outcomes or achievements it can realise remains highly limited, and often contested. This understanding is essential to enable water policy to be shaped for efficient and effective water management. This research proposes and applies a dynamic framework that can explore in which circumstances environmental stress events, such as floods, droughts or pollution, drive changes in water governance towards a more participatory approach, and how this shapes the processes by which participation or stakeholder engagement takes place, and the subsequent water management outcomes that emerge. The framework is able to assess the extent to which environmental events in combination with favourable contextual factors (e.g. institutional support for participatory activities) lead to good participatory processes (e.g. well facilitated and representative) that then lead to good outcomes (e.g. improved ecological conditions). Through applying the framework to case studies from the literature it becomes clear that environmental stress events can stimulate participatory governance changes, when existing institutional conditions promote participatory approaches. The work also suggests that intermediary outcomes, which may be tangible (such as reaching an agreement) or non-tangible (such as developing shared knowledge and understanding among participants, or creating trust), may provide a crucial link between processes and resource management outcomes. If this relationship can be more strongly confirmed, the presence or absence of intermediary outcomes may even be used as a valuable proxy to predict future resource management outcomes.

The Challenge of Externally Generated Collaborative Governance: California’s Attempt at Regional Water Management

2020 ◽  
Vol 50 (4-5) ◽  
pp. 428-437
Author(s):  
Bruce E. Cain ◽  
Elisabeth R. Gerber ◽  
Iris Hui
Keyword(s):  
Water Management ◽  
Water Governance ◽  
Collaborative Governance ◽  
Local Autonomy ◽  
Core Element ◽  
Disadvantaged Communities ◽  
Role Differentiation ◽  
Regional Collaboration ◽  
Local Agencies ◽  
Regional Water

Creating successful collaborative governance regimes is difficult, but can be especially hard when collaborations are externally generated by higher levels of government as opposed to self-generated by local agencies and stakeholders due to the lack of spontaneity. We analyze this problem as it applies to California’s Integrated Regional Water Governance Program. Public administration theory indicates that a core element in a successful collaboration is empowering local leaders who share the collaboration’s intended goal. However, the political concessions to local autonomy necessary to enact an externally generated collaboration can undermine its success. The tensions between maintaining local autonomy and creating a regional approach are inherently strong in a “layered collaborative governance” approach that acknowledges and accommodates local boundaries. Drawing on the concept of role differentiation, we hypothesize that the roles participants play in layered collaborative governance will frequently derive from their preexisting issue areas, geographic orientations, and power relations, but that program design incentives can influence which groups participate in the effort and how they engage. We test these hypotheses in the context of California’s Integrated Regional Water Management (IRWM) program. We find evidence of role differentiation on grant leadership both with respect to the initial goal of regional collaboration as well as later efforts to address the water issues of disadvantaged communities.

scholarly journals WaterCoG: Evidence on How the Use of Tools, Knowledge, and Process Design Can Improve Water Co-Governance

Water ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (9) ◽  
pp. 1206
Author(s):  
Ilke Borowski-Maaser ◽  
Morten Graversgaard ◽  
Natalie Foster ◽  
Madeleine Prutzer ◽  
Allard Hans Roest ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Water Management ◽  
Social Learning ◽  
Process Design ◽  
Water Governance ◽  
Stakeholder Involvement ◽  
Qualitative Evaluation ◽  
Collaborative Governance ◽  
Shared Understanding ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Governance Processes

The European Union Water Framework Directive (WFD) encourages water managers to implement active stakeholder involvement to achieve sustainable water management. However, the WFD does not describe in detail how member states should operationalize participation. The need for local experience and local understanding of collaborative governance (co-governance) processes remains. The WaterCoG project evaluated 11 local pilot schemes. Building on the participatory, qualitative evaluation of pilot schemes from Sweden, United Kingdom, Denmark, The Netherlands, and Germany, the authors take a closer look at how co-governance can improve water governance, how water managers can make best use of tools and knowledge, and how they can improve process designs. The results reflect how social learning and successful co-governance are linked. Social learning as a shared understanding of complex ecosystem and water-management issues can be supported with active stakeholder involvement and citizen science. As such, in co-governance processes, stakeholders need technical access to data and knowledge and a shared process memory. This enables them to develop a shared understanding and facilitates bringing together competing interests and finding new solutions. Participatory tools became part of successful processes by building trust and knowledge based on commitment. However, proficient process design and facilitation make these tools more effective.

Water Governance and Management in Indus Basin - Challenges & Threats

2020 ◽  
Vol 38 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Marium Sara Minhas Bandeali
Keyword(s):  
Water Management ◽  
Civil Society ◽  
Water Resources ◽  
Water Policy ◽  
Water Governance ◽  
Sustainable Use ◽  
Water Security ◽  
Sampling Technique ◽  
The State ◽  
Indus Basin

Water governance and management are important challenges for the River Indus Basin in Pakistan. Water governance refers to social, political and economic factors that influence water management. The water scarcity and water security are a major concern for the state to control its water resources. The study aims to give Sindh water policy by exploring the challenges to Indus Basin in managing water resources and to identify opportunities Indus Basin can look to improve water management. Interviews were conducted from water experts and analysts having 5 years’ experience or more in the water sector of Pakistan through a semi-structured self-developed questionnaire using purposive sampling technique and transcripts were analyzed using thematic content analysis. The findings show that increasing population, climatic change and rising demand of water are major challenges Indus is facing and Indus with time is getting water-scarce therefore need strong institutions, civil society and legislatures to ensure equitable distribution of water and maintain the ecosystem. The study emphasizes that water governance and management are necessary for sustainable use of water. Pakistan, the water stress country needs to address ‘governance’ at a wider scale to solve problems in the Indus Basin for the livelihood of people. The research will benefit the state, water experts, institutions as well as civil society to promote efficient use of water in Indus Basin.

Water Management by Farmers

2018 ◽  
pp. 796-813
Author(s):  
Laurence Smith
Keyword(s):  
Water Management ◽  
Decision Making ◽  
Stakeholder Participation ◽  
Coordination Mechanisms ◽  
Policy Mix ◽  
The Public ◽  
Multifunctional Land Use ◽  
Resource Managers ◽  
Policy Challenge ◽  
Communication And Coordination

Analyzing the public policy challenge of multifunctional land use, for which farmers are required to be food producers, water resource managers and environmental stewards, it is argued that a location-sensitive policy mix is required, consisting of appropriate regulation complemented by advice provision, voluntarism, and well-targeted incentive schemes. The case is further made for adaptive management, local deliberation and stakeholder participation, and hence for governance that is open, delegated, and collaborative. Assessment, planning, and decision making need to be delegated to the most appropriate governmental level and spatial scale to achieve desired outcomes, whilst effective mechanisms for vertical and horizontal coordination of the resulting multilevel and polycentric governance are essential. Hydrographic catchments have significant advantages as spatial units for analysis, planning, coordination, and policy delivery. However, catchment-based working creates further need for cross-level, sector, and scale communication and coordination. Mechanisms for this merit further attention.

Regional Water Balance and Economic Assessment as Tools for Water Management in Coastal Lebanon

2008 ◽  
Vol 23 (11) ◽  
pp. 2361-2378 ◽  
Author(s):  
Daniel El Chami ◽  
Maroun El Moujabber ◽  
Alessandra Scardigno
Keyword(s):  
Water Management ◽  
Water Balance ◽  
Economic Assessment ◽  
Regional Water

scholarly journals Statewide Water Planning: The Georgia Experience

2011 ◽  
Vol 43 (3) ◽  
pp. 357-366 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jeffrey D. Mullen
Keyword(s):  
Water Management ◽  
Water Use ◽  
Planning Process ◽  
Management Plan ◽  
The State ◽  
Water Planning ◽  
The Past ◽  
Extensive Effort ◽  
Recommended Practices ◽  
Regional Water

Several states in the southeast have acknowledged the need for statewide water planning but have yet to act. In contrast, Georgia is on the cusp of completing the Georgia Comprehensive Statewide Water Management Plan (SWMP). The SWMP provides for resource assessments, forecasts, and regional water planning. Over the past three years, an extensive effort has been made to implement the SWMP. This article describes the planning process undertaken in Georgia. Several of the recommended practices are also highlighted and critiqued with respect to their potential to affect aggregate water use in the state.

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