Management Conflicts in the Ambato River Watershed, Tungurahua Province, Ecuador

Abstract

Although Ecuador is a very small country in terms of area, its regions are heterogeneous. The province of Tungurahua, located in the highlands, is primarily an agricultural area with a hydrological deficit, even though the Ambato River, the major source of water, traverses 40% of its territory. In 1972, the Ecuadorian government nationalized all waterways and transferred the responsibility for their management to a state organization, the Ecuadorian Institute for Hydrological Resources (INHERI), whose main function had been the construction of new irrigation systems at a very high cost, with limited success and impact. INHERI also played a role in resource planning and assignment of water concessions for all traditional irrigation systems, which account for 80% of the area under irrigation in Ecuador. These systems frequently consist of very old irrigation channels built in the past centuries. In 1994, this organization was eliminated and replaced by the National Council for Hydrological Resources. In the province of Tungurahua, the regional Corporation for the Development of the Center Highlands was established to regulate and strengthen hydrological resources in the watersheds located in 3 provinces: Tungurahua, Cotopaxi, and Pastaza. Presently, however, this institution is too weak to carry out all the responsibilities entrusted to it.