Peak water not to blame in the escalation of Peruvian socio-environmental conflicts

Abstract

Over 1.5 billion people rely on more than 46,000 non-polar glaciers across the world for potable water, irrigation, industrial and hydropower usages. The melting of non-polar glaciers and its effects on socio-environmental conflicts are understudied in the rapidly expanding field of climate conflicts. Contrary to existing theoretical models, this article found that the Santa River Basin (SRB), having reached peak water, did not directly increase the number or length of the area’s socio-environmental conflicts. The article identified and examined 23 socio-environmental conflicts in the Peruvian Ombudsman’s monthly reports between 2004 and 2019. Instead of peak water, five other escalation variables were identified: violence, upstream–downstream dynamics, multiple stakeholder cooperation, decrease in the quality/quantity of water and the utilisation of roads for protests.