Abstract
ABSTRACT This article analyses the application of OECD water governance principles to the semiarid region of Brazil. Between 2012 and 2017, the Paraíba River basin (macroscale) and its Epitácio Pessoa reservoir – EPR (microscale) suffered a severe drought. The reservoir came close to collapse in 2017, which led to water use conflicts that were aggravated due to water mismanagement. Four evaluation criteria were considered: policy alignment to the OECD principles, its implementation, on-ground results, and policy impacts. The outcomes indicate water management fragilities, even after 24 years of the Brazilian National Water Resources Policy enactment, and the need for a better water management integration at different scales: National, State, and River Basin. By considering a smaller scale (a basin and its main reservoir), it was possible to observe water governance failures that lead to water crises since the best practices performed by the national agency, at the national scale, have not been verified at the local scale.
Highlights
Water is in a constant cycle; its availability is variable in quantity and quality and affected by natural variations and human activities (Biswas, 2008)
Water management refers to the activities of analyzing and monitoring water resources, as well as developing and implementing measures to keep the state of a water resource within desirable bounds (Global Water Partnership, 2004; Pahl-Wostl, 2017)
The 12 OECD principles evaluated for the two-scale using four evaluation criteria developed by Neto et al (2018) (Table 1) as follows: Alignment (A) – refers to the local water policies adaptation and OECD governance principle compatibility; Implementation (I) – OECD governance principle implementation within water policies and management practices; On-ground Results (R) – results and efficiency obtained through the governance principle practice; and Policy Impact (PI) - changes observed with the OECD governance principle application on practices or other policies
Summary
Water is in a constant cycle; its availability is variable in quantity and quality and affected by natural variations and human activities (Biswas, 2008). The water resource availability is gradually declining, and the actual water scenario has been called the ‘Global Water Crises’ (Biswas, 1998; Pahl-Wostl, 2020; Srinivasan et al, 2012; Vörösmarty et al, 2013). Water governance can be defined as the range of political, social, economic, and administrative systems that regulate the development and management of water resources and provision of water services at distinct scales of society, guiding the resource towards a desirable state and away from an undesirable one. Water management refers to the activities of analyzing and monitoring water resources, as well as developing and implementing measures to keep the state of a water resource within desirable bounds (Global Water Partnership, 2004; Pahl-Wostl, 2017). The Global Water Partnership – GWP considered the general water governance framework grouped in enabling environment (policies, legislative framework, financing, and incentive structures); defined institutional roles (organizational structure, the capacity of instrument construction), and institutional management (assessment and planning of water resources, demand management, instruments of social change, conflict resolution, regulatory instruments (Global Water Partnership, 2004)
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