September 2022
Editorial »
Net positive and its application to water management
Asit K. Biswas and Cecilia Tortajada
Research Article
Desalinated drinking-water provision in water-stressed regions: challenges of consumer-perception and environmental impact lessons from Antofagasta, Chile
M. Šteflováa, S. H. A. Koopb,c, M. C. Fragkoua and H. Meesb
aDepartamento de Geografía, Universidad de Chile, Santiago, Chile; bCopernicus Institute of Sustainable Development, Utrecht University, Utrecht, the Netherlands; cKWR Water Research Institute, Nieuwegein, the Netherlands
Contact: M. Šteflová | Email: steflova.marketa@gmail.com
Abstract
Desalination is increasingly popular for ensuring potable water. Using the City Blueprint Approach methodology in Antofagasta, Chile, we identify the barriers, opportunities and transferable lessons that can enhance governance capacity towards the successful implementation of desalination. Antofagasta’s desalinization programme is associated with negative water-quality perceptions, environmental impacts and high energy demands. Additionally, the supply has a moderate impeding influence on water-use efficiency efforts. Consequently, we draft a priority ladder for water provision in waterscarce regions to: ensure access; reduce consumption; apply reuse; and explore renewable water resources – and if a combination of previous steps is insufficient, desalination may be applied to meet water supply shortages.
Pages: 742-765
https://doi.org/10.1080/07900627.2021.1898346
Research Article
Service differentiation as an improvement strategy for access to water in urban low-income areas: evidence from three Kenyan cities
Akosua Sarpong Boakye-Ansaha, Klaas Schwartza,b and Margreet Zwarteveena,b
aDepartment of Water Governance, IHE-Delft Institute for Water Education, Delft, the Netherlands; bAmsterdam Institute for Social Science Research, University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam, the Netherlands
Contact: Akosua Sarpong Boakye-Ansah | Email: a.boakye-ansah@un-ihe.org
Abstract
In dealing with the challenges associated with water supply in urban low-income areas, water utilities are increasingly adopting service differentiation, which revolves around servicing different customer groups with different supply modalities. This article examines how such differentiation through the use of water kiosks and yard taps satisfies the water needs of consumers in low-income areas in three Kenyan cities. Based on an analysis of the reliability, affordability and accessibility of the water supplied, we conclude that while service differentiation has led to some improvements in access to piped connections in low-income areas, it also risks reinforcing the inequalities in access to water.
Pages: 766-782
https://doi.org/10.1080/07900627.2021.1921708
Research Article
Small Basin Governance scheme: linking water sector reforms and governance in the Aral Sea Basin
Murat Yakubov
Regional Environmental Centre for Central Asia (CAREC), Almaty, Kazakhstan
Contact: Murat Yakubov | Email: myakubov@outlook.com
Abstract
As river basin reforms in the countries of the Aral Sea basin gain momentum, the focus is commonly on large basins. Thus, multiple interests at the sub-basin level are largely ignored, increasing the risk for potential conflicts. This research considers inland and transboundary small river watersheds to illustrate a basin governance scheme that emerged during larger basin reforms and successfully satisfies both contexts by linking governance at multiple scales. In particular, splitting river basins into smaller hydrologic constituencies to establish sub-basin councils is found to be instrumental in enhancing overall representation, stakeholder engagement, basin planning and transboundary water cooperation.
Pages: 783-814
https://doi.org/10.1080/07900627.2021.1926936
Research Article
License to drill: typology of groundwater use regulations in agriculture of Uzbekistan
Hannes Knorra,b, Insa Theesfelda and Ilkhom Solieva
aDepartment of Agricultural, Environmental and Food Policy, Martin-Luther-University Halle-Wittenberg, Halle, Germany; bDepartment of Economics and Organization of the Water Economy, Tashkent Institute of Irrigation and Agricultural Mechanization Engineers (TIIAME), Tashkent, Uzbekistan
Contact: Hannes Knorr | Email: hannes.knorr@student.uni-halle.de
Abstract
Global warming, deteriorating water infrastructure and transboundary factors are threatening Uzbekistan’s long-term surface water supply. Groundwater is a potential alternative for irrigation purposes. Little research is available about how farmers in Uzbekistan use groundwater for irrigation and how formal regulations are implemented on the ground. Based on semi-structured, qualitative interviews with farmers and experts in Uzbekistan we provide a typology of groundwater regulation, exploring the use of licences, quotas and prices that offers a structured overview of agricultural groundwater use. We further highlight how electricity is used as a proxy resource to implement groundwater regulation on the ground.
Pages: 815-835
https://doi.org/10.1080/07900627.2021.1924633
Research Article
Institutional dynamics and water resource management: the case of traditional water bodies in West Bengal, India
Koushik Chowdhury and Bhagirath Behera
Department of Humanities and Social Sciences, Indian Institute of Technology Kharagpur, Kharagpur, India
Contact: Koushik Chowdhury | Email: totongeo@gmail.com
Abstract
In recent years, the adverse effects of growing water scarcity on the lives and livelihoods of poor people have become a major policy concern in India. This paper reviews the effectiveness of macro-level policies for rainwater conservation and critically examines micro-level local community institutions for the sustainable management of traditional water bodies. Using Ostrom’s design principles and qualitative data from three different multipurpose tanks, the study finds that management decisions at the local level have benefited few influential members of local communities and deprived a large number of poor households from resource uses, making the local institutions ineffective.
Pages: 836-860
https://doi.org/10.1080/07900627.2021.1916448
Research Article
Role of knowledge in the management of groundwater-use for irrigation in micro-watersheds of semi-arid India
Rekha Bhangaonkar and Shailaja Fennell
Department of Land Economy, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
Contact: Rekha Bhangaonkar | Email: rab229@cam.ac.uk
Abstract
The micro-watershed development programme in India promotes the recharging of groundwater tables to facilitate irrigation in otherwise rainfall-dependent agricultural communities. This study investigates the potential of agricultural extension agencies in encouraging the sustainable use of the common-pool resource of groundwater through local governance. Findings suggest that extension agencies strongly influence farmers’ crop choices (a representation of irrigation use), in accordance with the proposition that knowledge dissemination on groundwater use and its impact encourages collective action (U7-SES framework). Finally, farmers with higher irrigation demand are the conduit between the extension agency and community, highlighting their potential for programme management.
Pages: 861-879
https://doi.org/10.1080/07900627.2021.1921710 (Open Access)
Research Article
The dying oasis: a macro analysis of tank irrigation in Andhra Pradesh, India
A. Narayanamoorthy, R. Suresh and K. S. Sujitha
Department of Economics and Rural Development, Alagappa University, Karaikudi, India
Contact: A. Narayanamoorthy | Email: narayana64@gmail.com
Abstract
Tanks are the important traditional source of irrigation in India. They are a low-cost source with fewer management problems, but their performance has been deteriorating over the years. Using time-series data from the periods 1960–61 to 2013–14, this paper analyses the performance of tank irrigation across the districts, regions and categories of farmers in Andhra Pradesh, India. The study shows that districts that traditionally had a large tank irrigated area have registered a sharp reduction in that area. A substantial reduction in tank irrigated area is found in the Rayalaseema region where tanks are critical for farming. Correlation analysis suggests a significantly negative impact of groundwater area on tank irrigated area in most districts.
Pages: 880-896
https://doi.org/10.1080/07900627.2021.1961696
Research Article
Practicality of integrated water resources management (IWRM) in different contexts
Kenji Nagata, Izumi Shoji, Tomohiro Arima, Takahiro Otsuka, Kumiko Kato, Miha Matsubayashi and Mayu Omura
Global Environment Department, Japan International Cooperation Agency, Tokyo, Japan
Contact: Kenji Nagata | Email: Nagata.Kenji@jica.go.jp
Abstract
The significance of integrated water resources management (IWRM) is broadly recognized, but practical implementation methods are little known. This paper proposes a Practical IWRM approach that has the potential to accelerate consensus-building and problem-solving relating to water resources based on the formation of an aligned perception of natural and human-made water resource systems among stakeholders, and the establishment of a properly functioning multistakeholder partnership (MSP). This approach was applied in four countries – Sudan, Bolivia, Indonesia and Iran – where it has worked well in different contexts, and can be an effective methodology usable elsewhere in the field.
Pages: 897-919
https://doi.org/10.1080/07900627.2021.1921709 (Open Access)