A platform for research: civil engineering, architecture and urbanism
A platform for research: civil engineering, architecture and urbanism
The central role of basin authorities in the governance of water challenges induced by climate change: A social network analysis of the Thau Basin in France
Due to the effects of global warming, water management has become more complex. Increased water scarcity creates rivalries between water users for the access and use of the resource. Since 1992, the French Government has elaborated the water management and development plans (Schéma d’aménagement et de gestion de l’eau, SAGE). In 2015, 179 SAGE were approved of which 108 have already been implemented. In line with the Water Framework Directive, these local plans developed an integrated and concerted water management that combines environmental protection with the human-induced water usages. They rely on a water basin authority which designs and implements the plan in a consensual way and encourages the definition of common goals between the local users. The aim of this communication is to question the actual role of the basin authority and asks whether it is central in the local water management. Alternatively, major stakeholders or public authorities may be the de facto decision-makers in the distribution of water uses. The communication relies on a case study conducted in the Thau basin in 2012. Drawing on social network analysis, a method used to visualize and describe social structures, it identifies the actors which occupy central positions and hold effective power. Specifically, the analysis looks at three measures of centrality linked to different forms of power: Degree centrality, closeness, and brokerage. As a result, the key actors of the SAGE, namely the Water Agency (AE-RMC), the local water agency (SMBT) and the users’ assembly (CLE), appear as the most powerful actors in the management of the river basin, which validates the shift in power introduced with integrated water management from territorial and central authorities to functional and more local managers.
The central role of basin authorities in the governance of water challenges induced by climate change: A social network analysis of the Thau Basin in France
Due to the effects of global warming, water management has become more complex. Increased water scarcity creates rivalries between water users for the access and use of the resource. Since 1992, the French Government has elaborated the water management and development plans (Schéma d’aménagement et de gestion de l’eau, SAGE). In 2015, 179 SAGE were approved of which 108 have already been implemented. In line with the Water Framework Directive, these local plans developed an integrated and concerted water management that combines environmental protection with the human-induced water usages. They rely on a water basin authority which designs and implements the plan in a consensual way and encourages the definition of common goals between the local users. The aim of this communication is to question the actual role of the basin authority and asks whether it is central in the local water management. Alternatively, major stakeholders or public authorities may be the de facto decision-makers in the distribution of water uses. The communication relies on a case study conducted in the Thau basin in 2012. Drawing on social network analysis, a method used to visualize and describe social structures, it identifies the actors which occupy central positions and hold effective power. Specifically, the analysis looks at three measures of centrality linked to different forms of power: Degree centrality, closeness, and brokerage. As a result, the key actors of the SAGE, namely the Water Agency (AE-RMC), the local water agency (SMBT) and the users’ assembly (CLE), appear as the most powerful actors in the management of the river basin, which validates the shift in power introduced with integrated water management from territorial and central authorities to functional and more local managers.
The central role of basin authorities in the governance of water challenges induced by climate change: A social network analysis of the Thau Basin in France
Aubin, David (author) / La Jeunesse, Isabelle (author) / Riche, Cécile (author) / Vande Water, Vincent (author) / Climate Change & Water (author) / UCL - SSH/IACS - Institute of Analysis of Change in Contemporary and Historical Societies
2018-01-01
Conference paper
Electronic Resource
English
DDC:
710
The International Network of Water Basin Authorities
| British Library Conference Proceedings | 1998
Water basin authorities in Poland
| British Library Conference Proceedings | 1998
Local Climate Change Governance and Making Climate Resilient Town: The Role of Local Authorities
| BASE | 2020