The limits to large-scale supply augmentation: exploring the crossroads of conflicting urban water system development pathways
<p>Managers of urban water systems constantly make decisions to guarantee water services by overcoming problems related to supply–demand imbalances. A preferred strategy has been supply augmentation through hydraulic infrastructure development. However, despite considerable investments, many s...
| Main Authors: | , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Copernicus Publications
2022-02-01
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| Series: | Hydrology and Earth System Sciences |
| Online Access: | https://hess.copernicus.org/articles/26/885/2022/hess-26-885-2022.pdf |
| Summary: | <p>Managers of urban water systems constantly make decisions to
guarantee water services by overcoming problems related to supply–demand
imbalances. A preferred strategy has been supply augmentation through
hydraulic infrastructure development. However, despite considerable
investments, many systems seem to be trapped in lacklustre development
pathways making some problems seem like an enduring, almost stubborn,
characteristic of the systems: overexploitation and pollution of water
sources, distribution networks overwhelmed by leakages and non-revenue
water, and unequal water insecurity. Because of these strategies and
persistent problems, water conflicts have emerged, whereby social actors
oppose these strategies and propose alternative technologies and strategies.
This can create development pathway crossroads of the urban water system,
defined as a critical point whereby actors in conflict will either reinforce
the current business-as-usual pathway based on large supply augmentation or
implement alternative solutions for the urban water system. To study this
development pathway crossroads, we selected the Zapotillo conflict in Mexico
where a large supply augmentation project for two cities experiencing water
shortages is at stake. The paper concludes that urban water systems that are
engaged in a trajectory characterized by supply-side strategies may
experience a temporal relief but neglect equally pressing issues that stymie
the human right to water in the medium and long run. However, there is not a
straightforward, self-evident development pathway to choose from, only a
range of multiple alternatives with multiple trade-offs that need to be
thoroughly discussed and negotiated between the stakeholders. We argue that
this development pathway crossroads can cross-fertilize contrasting
disciplines such as socio-hydrology and critical studies on water because both can complement technical and socio-political analyses to make their knowledge actionable
and relevant.</p> |
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| ISSN: | 1027-5606 1607-7938 |