Abstract
This paper examines the relevance to groundwater management of Ostrom’s design principles for managing common property resources. Experience in four case studies of groundwater management in the Murray Darling Basin in Australia and the Upper Guadiana Basin in Spain suggests that while Ostrom’s design principles are relevant, sustainable groundwater management depends on the effective collaboration between government authorities and water users. A flexible and adaptive management approach is required, with collaboration between scientists, policy makers, water suppliers, and water users. Key management challenges include agreeing on a sustainable level of extraction, and establishing effective coordination and collaboration, and monitoring and control systems. Further case studies of groundwater management and their synthesis could make a useful contribution to the transition towards sustainable groundwater management regimes.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
Notes
Her latest work is moving towards a more diagnostic method for analysing institutional change, differentiating between resource systems, resource units, resource users and governance systems (Ostrom 2007).
References
AEUAS (2004) Dossier de presentación. Asociación Española de Usuarios de Aguas Subterráneas
Allan C, Curtis A (2005) Nipped in the bud: why regional scale adaptive management is not blooming. Environ Manage 36:414–425. doi:10.1007/s00267-004-0244-1
Balland J-M, Platteau J-P (1996) Halting and degradation of natural resources: is there a role for rural communities. Oxford, Clarendon Press
Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (2007) Water availability in the Namoi: a report to the Australian Government from the CSIRO Murray-Darling Basin Sustainable Yields Project, CSIRO, Canberra
Custodio E (2002) Aquifer overexploitation: what does it mean? Hydrogeol J 10(2):254–277. doi:10.1007/s10040-002-0188-6
De la Hera A (2003) Caracterización de los humedales de la cuenca alta del Guadiana. In: Coleto C, Martinez-Cortina L, Llamas R (eds) Conflictos entre el desarrollo de las aguas subterráneas y la conservación de los humedales. Fundación Marcelino Botín. Ediciones Mundiprensa, Madrid, pp 165–196
Embid Irujo A (2003) Water law in Spain after 1985. Water Int 28(3):290–294
Falkenmark M, Gottschalk L, Lundqvist J, Wouters P (2004) Towards integrated catchment management: increasing the dialog between scientists, policy-makers and stakeholders. Water Resour Dev 20:297–309. doi:10.1080/0790062042000248637
Fetter C (1994) Applied hydrogeology. New York, Prentice Hall
Fornes J, De La Hera A, Llamas R (2005) The silent revolution in groundwater intensive use and its influence in Spain. Water Policy 7:253–268
Garrido A, Martinez-Santos P, Llamas R (2006) Groundwater irrigation and its implications for water policy in semi-arid countries, the Spanish experience. Hydrogeol J 14:340–349. doi:10.1007/s10040-005-0006-z
Government NSW (2003) Key amendments to the water sharing plan for the upper and lower and Namoi groundwater sources 2003. Department of Natural Resources, Sydney
Government NSW (2004) Water sharing plan for the upper Namoi and lower Namoi regulated river water sources (as amended on 1 July 2004), Department of Infrastructure, Planning and Resources, Sydney
Guadiana Water Authority (2005) Plan Especial del Alto Guadiana: Borrador del Documento de Directrices. Madrid, Ministerio de Medio Ambiente
Guadiana Water Authority (2006) Borrador del Plan Especial del Alto Guadiana: Memoria Técnica. Estudio de Situación Actual
Guadiana Water Authority (2007) Plan Especial del Alto Guadiana: Versión Final. Memoria Técnica. Anexo IV, Alegaciones
Gunderson L, Holling C (2001) Panarcy: understanding transformations in human and natural systems. Washington DC, Island Press
Gunningham N, Sinclair D (2005) Policy instrument choice and diffuse source pollution. J Environ Law 17(1):51–81. doi:10.1093/envlaw/eqi003
Heinmiller T (2004) Partners and competitors: inter-governmental relations and the governance of transboundary common rules. PhD dissertation, Department of Political Science, McMaster University, Hamilton
Hernandez-Mora N (2002) Groundwater management in Spain: local institutions for collective management of common pool resources. An analysis of three cases from La Mancha. MSc Thesis, Gaylord Nelson Institute for Environmental Studies, University of Wisconsin-Madison
IGME (2004) Evolución piezométrica de la UH04.04 Mancha Occidental y del entorno del Parque Nacional de Las Tablas de Daimiel. Informe 4. Instituto Geológico y Minero de España, Ministerio de Educación y Ciencia
Kretsinger V, Narasimhan T (2006) California’s evolution toward integrated regional water management: a long-term view. Hydrogeol J 14(3):407–423. doi:10.1007/s10040-005-0005-0
Kuehne G, Bjornlund H (2006) Frustration, confusion and uncertainty—qualitative responses from Namoi valley irrigators. Water 33(3):78–82. J Aust Water Assoc
Letcher R, Jakeman A (2002) Experiences in an integrated assessment of water allocation issues in the Namoi river catchment, Australia. In: iEMSs 2002. The International Environmental Modelling and Software Society, Lugano, Switzerland, pp 85–90
Llamas R (1994) Four case histories of real or pretended conflicts between groundwater exploitation and wetlands conservation. Water Down Under 94, Institution of Civil Engineers of Australia, pp 493–497
Llamas R, Custodio E (eds) (2003) Intensive use of groundwater: challenges and opportunities. In: Proceedings of the workshop on intensively exploited aquifers, Lisse, Balkema Publishing Co., Madrid, 13–15 Dec 2001
Llamas R, Martínez-Santos P (2005) Intensive groundwater use: silent revolution and potential source of social conflict. Guest Editorial. J Water Resour Plan Manage 131(5):337–341. doi:10.1061/(ASCE)0733-9496(2005)131:5(337)
López-Gunn E (2003) The role of collective action in water governance: a comparative study of groundwater user associations in the La Mancha aquifers in Spain. Water Int 28(3):367–378
Lopez-Gunn E, Martinez-Cortina L (2006) Is self regulation a myth? case study on spanish groundwater user associations and the role of higher-level authorities. Hydrogeol J 14:361–379. doi:10.1007/s10040-005-0014-z
Marshall G (2008) Nesting, subsidiarity and community-based environmental governance beyond the local level. Int J Commons 2(1):75–97
Martinez-Cortina L (2003) Marco hidrológico de la cuenca alta del Guadiana. In: Coleto C, Martinez-Cortina L, Llamas R (eds) Conflictos Entre El Desarrollo de las Aguas Subterráneas y la Conservación de los Humedales. Fundación Marcelino Botín. Ediciones Mundiprensa. Madrid, 3-68
Martinez-Santos P, Varela-Ortega C, Hernandez-Mora N (2007) Making inroads towards adaptive water management through stakeholder involvement, the NeWater experience in the upper Guadiana Basin, Spain. International Conference of Adaptive and Integrated Water Management. Basel, Nov 12–15
MMA (1998) Libro Blanco del Agua en España. Documento de síntesis. Ministerio de Medio Ambiente, Madrid
MMA (2000) Libro Blanco del Agua en España. Ministerio de Medio Ambiente, Madrid
Moench M (2004) Groundwater: the challenge of monitoring and management. In: Gleick P (ed) The World’s water: the biennial report on freshwater resources 2004–2005. Washington, Island Press, pp 79–100
Moench M (2007) When the well runs dry but livelihood continues. In: Giordano M, Villholth K (eds) The agricultural groundwater revolution: opportunities and threats to development. Colombo, International Water Management Institute, pp 173–194
Murray Catchment Management Authority (2006a) Discussion paper: options for entitlement reduction. Licence Holder Meetings, 16- and 17 Feb 2006
Murray Catchment Management Authority (2006b) Implementation of the achieving sustainable groundwater entitlement program in the lower Murray. Report to the Groundwater Adjustment Advisory Council 19 May 2006
National Land and Water Resources Audit (2001) Australian water resources assessment 2000. Australian Government Publishing Service, Canberra
OECD (2004) Environmental performance reviews: Spain. OECD, Paris
OECD (2006) Water: the experience in OECD countries. OECD, Paris
Ostrom E (1990) Governing the commons: the evolution of institutions for collective action. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge
Ostrom E (2000) Reformulating the commons, Swiss Political. Sci Rev (Singap) 6(1):29–52
Ostrom E (2005) Understanding institutional diversity. Princeton University Press, Princeton
Pahl-Wostl C (2007) Requirements for adaptive water management. In: Pahl-Wostl C, Kabat P, Moltgen J (eds) Adaptive and integrated water management: coping with complexity and consistency. Berlin, Springer
Pigram J (2006). Australia’s water resources: from use to management, CSIRO, Collingwood VIC
Ragone S, De la Hera A, Hernandez-Mora N, Bergkamp G, McKay J (2007) The global importance of groundwater in the 21st century. National Groundwater Association Press, Westerville
Ross A (2008) Australia. In: Jordan A, Lenschow A (eds) Innovation in environmental policy: integrating the environment for sustainability. Edward Elgar, Cheltenham
Ross A, Dovers S (2008) Very hard yards: environmental policy integration in Australia. Aust J Public Adm 67(3):245–260. doi:10.1111/j.1467-8500.2008.00585.x
Schlager E (2007) Community management of groundwater. In: Giordano M, Villholth K (eds) The agricultural groundwater revolution: opportunities and threats to development. International Water Management Institute, Colombo, pp 131–152
Schlager E, Lopez-Gunn E (2006) Collective systems for water management; is the tragedy of the commons a Myth? In: Rogers P, Ramon-Llamas M, Martinez-Cortina L (eds) Water crisis: myth or reality, Marcelino Botin Water Forum 2004. Taylor & Francis, London
Shah T (2005) Groundwater and human development: challenges and opportunities in livelihoods and environment. Water Sci Technol 51(8):27–37
Smith DI (2001) Water in Australia. Oxford University Press, Melbourne
Sophocleous M (1997) Managing water resources systems: why “Safe Yield” is not sustainable. Ground Water 35(4):561. doi:10.1111/j.1745-6584.1997.tb00116.x
Sophocleous M (2000) From safe yield to sustainable development of water resources—The Kansas experience. J Hydrol 235(1–2):27–43
Turral H, Fullagar I (2007) Institutional directions in groundwater management in Australia. In: Giordano M, Villholth K (eds) The agricultural groundwater revolution: opportunities and threats to development. Wallingford, CABI Publishing
Villholth K, Giordano M (2007) Groundwater use in a global perspective—can it be managed? In: Giordano M, Villholth K (eds) The agricultural groundwater revolution: opportunities and threats to development. Colombo, International Water Management Institute, pp 393–402
Wang J, Huang J, Huang Q, Rozelle S (2006) Privatization of Tubewells in North China: determinants and impacts on irrigated area, productivity and the water table. Hydrogeol J 14(3):275–285. doi:10.1007/s10040-005-0482-1
Wolfenden J, Van Der Lee J (2002) Social and economic assessment of options/recommendations for the upper and lower Namoi groundwater sharing plan. University of New England, Armidale
Young O (2002) The institutional dimensions of environmental change: fit, interplay and scale. MIT press, Cambridge
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Ross, A., Martinez-Santos, P. The challenge of groundwater governance: case studies from Spain and Australia. Reg Environ Change 10, 299–310 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10113-009-0086-8
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10113-009-0086-8