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From State to user-based water allocations: An empirical analysis of institutions developed by agricultural user associations in France

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  • Rouillard, Josselin
  • Rinaudo, Jean-Daniel

Abstract

Regulating water use in agriculture in water stressed basins is a challenging task. Recent scholarship emphasises the need to combine strong State oversight for achieving the collective extraction caps with considerable leeway to users to allocate water according to local priorities. This form of “co-management” between the State and users aims to improve the implementation of sustainable extraction limits. This model was adopted in France where agricultural user groups share water resources within a capped allocation pool enforced by the State. This paper evaluates whether the allocation rules developed by user groups improve environmental, economic and social performance. A detailed survey was carried out amongst the 54 agricultural user groups created across France. Results suggest that the reform has led to greater awareness amongst irrigators of their water resources and the slow emergence of collective action. Allocation rules have been developed, reflecting local economic and social priorities, as well as the temporal and spatial dynamics of local surface and groundwater resources. Although challenges remain, the research presented in this paper supports co-management to manage agricultural water extraction, and discusses institutional design features that can facilitate its implementation.

Suggested Citation

  • Rouillard, Josselin & Rinaudo, Jean-Daniel, 2020. "From State to user-based water allocations: An empirical analysis of institutions developed by agricultural user associations in France," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 239(C).
  • Handle: RePEc:eee:agiwat:v:239:y:2020:i:c:s0378377420308234
    DOI: 10.1016/j.agwat.2020.106269
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Cited by:

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    2. Vafaei, Elahe & Shahabi Ahangarkolaee, Saeed & Lucas-Borja, Manuel Esteban & Shabanali Fami, Hossein & Zema, Demetrio Antonio, 2021. "A framework to evaluate the factors influencing groundwater management in Water User Associations: The case study of Tafresh County (Iran)," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 255(C).
    3. Ahmad Radmehr & Omid Bozorg-Haddad & Hugo A. Loáiciga, 2022. "Developing Strategies for Agricultural Water Management of Large Irrigation and Drainage Networks with Fuzzy MCDM," Water Resources Management: An International Journal, Published for the European Water Resources Association (EWRA), Springer;European Water Resources Association (EWRA), vol. 36(13), pages 4885-4912, October.
    4. Zhang, Cheng-Yao & Oki, Taikan, 2023. "Water pricing reform for sustainable water resources management in China’s agricultural sector," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 275(C).

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