Fragmented local governance and water resource management outcomes.
J Environ Manage
; 150: 378-386, 2015 Mar 01.
Article
in En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-25567736
ABSTRACT
Fragmented jurisdictions and decision making structures can result in destructive competition and/or a lack of systematic cooperation that can hamper effective resource management and environmental planning, although the value of local autonomy and stakeholder participations should not be underestimated. This study empirically examines if political fragmentation in local governance is a significant barrier to successful resource management. To test this hypothesis, the authors quantify the degree of political fragmentation at two different geographical scales - 1) site-level 12-digit watersheds and 2) regional metropolitan statistical areas or equivalent regions - and analyze how water resource management outcomes vary with the level of political fragmentation using nationwide land cover and stream gauge information in the U.S. Regression analysis shows water quality declines (or slower quality improvements), measured in terms of total suspended solids, are associated with both site-level and regional political fragmentation indicators, suggesting that political fragmentation can make resource management more challenging.
Key words
Full text:
1
Collection:
01-internacional
Database:
MEDLINE
Main subject:
Water Quality
/
Local Government
Type of study:
Diagnostic_studies
Country/Region as subject:
America do norte
Language:
En
Journal:
J Environ Manage
Year:
2015
Document type:
Article