IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/spr/endesu/v22y2020i8d10.1007_s10668-019-00488-0.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Groundwater governance and implementing the conservation policy: the case study of Rafsanjan Plain in Iran

Author

Listed:
  • S. Jalal Mirnezami

    (Tarbiat Modares University
    Sharif University of Technology)

  • Cheryl de Boer

    (University of Twente)

  • Ali Bagheri

    (Tarbiat Modares University)

Abstract

The groundwater system in the Rafsanjan aquifer perpetuated sustainably for decades before 1950s; however, its groundwater resources have been overexploited in the recent decades. In this paper, we aim to investigate the water governance system to understand the reasons behind the ongoing overexploitation. Sustainability processes are considered a policy implementation problematic. As such, we employ the contextual interaction theory as a policy implementation framework to assess the groundwater governance as part of the context for the conservation policy. Data for this qualitative research were gathered from legal texts, articles, technical reports, and multiple interviews with authorities and groundwater users. The assessment results revealed that the poor quality of the governance system is central to the ineffectiveness of the conservation policies. Findings of this paper can be relied on to devise tools to underpin an appropriate context to sustain groundwater resources.

Suggested Citation

  • S. Jalal Mirnezami & Cheryl de Boer & Ali Bagheri, 2020. "Groundwater governance and implementing the conservation policy: the case study of Rafsanjan Plain in Iran," Environment, Development and Sustainability: A Multidisciplinary Approach to the Theory and Practice of Sustainable Development, Springer, vol. 22(8), pages 8183-8210, December.
  • Handle: RePEc:spr:endesu:v:22:y:2020:i:8:d:10.1007_s10668-019-00488-0
    DOI: 10.1007/s10668-019-00488-0
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://link.springer.com/10.1007/s10668-019-00488-0
    File Function: Abstract
    Download Restriction: Access to the full text of the articles in this series is restricted.

    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1007/s10668-019-00488-0?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Anthony Downs, 1957. "An Economic Theory of Political Action in a Democracy," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 65(2), pages 135-135.
    2. Kaveh Madani, 2014. "Water management in Iran: what is causing the looming crisis?," Journal of Environmental Studies and Sciences, Springer;Association of Environmental Studies and Sciences, vol. 4(4), pages 315-328, December.
    3. Allan, J. A. T., 2007. "Rural economic transitions: groundwater use in the Middle East and its environmental consequences," IWMI Books, Reports H040042, International Water Management Institute.
    4. J. S. Famiglietti, 2014. "The global groundwater crisis," Nature Climate Change, Nature, vol. 4(11), pages 945-948, November.
    5. Casiano Flores, Cesar & Özerol, Gül & Bressers, Hans, 2017. "“Governance restricts”: A contextual assessment of the wastewater treatment policy in the Guadalupe River Basin, Mexico," Utilities Policy, Elsevier, vol. 47(C), pages 29-40.
    6. Giordano, Mark & Villholth, Karen, 2007. "The agricultural groundwater revolution: opportunities and threats to development," IWMI Books, Reports H040039, International Water Management Institute.
    7. Marcus Wijnen & Benedicte Augeard & Bradley Hiller & Christopher Ward & Patrick Huntjens, 2012. "Managing the Invisible : Understanding and Improving Groundwater Governance," World Bank Publications - Reports 17228, The World Bank Group.
    8. Giordano, Mark & Villholth, Karen, 2007. "The agricultural groundwater revolution: setting the stage," IWMI Books, Reports H040040, International Water Management Institute.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Kaveh Madani, 2021. "Have International Sanctions Impacted Iran’s Environment?," World, MDPI, vol. 2(2), pages 1-22, April.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Buchholz, Matthias & Musshoff, Oliver, 2014. "The role of weather derivatives and portfolio effects in agricultural water management," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 146(C), pages 34-44.
    2. Elena Lopez‐Gunn & Manuel Ramón Llamas, 2008. "Re‐thinking water scarcity: Can science and technology solve the global water crisis?," Natural Resources Forum, Blackwell Publishing, vol. 32(3), pages 228-238, August.
    3. Villholth, Karen, 2015. "Groundwater for food production and livelihoods - the nexus with climate change and transboundary water management," Book Chapters,, International Water Management Institute.
    4. Wegmann, Johannes & Mußhoff, Oliver, 2019. "Groundwater management institutions in the face of rapid urbanization – Results of a framed field experiment in Bengaluru, India," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 166(C), pages 1-1.
    5. Hamamouche, Meriem Farah & Kuper, Marcel & Amichi, Hichem & Lejars, Caroline & Ghodbani, Tarik, 2018. "New reading of Saharan agricultural transformation: Continuities of ancient oases and their extensions (Algeria)," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 107(C), pages 210-223.
    6. Buchholz, Matthias & Holst, Gesa & Musshoff, Oliver, 2015. "Water and irrigation policy impact assessment using business simulation games: evidence from northern Germany," Department of Agricultural and Rural Development (DARE) Discussion Papers 260781, Georg-August-Universitaet Goettingen, Department of Agricultural Economics and Rural Development (DARE).
    7. Molle, Francois & Closas, Alvar, 2017. "Groundwater governance: a synthesis. [Project report of the Groundwater Governance in the Arab World - Taking Stock and Addressing the Challenges]," IWMI Reports 273351, International Water Management Institute.
    8. Ali Akhavan & Paulo Gonçalves, 2021. "Managing the trade‐off between groundwater resources and large‐scale agriculture: the case of pistachio production in Iran," System Dynamics Review, System Dynamics Society, vol. 37(2-3), pages 155-196, April.
    9. Adrian Werner & Qi Zhang & Lijuan Xue & Brian Smerdon & Xianghu Li & Xinjun Zhu & Lei Yu & Ling Li, 2013. "An Initial Inventory and Indexation of Groundwater Mega-Depletion Cases," Water Resources Management: An International Journal, Published for the European Water Resources Association (EWRA), Springer;European Water Resources Association (EWRA), vol. 27(2), pages 507-533, January.
    10. Cobbing, Jude & Hiller, Bradley, 2019. "Waking a sleeping giant: Realizing the potential of groundwater in Sub-Saharan Africa," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 122(C), pages 597-613.
    11. Ram Fishman & Upmanu Lall & Vijay Modi & Nikunj Parekh, 2016. "Can Electricity Pricing Save India’s Groundwater? Field Evidence from a Novel Policy Mechanism in Gujarat," Journal of the Association of Environmental and Resource Economists, University of Chicago Press, vol. 3(4), pages 819-855.
    12. Delgado-Serrano, María Mar & Borrego-Marin, María Mar, 2020. "Drivers of innovation in groundwater governance. The links between the social and the ecological systems," Land Use Policy, Elsevier, vol. 91(C).
    13. Christophe Crombez, 2004. "Introduction," Journal of Theoretical Politics, , vol. 16(3), pages 227-231, July.
    14. Persson, Torsten & Tabellini, Guido, 2002. "Political economics and public finance," Handbook of Public Economics, in: A. J. Auerbach & M. Feldstein (ed.), Handbook of Public Economics, edition 1, volume 3, chapter 24, pages 1549-1659, Elsevier.
    15. Kaivan Munshi & Mark Rosenzweig, 2008. "The Efficacy of Parochial Politics: Caste, Commitment, and Competence in Indian Local Governments," NBER Working Papers 14335, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    16. GhassemiSahebi, Fakhroddin & Mohammadrezapour, Omolbani & Delbari, Masoomeh & KhasheiSiuki, Abbas & Ritzema, Henk & Cherati, Ali, 2020. "Effect of utilization of treated wastewater and seawater with Clinoptilolite-Zeolite on yield and yield components of sorghum," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 234(C).
    17. Burkhard Schipper & Hee Yeul Woo, 2012. "Political Awareness and Microtargeting of Voters in Electoral Competition," Working Papers 124, University of California, Davis, Department of Economics.
    18. Marco Faravelli & Randall Walsh, 2011. "Smooth Politicians And Paternalistic Voters: A Theory Of Large Elections," Levine's Working Paper Archive 786969000000000250, David K. Levine.
    19. Hank C. Jenkins-Smith & Neil J. Mitchell & Kerry G. Herron, 2004. "Foreign and Domestic Policy Belief Structures in the U.S. and British Publics," Journal of Conflict Resolution, Peace Science Society (International), vol. 48(3), pages 287-309, June.
    20. Eric Kaufmann & Henry Patterson, 2006. "Intra‐Party Support for the Good Friday Agreement in the Ulster Unionist Party," Political Studies, Political Studies Association, vol. 54(3), pages 509-532, October.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:spr:endesu:v:22:y:2020:i:8:d:10.1007_s10668-019-00488-0. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Sonal Shukla or Springer Nature Abstracting and Indexing (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.springer.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.