Transboundary water governance work at the University of British Columbia
The Foundation recently approved support for the Program on Water Governance at University of British Columbia’s Institute of Resources, Environment and Sustainability (IRES). Over 2 years, the project will be focused primarily on two themes:
- Exploring the interaction of local water management strategies with higher level laws and policies, focused on groundwater protection, drinking water protection, land use decision-making, and in-stream flow protection; and
- Exploring collaborative approaches to transboundary water governance between Canada and the US at the local level (especially provincial and sub-provincial).
Last year, the Foundation supported the Program's research for a report on Drivers and barriers of cooperation in transboundary water governance: A case study of Western Canada and the United States.
Jurisdictional fragmentation and relatively decentralized political systems in Canada mean that most water management activities occur at a local scale, yet resolution mechanisms usually operate at the national level. The report illustrates that this 'scalar mismatch' is problematic as local and national mechanisms and actors are not always well linked. Recent trends in water governance may exacerbate the problem, which may in turn make cooperation on transboundary waters more difficult.
For this report, and more on Program Director Dr. Karen Bakker's work on water governance see: www.geog.ubc.ca/~bakker
Watch for Bakker's book "Eau Canada: The future of water governance in Canada" to be published this winter.