A Paradigm Shift in Water Quality Governance in a Transitional Context: A Critical Study about the Empowerment of Local Governance in Georgia
Abstract
:1. Introduction
2. Theoretical Framework
2.1. Governance Systems in Natural Resource Management
2.2. Notion of the “Local” in Water Quality Governance (WQG)
2.3. Water Quality Governance (WQG) Elements
3. Research Methods
4. Results
4.1. Current Status of Water Usage and Water Pollution in Georgia
4.2. Implementation of Water Quality Governance (WQG) in the Contemporary System
4.3. Role of Local Authorities in Water Quality Governance (WQG)
4.4. Drafted Water Law—Integration and River Basin Management
4.4.1. Governance and Institutional Changes
4.4.2. Spatial Reconfiguration
4.4.3. Regulation Changes
5. Discussion
5.1. Shifting Passive Members to Active Members: Enhancement of Local Governance Entities in WQG
5.2. Oscillation or Harmonization: Water Quality Governance (WQG) between Political-Jurisdictional Space Governance and Ecosystem-Based Governance
5.3. Obstacles and Chances for Efficient Water Quality Management
6. Conclusions
Acknowledgments
Author Contributions
Conflicts of Interest
References
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Governance Systems | Approaches | Characteristics | Nature of Governance |
---|---|---|---|
political-jurisdictional space governance approaches | “top-down” governance approach | Oriented to a constant hierarchical procedure; the decisions from higher levels of government direct the collaborative actions [45,46,47] | Centralized System |
Multilevel governance approach | Based on the capabilities of local, national, and regional governance institutes and public-private partnership entities [48,49] | Decentralized System; Down-scaling or up-scaling the governance [50]; Shared responsibility for management of natural resources [51,52] | |
Stakeholders’ approaches | Community-based management | Local community and their active self-engagement as the center of the local natural resources management [53,54,55] | Participation; Principle of Subsidiarity [54]; Local knowledge [56] |
Ecosystem-based approaches | Water-basin management | Ecosystem boundaries determine the spatial boundaries of governance [57] | Water-basin council as the governance and management body; multiple stakeholders in decision-making process [30,33,36] |
Ecoregional management | Eco-centric perspective to manage specific geographical ecosystems that can be defined at any scale based on the utilized eco-parameters; human activity is a part of nature [11,58] | Collaborative decision-making, decentralized to the ecoregional level [58] | |
Landscape scale management/Landscape governance | Landscape management considers biological and geophysical elements as well as people, land use, infrastructure, social organizations, institutional arrangements, and cultural, spiritual, and utility values [59] | Aims to harmonize socially-constructed spaces and “natural” conditions of places; it is a process of political shaping and dealing with complex and locally-oriented problems [60] |
Category | Name of Institutions/Agency |
---|---|
National Government | Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources Protection of Georgia |
| |
| |
| |
National Environmental Agency | |
| |
| |
| |
Ministry of Agriculture | |
Marneuli Extension Service, representing the Ministry of Agriculture | |
National Head Office of Georgian Amelioration | |
Bolnisi Regional Office of Amelioration, Upper Kvemo Kartli Regional Office | |
Regional Office of Amelioration in Marneuli | |
Local Government | Governors (Gamgebeli) from Bolnisi, Dmanisi and Marneuli municipalities |
Deputy governors, members of the council of representatives (Sakrebulo), local government staff officers in Bolnisi, Dmanisi, and Marneuli | |
IGO, NGO and Local People | International Initiative on Water Quality (IIWQ) Program, UNESCO |
National Association of Local Authorities of Georgia (NALAG) | |
CENN—Caucasus Environmental NGO Network | |
ELKANA—Biological Farming Association | |
Caucasus Institute for Peace, Democracy and Development | |
UNDP/GEF Kura Aras Project | |
Georgian Young Lawyers’ Association (GYLA) | |
Georgian Ecological Agricultural Association (SEMA) | |
EaP GREEN Activities in Georgia | |
University/Research Institute | Agricultural University of Georgia |
Tbilisi State University | |
Justus Liebig University Giessen, Germany |
Law | Legal Emphasis | Groups of WQG Governance Elements | Spatiality and Authority Level |
---|---|---|---|
Constitution of Georgia |
| Mitigation and Protection; Standardization | National level |
The Law of Georgia on Water 1997, with Amendments (1999–2014) |
| Standardization | National level |
| Mitigation and Protection | ||
| Standardization | ||
The Law of Georgia on Environmental Protection 1996 |
| Standardization | National level definition and local level implementation by central government agencies |
| |||
The Law of Georgia on Public Health (2007) |
| Mitigation and Protection | National level |
| Standardization | National level | |
| Standardization | National level | |
| Mitigation and Protection | Water basin level | |
| (Not an official function) | ||
Law of Georgia on Environmental Impact Permit 2007 |
| Enforcement | Sectoral level |
Law of Georgia on Local Self-Government Code 2014 |
| Mitigation and Protection; Enforcement | Local level |
| Mitigation and Protection; & Enforcement | ||
Law of Georgia on the Maritime Space |
| Enforcement | National level with specific spatial location |
| |||
Ordinance of Government of Georgia in technical nomenclature for potable water (2014) |
| Standardization | Local level |
Order 279/N of 16 August 2001 by the Georgian Minister of Labor, Healthcare and Social Protection |
| Standardization | National-level determination and local-level implementation by central government agencies |
| Standardization | ||
Codex for Environmental Protection Assessment (Since 1 January 2018 update) |
| Enforcement | National level |
WQG Elements | Institutions Involved | Nature of Power Distribution |
---|---|---|
Mitigation and Protection | ||
Maintaining water quality standards | Ministerial level | Centralized |
Protecting water sources | Ministerial level; limited responsibilities given to local authorities | Centralized |
Mitigating short- and long-term water pollution causation | Ministerial level | Centralized |
Enforcement | ||
Implementing enforce directives | Ministerial level; limited power given to local authorities | Centralized |
Issuing licenses and permits | Ministerial level | Centralized |
Recommendations in the environmental assessment | Ministerial level | Centralized |
Standardization | ||
Setting water quality standards | Ministerial level | Centralized |
Monitoring water quality (sampling and analysis) | Ministerial level and regional offices | Centralized |
Reporting and assessing the quality status | Ministerial level | Centralized |
Year | Technical Staff | Amount of Finance (Euro) * | Main Duty Oriented |
---|---|---|---|
2014 | 348 | 2.480.450 | Integrated Environment Control |
2015 | 434 | 3.794.212 | Integrated Environment Control |
2016 | 434 | 3.594.533 | Integrated Environment Control |
2017 | 391 | 2.919.614 | Integrated Environment Control |
2018 | 391 | 3.086.816 | Integrated Environment Control |
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Withanachchi, S.S.; Ghambashidze, G.; Kunchulia, I.; Urushadze, T.; Ploeger, A. A Paradigm Shift in Water Quality Governance in a Transitional Context: A Critical Study about the Empowerment of Local Governance in Georgia. Water 2018, 10, 98. https://doi.org/10.3390/w10020098
Withanachchi SS, Ghambashidze G, Kunchulia I, Urushadze T, Ploeger A. A Paradigm Shift in Water Quality Governance in a Transitional Context: A Critical Study about the Empowerment of Local Governance in Georgia. Water. 2018; 10(2):98. https://doi.org/10.3390/w10020098
Chicago/Turabian StyleWithanachchi, Sisira S., Giorgi Ghambashidze, Ilia Kunchulia, Teo Urushadze, and Angelika Ploeger. 2018. "A Paradigm Shift in Water Quality Governance in a Transitional Context: A Critical Study about the Empowerment of Local Governance in Georgia" Water 10, no. 2: 98. https://doi.org/10.3390/w10020098
APA StyleWithanachchi, S. S., Ghambashidze, G., Kunchulia, I., Urushadze, T., & Ploeger, A. (2018). A Paradigm Shift in Water Quality Governance in a Transitional Context: A Critical Study about the Empowerment of Local Governance in Georgia. Water, 10(2), 98. https://doi.org/10.3390/w10020098