Governance and policy

Why?

New policy directives require greater stakeholder input and participation. In turn, this requires new forms of governance and institutions to manage water resources. Voluntary action is expected to complement regulation and market incentives but in some cases, it may in fact be inhibited by the interactions of regulation and the market. These processes need appraising to maximise their effectiveness and longevity.

Link to related project page on governance.

We will:

• Characterise and assess who participates in planning and implementation of catchment & river basin planning; and if representation matter
• Develop context dependent criteria to evaluate and understand collaborative governance structures and processes
• Design and evaluate stakeholder mediated modelling approaches to tackle water quality issues
• Explore how public views on governance structures inform public preferences for policy options

Outcomes

• Between a rock and a hard place: incompatible objectives at the heart of river basin planning?, Blackstock, K.L., (2009) Water Science and Technology, 59, 425-431.
• Climate proofing Scottish River Basin Planning: A future challenge., Blackstock, K.L.; Dunglinson, J.; Matthews, K.B.; Dilley, R.; Futter, M., (2009) Environmental Policy and Governance, 19, 374-387.
• Developing good practice in the use of models and other scientific data with stakeholders (372KB pdf)
• Evaluation of good practice based on UK catchment management initiatives
• Policy guidance on the development and implementation of River Basin Management Plans in Scotland
  • River Basin Management Planning – Summary of Findings
  • All groups - update 2009 (103KB pdf)
  • Argyll feedback (67KB pdf)
  • Clyde feedback (62KB pdf)
  • National feedback ( 72KB pdf)
  • North-East feedback (70KB pdf)
  • Tweed feedback (172KB pdf)
• Policy guidance and review of how to combine strategic and community based planning and management approaches to engagement

Contact

Dr. Kirsty Blackstock