Power and Science in Participatory Watershed Planning: A Case Study From Rural Mexico

Abstract

This case study characterizes citizen participation in watershed management and examines the validity of explicit and implicit assumptions that participatory watershed planning models are based upon. Contrary to the claims of participatory watershed planning, consensus-based decision-making did not result in meaningful participation, inclusion of all legitimate "stakeholders", or improvements in river management. Rather, meaningful citizen participation was due to the creation of alliances between conservation institutions and communities affected by pollution, and citizen initiatives that occurred outside of formal planning processes. Improvements in water quality were due to the strategic use of science and citizen activism to gain power over environmental enforcement agencies. These results present a powerful counter-narrative to the prevailing beliefs about how to promote democratic and ecologically sound watershed planning.