Critical review of the scope and limits of Integrated Water Resources Management (IWRM): the case of the Santa Eulalia sub-basin

Abstract

The Santa Eulalia Sub-basin is essential for Lima city. It provides water for its population, which is almost the third part of the national population. This article focus on the expectation and interests on water of the actors of the Sub-basin, as well as the ones beyond it, like Lima city. The new Water Law (2009) and the subsequent norms pretended to overtake the traditional approach to managing water as a resource to turn to an integrated management that, among other things, considers social, economic and environmental dimensions and apply a participative basin-based approach. Nonetheless, go from the promise to reality represents a big challenge. The first section of the article presents a general context of the Subbasin its actors and its relation to Lima city in the framework of relations between urban and rural areas. The second section explains the dynamics between the water users in the Sub-basin and Lima city, pointing out some of the conflicts for the resource and the alternatives being developed for water governance. In the third section, I present a critical review of IWRM, including critiques to development and peace studies. This leads to think that IWRM as is being implemented is insufficient ot inetgrating local needs and visions oant erw.