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Recentralizing state power in decentralized small drinking water system governance in New Mexico, USA
Topics: Development
, Water Resources and Hydrology
, Cultural and Political Ecology
Keywords: Small drinking water systems, New Mexico USA, decentralization, water governance, political economy, accountability Session Type: Virtual Paper Abstract Day: Monday Session Start / End Time: 2/28/2022 03:40 PM (Eastern Time (US & Canada)) - 2/28/2022 05:00 PM (Eastern Time (US & Canada)) Room: Virtual 44
Authors:
Benjamin P. Warner, University of New Mexico
Ria Mukerji, University of New Mexico
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Abstract
We study the role of the state in small drinking water system governance in New Mexico, USA. Using interviews and demographic data, we develop a grounded theory of the political economy of public accountability in decentralized water governance. We find that the state decentralizes water governance by enforcing public accountability requirements in poor, non-white communities that do not meet its standards for drinking water provisioning. By doing so, it relieves itself of the burden of safe drinking water provisioning. We challenge the assumption that state authority is abated through decentralization and contribute to understandings of inequality in water governance.
Recentralizing state power in decentralized small drinking water system governance in New Mexico, USA
