Assessing Adaptive Capacity - Climate Change and Water Governance: Adaptive Capacity in Chile and Switzerland - page 266

Table 13.1 (continue d)

Case area
Chile

Regime indicators Operationalisation Switzerland

Flexibility : Proportional
reduction or prioritisation of
water rights/uses.

No prioritisation of uses in 'normal' periods;
Tourno allows for proportional reduction of
water rights within the separate sections of
the basin; DGA prioritises domestic water,
then irrigation during decreed drought
periods; flexible reduction in rights distribu-
tion according to % of flow.

Priorities for set periods in canton legal frame-
work; domestic water is prioritised during
scarcity situations.

Integration Environmental Protection :

Provisions for the protection
of aquatic ecosystems.

Water code differentiates between surface and
ground waters; drought declarations allow
provisional rights for surface- and groundwa-
ter and remove limits of ecological flows.

WPA provides for quality and quantity protection
of waterways and aquatic ecosystems;
environmental protection responsibility of
Canton.

Systemic Integration :
Sustainability of the SES is
taken as a goal not just
tacked on.

Environmental protection framework is weak,
with little monitoring and enforcement and
weak EIA process; environmental flows
unaccounted for in existing rights, only new
rights; DGA's (responsible for surface and
groundwater sustainability) technical criteria
of sustainability have no legal basis, but are
internal guidelines. MMA separately sets and
monitors water quality ( Norma secondarias
de cualidad de agua ).

Environmental flows to be accounted for in new
hydropower concession period (but challenges
in enforcement); social and ecological
sustainability, and 'room for waterways'
integrated into Cantonal Water Law (2008).

Accountability Neutrality : Appropriate checks

and balances; fairness across
economically diverse actors.

Economic priority across ministries gear water
management for exploitation; register of
trades and rights happens with the
Conservador , which is private but they have a
monopoly for each region, and is under the
control of the judiciary (with accusations of
nepotism).

Provisions concerning project and planning
proposals and EIA provide for multi-stake-
holder input (VBR); environmental depart-
ment responsible for evaluating EIAs from
energy and other departments..