The Aragon Water Commission: A Practical Experience

Abstract

The Aragon Water Commission consists of 65 members and 17 groups of stakeholders: social, economic, sectoral and local organizations, neighbourhood movements, experts in water policy, and the university, among others. Yet, despite its wide-ranging membership, it has registered achievements that would have been unthinkable only a few years ago. It has passed judgement on the Aragon Water Infrastructure Plan; drawn up, and approved the Principles of Water Policy on the basis of consensus; and reached agreements that have broken the logjam on such controversial projects as the expansion of the Yesa reservoir. These successes have generated a scenario without winners or losers in which it will be possible to meet the expected future demand for water, and use it rationally, while respecting environmental values and permitting new developments free of the uncertainty that conflicts generate.