Servicios de Abastecimiento y Saneamiento - La Tribuna del Agua

SERVICIOS DE ABASTECIMIENTO Y SANEAMIENTO
THE PARTICIPATION OF CONSUMERS’
ASSOCIATIONS IN THE MANAGEMENT
OF URBAN WATER SERVICES
María Huelin Franquelo
ABSTRACT:
The conflictivity of a resource such as water –
together with the opacity of its management – requires
a profound change in design, planning and
management of its policies. It is essential for this
to have the participation of citizens in general and
of the Consumers’ Associations, in particular.
Our legislation has been pioneering in this area
and the now-repealed Water Law of 1985 already
foresaw the participation of society in its management
though this was basically limited to the exploiters
of the resource – irrigators, hydro-electric
and supply companies – while the organisations
in defence of the environment or the consumer
found great difficulty acceding to the management
of the urban supply system. This paper
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analyses the role of the Consumers’ Associations
in Urban Provision, the physical, social and regulatory
framework within which it performs in Spain –
making special reference to the local sphere. From
this point, the position of this group is detailed
in this structure – with its objectives, obstacles
and strengths. The conclusions of this document
endorse the fact that the only way to make the
management of urban provision of water to the
people transparent and accessible is by counting
on the Consumers’ Associations.
KEYWORDS:
Social participation, consumers’ associations,
shared decision-making, awareness, transparency.