Environmental Water Organizations and Institutional Settings

Environmental water organizations (EWOs) are identifiable organizations that can be held accountable for specific tasks in implementing environmental water policies. This chapter is designed to operate as a guide to support the creation and operation of EWOs. Case studies have been selected to show the diversity of EWOs operating around the world, with an emphasis on linking their functionality to the activities they undertake and the environmental water allocation mechanism used. EWOs operate in a nested governance arrangement, building partnerships across spatial scales, policy areas, and between the public and private sectors. This chapter introduces the key concept of active environmental water management, which is needed when environmental water allocation mechanisms and policy settings require ongoing active decision making by an EWO to achieve the maximum environmental benefits.