property institutions and water resources : David Sauri

contents | property institutions | water institutions: historical trajectories | efficiency and equity principles | ideological justifications of property | property institutions and eu water policy |

property institutions

• Labour theory of property: "People are entitled to whatever they produce under their own initiative and effort".
• Liberty theory of property: "Property is a political and moral right that becomes and end in itself and should be protected from interference by others (especially by the state)".
• Utilitarian theory of property: "Property that maximizes economic welfare should be given maximum social priority".
• Moral/Ethical theories of property: "Property must respect community values, and the values of the non-human word" ("good stewardship" concept).

outline

1. Property institutions
2. Property rights in water: two historical trajectories
3. Efficiency and equity principles
4. Ideological justifications of property
5. Property institutions and EU water policy

property institutions

• Institutions can be characterised as regularised patterns of social behaviour, which are socially constructed, both formal and informal, and relatively stable (SIRCH Project).
• Property rights represent a fundamental element in the regulation of individual and collective behaviour, may be recognized by law or custom, and may prove difficult to change.

water institutions: two historical trajectories

• Starting point: The different nature of hydrologically-related uncertainty, especially with respect to water availability for food production.
• First model: collective property systems (semi-arid and arid environments).
• Second model: individual property systems (humid environments).
• Converging model: property of water held by the state but water rights (i.e. concessions or permits) held by individuals under certain conditions (i.e. to avoid externalities of common pool resources)

efficiency and equity principles

• Efficiency and equity are basic normative concepts of water resources policy.
• Efficiency increasingly reduced to economic efficiency (i.e. water should be put to the most productive use available).
• Equity increasingly enhanced to include future generations and the non-human world.
• In the water policy of some countries (i.e. Spain, the western USA), conventional equity principles have dominated over economic efficiency ones but this is rapidly changing. Abrupt transitions may create important social conflict.

ideological justifications of property

Contrast efficiency and equity with the different justifications of property rights.

Property rights can be justified according to a number of legitimate values:

• Labour theory of property: "People are entitled to whatever they produce under their own initiative and effort".
• Liberty theory of property: "Property is a political and moral right that becomes and end in itself and should be protected from interference by others (especially by the state)".
• Utilitarian theory of property: "Property that maximizes economic welfare should be given maximum social priority".
• Moral/Ethical theories of property: "Property must respect community values, and the values of the non-human word" ("good stewardship" concept).

property institutions and eu water policy

• European water legislation may imply important redefinitions of water property rights in the future.
• Redefinitions of rights may respond to one or more of the ideological justifications outlined above and can be fought also with these ideological justifications (i.e. impacts of farmers having to pay the whole cost of water on farming communities, landscape, cultural heritage, etc.).
• It is important to incorporate social institutions such as property in agents' behaviour and understand that this behaviour may have a solid social logic behind.