Searching for consensus: A study of hydrosocial relations in the water management of river Eurajoki in southwestern Finland

Abstract: Water management tackles complexities within the interconnected social, political, economic and ecological systems across scales, while aiming to meet the needs of multiple stakeholders dependent on water. Many tensions and unsolved issues persist in water management regarding socio-political power structures, spatial scale, and relations between stakeholders who have different perceptions on problems and solutions in water management. This study explores the socio-political dimensions of water management and restoration efforts in the case study site of river Eurajoki in southwestern Finland through the lens of political ecology. A hydrosocial analysis is conducted focusing on stakeholder perceptions of water management to understand the current controversies and collaboration. For the purpose of this study, the online public debate regarding river Eurajoki was reviewed, and semi-structured interviews with different stakeholders around river Eurajoki were conducted. The findings indicate that the most contested problematic creating inter-stakeholder controversies concerns industrial and urban wastewater discharges into the river. The key water management conflicts arise from stakeholders’ competing perceptions and knowledges, divergent knowledge valuation in the water management, and uneven power relations in the spatial scale of upstream-downstream of the river. Moreover, scattered views of restoration efforts, distrust in other stakeholders’ integrity and polarised public debate hinder the process of active stakeholder participation and consensus decision-making. The study argues for comprehensive incorporation of situated knowledge in the decision-making over water management, inclusion of citizens in the planning processes of restoration efforts and acknowledgement of different definitions of what is considered “good” water quality, to improve the equity of and consensus-seeking over the water management and river restoration. Findings from this study contribute to the discussions of water-society interlinkages and are relevant in cases where water management is contested by many involved stakeholders, and where an increased understanding of the complex hydrosocial cycle can lead to more sustainable water management practices.