title: Integrated water resources management and water users' associations in the arid region of northwest China: a case study of farmers' perceptions.
abstract: Water scarcity is a critical policy issue in the arid regions of northwest China. The local government has widely adopted integrated water resources management (IWRM), but lacks support from farmers and farm communities. We undertook a case study in the Minqin oasis of northwest China to examine farmers' responses to IWRM and understand why farmer water users' associations (WUAs) are not functioning effectively at the community level. Results of quantitative and qualitative surveys of 392 farmers in 27 administrative villages showed that over 70% of farmers disapprove of the IWRM market-based reforms. In particular, the failure of farmer WUAs can be attributed to overlapping organizational structures between the WUAs and the villagers' committees; mismatches between the organizational scale of the WUAs and practical irrigation management by the farmers themselves; marginalization of rural women in water decision-making processes; and the inflexibility of IWRM implementation. An important policy implication from this study is that rebuilding farmer WUAs is key to overcoming the difficulties of IWRM. The current water governance structure, which is dominated by administrative systems, must be thoroughly reviewed to break the vicious cycle of tension and distrust between farmers and the government.
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory of Grassland Agroecosystems, Institute of Arid Agroecology, School of Life Sciences, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou 730000, PR China.
authors.forename: Xiao-Jun
authors.initials: XJ
authors.lastname: Hu
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory of Grassland Agroecosystems, Institute of Arid Agroecology, School of Life Sciences, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou 730000, PR China.
authors.forename: You-Cai
authors.initials: YC
authors.lastname: Xiong
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory of Grassland Agroecosystems, Institute of Arid Agroecology, School of Life Sciences, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou 730000, PR China; Department of Sociology, School of Philosophy and Sociology, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou 730000, PR China.
authors.forename: Yong-Jin
authors.initials: YJ
authors.lastname: Li
authors.affiliation: School of Computer Science and Technology, Hainan Normal University, Haikou 571158, PR China. Electronic address: 81665146@qq.com.
authors.forename: Jian-Xin
authors.initials: JX
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory of Grassland Agroecosystems, Institute of Arid Agroecology, School of Life Sciences, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou 730000, PR China. Electronic address: fmli@lzu.edu.cn.
authors.forename: Feng-Min
authors.initials: FM
authors.lastname: Li
authors.affiliation: Department of Sociology, School of Philosophy and Sociology, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou 730000, PR China.
authors.forename: Hai-Yang
authors.initials: HY
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.affiliation: School of Economics, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou 730000, PR China.
authors.forename: Lan-Lan
authors.initials: LL
authors.lastname: Li
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000383:Agriculture; D001290:Attitude; D002681:China; D003256:Community Participation; D003247:Conservation of Natural Resources; D003889:Desert Climate; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010465:Perception; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D062066:Water Resources / Q000032:analysis*; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: Arid region of northwest China; Farmer water users' associations; Integrated water resources management; Perception