The Achievement of a Decentralized Water Management Through Stakeholder Participation: An Example from the Drôme River Catchment Area in France (1981–2008)

International audienceDifferent water Acts (e.g., the European Water Framework Directive) and stakeholders involved in aquatic affairs have promoted integrated river basin management (IRBM) over recent decades. However, few studies have provided feedback on these policies. The aim of the current article is to fill this gap by exploring how local newspapers reflect the implementation of a broad public participation within a catchment of France known for its innovation with regard to this domain. The media coverage of a water management strategy in the Drôme watershed from 1981 to 2008 was investigated using a content analysis and a geographic information system (GIS). We sought to determine what public participation and decentralized decision-making can be in practice. The results showed that this policy was integrated because of its social perspective, the high number of involved stakeholders, the willingness to handle water issues, and the local scale suitable for participation. We emphasized the prominence of the watershed scale guaranteed by the local water authority. This area was also characterized by compromise, arrangements, and power dynamics on a fine scale. We examined the most politically engaged writings regarding water management, which topics each group emphasized, and how the groups agreed and disagreed on issues based on their values and context. The temporal pattern of participation implementation was progressive but worked by fits and starts

Fuel Saving in Coastal Areas: A Case Study of the Oslo Fjord

Fossil fuels such as marine diesel oil (MDO) account for a significant part of the shipping industry’s total operating costs and have a certain negative impact on the environment. Maritime transport emits around 1000 million tonnes of CO2 annually and is responsible for about 2.5% of global greenhouse gas emissions. To focus on fuel saving is therefore important for both economic and environmental reasons. It is indicative that ship owners are now using weather routeing to save fuel and reduce emissions, particularly on long passages. In coastal areas, navigation is limited by traffic rules. This study examines whether fuel consumption can be reduced with current routeing in confined coastal areas, in this case a relatively short voyage in the Oslo Fjord, Norway. An advanced bridge simulator is used, where different current fields from a high-resolution ocean model are implemented. The results reveal that if the voyage is conducted on a typical field with following currents, instead of a typical counter current field, the travel time will be reduced by 12% for a typical vessel with speed through water set to 16.7 knots. On following currents, the vessel speed can be reduced to 15.7 knots and the voyage is completed within the same time as if no currents are present. This implies approximately a 15% reduction in fuel consumption for the vessel tested. The results also reveal that fuel consumption can be reduced if the vessel is operated within most favourable or least unfavourable currents inside the main traffic lanes