Case Study: The Midour Regional Water Management Project

Abstract

Launched in 2016, the Midour watershed management project (PTGE) seeks to promote collective and sustainable water management across a watershed covering 81 municipalities in the Gers and Landes departments. While the action plan includes 30 measures dedicated to agriculture, their implementation has been hampered by a lack of commitment from agricultural organizations, a situation worsened by the Covid-19 pandemic. Major challenges include the complexity of coordinating among specialized stakeholders, fragmented funding, and the lack of agricultural cooperatives, despite their key economic role. Locally, the precarious situation of farmers (many of whom earn less than the minimum wage) and legal uncertainties, such as irrigation disputes, hinder the agroecological transition. At the national level, conflicting policies (simultaneously supporting ecological transition and increased productivity) create tensions, while volatile international markets add further pressure. To move forward, the paper proposes strengthening coordination, securing funding, clarifying regulatory frameworks, and mobilizing cooperatives by aligning actions with their strategies. Finally, it emphasizes the need to make the PTGE more operational and to structure actions on a supra-territorial scale to pool efforts.