The "Concert'Eau" approach: an example of participatory management of agricultural practices and water quality

Abstract

How to achieve changes in agricultural practices to improve water quality in the catchment area of Gers, France? To answer this question, the project Concert'Eau was organized around two main ideas. First, instead of proposing modifications of agricultural practices to the stakeholders and asking them to choose among them, we asked to these stakeholders to propose themselves the practices. Secondly, we propose a scientific evaluation of these proposed practices. The evaluation was based on indicators chosen by the stakeholders to assess the consequences of these practices, for a shared diagnosis, for a less confrontational debate and the possibility of the emergence of policies for improvement. During the implementation of the project, it was possible to think about the nature of the participatory process of the construction of public policy and about its effectiveness. It appeared, despite the difficulties of their implementation, that these collaborative methods brought added value to these constructions. The project also showed that decision makers, including those of the public sector, were helpless in the face of the procedures that break with their traditional culture of the proposal of action and the policy decision. This article describes the development of this project.