Expert assessment of the socio-ecological consequences of water management activities and riverbed processes (a case study of the Lena River within Yakutia)
V.P. BONDAREV1,2, A.S. ZAVADSKIY1, V.A. CHALENKO3,4
1Lomonosov Moscow State University, Moscow, Russia
2Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Moscow, Russia
3National Research University “Higher School of Economics”, Moscow, Russia
4Research Group “ZIRCON”, Moscow, Russia
Keywords: water resources management, qualitative sociological research methods, in-depth interview, expert knowledge, public opinion.
Abstract
The article provides a review of publications on the problems of water management activities and riverbed processes under dynamic natural and anthropogenic impacts. Various approaches in this field (ecosystem, basin, and integral ones) are characterized. It is shown that the need to analyze the socio-ecological consequences of water management activities and riverbed processes is currently increasing. Particular importance is given to sociological methods in studying the issues of managing these processes. To illustrate the effectiveness of these methods, the authors present the results of an expert interview and a supporting qualitative in-depth interview with the local population, using the central regions of the Sakha Republic (Yakutia) as an example. The analysis of expert knowledge and public opinion made it possible to identify the main risks and factors of anthropogenic impact on the Lena River, which are most often encountered by specialists and ordinary residents of the region. The main socio-ecological consequences of water management activities and riverbed processes are identified. The strengths and weaknesses of the methods of riverbed process management are formulated. Expert and public opinion on the problems of water management and planning on the Lena River is summarized. It was found that when assessing social consequences, their primary manifestations (human and economic losses) are usually indicated. More complex social processes are mentioned only by some experts and do not have a consistent reproduction of opinions. In general, experts point out that coordination of methods for managing risks caused by riverbed processes should be improved in order to harmonize the activities of various agencies facing relevant problems. It is concluded that, given the weak formalization of the considered ideas and the conflicting interests of various social groups, the use of methods for studying the expert opinions of managers with a supporting public opinion survey proves to be effective.
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