The legacy of water crises:Learnings and challenges for water security in water governance of the Paraíba do Sul, Piracicaba Capivari and Jundiaí rivers basins
In the context of a climate emergency, territories are faced with the urgent need to increase their capacity to adapt to scenarios of more frequent and intense water crises. As the demand for knowledge about actions to improve water security in river basins in the face of climate change grows, this research aims to analyze water crisis events as experiences with the potential to generate learning and actions that favor water security but that, on the other hand, can also result in the transfer of vulnerability in water supply between basins, mainly in integrated supply systems. This study investigates water governance actions in response to water crises faced by the Paraíba do Sul (PS) and Piracicaba, Capivari and Jundiaí (PCJ) river basins, with the aim of evaluating how such measures impact increased security or water vulnerability in the basins. Furthermore, the research analyzes whether there were lessons learned and changes resulting from water crises and how these factors influence water security in basins at the local level. The text is composed of four sections: the first chapter presents the research foundations, methodological aspects, and its development trajectory; the second chapter addresses conceptual aspects of crises and water security in the face of climate change, presenting the context of the basins as well as the local water governance structure. The third chapter describes the water crises that affected the basins between 2000 and 2020, focusing on the drought that occurred between 2013 and 2015 and presenting an analysis of results and discussions about the main lessons learned and changes generated by the events. And, finally, the conclusion offers the main reflections of the research, addressing challenges for water security and issues that can be explored in future studies.