Political ecology and water infrastructures in rural territories. Contributions from the Chaco region (Salta) and the Central Plateau (Chubut), Argentina = Ecología política e infraestructuras hídricas en territorios rurales. Aportes desde la Región del Chaco (Salta) y la Meseta Central (Chubut), Argentina
This article dives into the way in which productive and territorial transformations have created or increased inequalities in access to drinking water and sanitation in two rural and periurban areas across Argentina: the Chaco region, in the province of Salta in the north of the country, and the cen...
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| Format: | info:ar-repo/semantics/artículo |
| Language: | Inglés |
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Taylor & Francis
2025
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| Online Access: | http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12123/23327 https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/08263663.2024.2444234 https://doi.org/10.1080/08263663.2024.2444234 |
| _version_ | 1855038734556200960 |
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| author | Schmidt, Mariana Tobías, Melina Ayelen Ejarque, Mercedes |
| author_browse | Ejarque, Mercedes Schmidt, Mariana Tobías, Melina Ayelen |
| author_facet | Schmidt, Mariana Tobías, Melina Ayelen Ejarque, Mercedes |
| author_sort | Schmidt, Mariana |
| collection | INTA Digital |
| description | This article dives into the way in which productive and territorial transformations have created or increased inequalities in access to drinking water and sanitation in two rural and periurban areas across Argentina: the Chaco region, in the province of Salta in the north of the country, and the central plateau of the province of Chubut, in Patagonia. The approach combines tools from political ecology, critical social geography and recent literature on water infrastructures. In these territories, water supply services are not provided or solely governed by the formal system but, rather, by an heterogeneous set of stakeholders, rules and arrangements that operate on the side, in the form of long-standing practices rooted in the territory. Thus, addressing infrastructures makes it possible to analyze water inequalities, including issues related to quality, maintenance and the involvement of the target population in infrastructure design. We have developed a qualitative methodological approach focused on the analysis of interviews from different stakeholders in each region and cartographic, documentary, legislative, statistical and newspaper sources. The study shows that water infrastructures produce and reproduce historical inequalities that are social, economic and environmental, so when there are production transformations in the territories, conflicts over its forms of appropriation and distribution reemerge. Besides, access to safe water requires not just “technical” improvements but also a social and political acknowledgment by citizens and constant efforts and investments in order to work. |
| format | info:ar-repo/semantics/artículo |
| id | INTA23327 |
| institution | Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA -Argentina) |
| language | Inglés |
| publishDate | 2025 |
| publishDateRange | 2025 |
| publishDateSort | 2025 |
| publisher | Taylor & Francis |
| publisherStr | Taylor & Francis |
| record_format | dspace |
| spelling | INTA233272025-08-06T11:45:32Z Political ecology and water infrastructures in rural territories. Contributions from the Chaco region (Salta) and the Central Plateau (Chubut), Argentina = Ecología política e infraestructuras hídricas en territorios rurales. Aportes desde la Región del Chaco (Salta) y la Meseta Central (Chubut), Argentina Schmidt, Mariana Tobías, Melina Ayelen Ejarque, Mercedes Political Ecology Infrastructure Ecología Política Infraestructura Salta Chubut Water Infraestructure Social Inequalities Rural Conflicts Territorial Transformations Rural Modernization Infraestructura Hídrica Desigualdades Sociales Conflictos Rurales Transformaciones Territoriales Modernización Rural This article dives into the way in which productive and territorial transformations have created or increased inequalities in access to drinking water and sanitation in two rural and periurban areas across Argentina: the Chaco region, in the province of Salta in the north of the country, and the central plateau of the province of Chubut, in Patagonia. The approach combines tools from political ecology, critical social geography and recent literature on water infrastructures. In these territories, water supply services are not provided or solely governed by the formal system but, rather, by an heterogeneous set of stakeholders, rules and arrangements that operate on the side, in the form of long-standing practices rooted in the territory. Thus, addressing infrastructures makes it possible to analyze water inequalities, including issues related to quality, maintenance and the involvement of the target population in infrastructure design. We have developed a qualitative methodological approach focused on the analysis of interviews from different stakeholders in each region and cartographic, documentary, legislative, statistical and newspaper sources. The study shows that water infrastructures produce and reproduce historical inequalities that are social, economic and environmental, so when there are production transformations in the territories, conflicts over its forms of appropriation and distribution reemerge. Besides, access to safe water requires not just “technical” improvements but also a social and political acknowledgment by citizens and constant efforts and investments in order to work. Este artículo aborda el modo en que las transformaciones productivas y territoriales han creado o incrementado las desigualdades en el acceso al agua potable y al saneamiento en dos áreas rurales y periurbanas de Argentina: la región del Chaco, en la provincia de Salta en el norte del país, y la meseta central de la provincia de Chubut, en la Patagonia. El enfoque combina herramientas de la ecología política, la geografía social crítica y la literatura reciente sobre infraestructuras hídricas. En estos territorios, los servicios de abastecimiento de agua no se prestan ni se rigen únicamente por el sistema formal sino, más bien, por un conjunto heterogéneo de actores, reglas y arreglos que operan al margen, en forma de prácticas de larga data arraigadas en el territorio. Así pues, abordar las infraestructuras permite analizar las desigualdades en materia de agua, incluidas las cuestiones relacionadas con la calidad, el mantenimiento y la participación de la población destinataria en el diseño de las infraestructuras. Hemos desarrollado un enfoque metodológico cualitativo centrado en el análisis de entrevistas a diferentes actores de cada región y de fuentes cartográficas, documentales, legislativas, estadísticas y hemerográficas. El estudio muestra que las infraestructuras hídricas producen y reproducen desigualdades históricas de carácter social, económico y ambiental, por lo que cuando se producen transformaciones productivas en los territorios, los conflictos por sus formas de apropiación y distribución vuelven a emerger. Además, el acceso al agua potable requiere no sólo mejoras “técnicas”, sino también un reconocimiento social y político por parte de los ciudadanos y esfuerzos e inversiones constantes para que funcione. IPAF Región Patagonia Fil: Schmidt, Mariana Andrea. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Sociales. Instituto de Investigaciones Gino Germani (IIGG); Argentina Fil: Schmidt, Mariana Andrea. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentina Fil: Tobías, Melina. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Sociales. Instituto de Investigaciones Gino Germani (IIGG); Argentina Fil: Tobías, Melina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentina Fil: Ejarque, Mercedes. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Instituto de Investigación y Desarrollo Tecnológico para la Agricultura Familiar Región Patagonia; Argentina 2025-08-06T11:34:46Z 2025-08-06T11:34:46Z 2025-02-10 info:ar-repo/semantics/artículo info:eu-repo/semantics/article info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersion http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12123/23327 https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/08263663.2024.2444234 0826-3663 https://doi.org/10.1080/08263663.2024.2444234 eng info:eu-repograntAgreement/INTA/2019-PE-E8-I170-001, Abordaje integral para la mejora de la calidad de vida: el hábitat y las condiciones socioproductivas para el arraigo de las familias productoras info:eu-repo/semantics/restrictedAccess http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/ Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International (CC BY-NC-SA 4.0) application/pdf Taylor & Francis Canadian Journal of Latin American and Caribbean Studies 50 (2) : 174-192 (July 2025) |
| spellingShingle | Political Ecology Infrastructure Ecología Política Infraestructura Salta Chubut Water Infraestructure Social Inequalities Rural Conflicts Territorial Transformations Rural Modernization Infraestructura Hídrica Desigualdades Sociales Conflictos Rurales Transformaciones Territoriales Modernización Rural Schmidt, Mariana Tobías, Melina Ayelen Ejarque, Mercedes Political ecology and water infrastructures in rural territories. Contributions from the Chaco region (Salta) and the Central Plateau (Chubut), Argentina = Ecología política e infraestructuras hídricas en territorios rurales. Aportes desde la Región del Chaco (Salta) y la Meseta Central (Chubut), Argentina |
| title | Political ecology and water infrastructures in rural territories. Contributions from the Chaco region (Salta) and the Central Plateau (Chubut), Argentina = Ecología política e infraestructuras hídricas en territorios rurales. Aportes desde la Región del Chaco (Salta) y la Meseta Central (Chubut), Argentina |
| title_full | Political ecology and water infrastructures in rural territories. Contributions from the Chaco region (Salta) and the Central Plateau (Chubut), Argentina = Ecología política e infraestructuras hídricas en territorios rurales. Aportes desde la Región del Chaco (Salta) y la Meseta Central (Chubut), Argentina |
| title_fullStr | Political ecology and water infrastructures in rural territories. Contributions from the Chaco region (Salta) and the Central Plateau (Chubut), Argentina = Ecología política e infraestructuras hídricas en territorios rurales. Aportes desde la Región del Chaco (Salta) y la Meseta Central (Chubut), Argentina |
| title_full_unstemmed | Political ecology and water infrastructures in rural territories. Contributions from the Chaco region (Salta) and the Central Plateau (Chubut), Argentina = Ecología política e infraestructuras hídricas en territorios rurales. Aportes desde la Región del Chaco (Salta) y la Meseta Central (Chubut), Argentina |
| title_short | Political ecology and water infrastructures in rural territories. Contributions from the Chaco region (Salta) and the Central Plateau (Chubut), Argentina = Ecología política e infraestructuras hídricas en territorios rurales. Aportes desde la Región del Chaco (Salta) y la Meseta Central (Chubut), Argentina |
| title_sort | political ecology and water infrastructures in rural territories contributions from the chaco region salta and the central plateau chubut argentina ecologia politica e infraestructuras hidricas en territorios rurales aportes desde la region del chaco salta y la meseta central chubut argentina |
| topic | Political Ecology Infrastructure Ecología Política Infraestructura Salta Chubut Water Infraestructure Social Inequalities Rural Conflicts Territorial Transformations Rural Modernization Infraestructura Hídrica Desigualdades Sociales Conflictos Rurales Transformaciones Territoriales Modernización Rural |
| url | http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12123/23327 https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/08263663.2024.2444234 https://doi.org/10.1080/08263663.2024.2444234 |
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