Can the moorish water tribunal in valencia provide a novel approach to ’water justice’ in some Arab countries?

Abstract EN

In many Arab countries, the need for finite water resources continues to escalate as the countries' growing population and economy demand reliable water supplies for both a greater amount and variety of uses (i.e., domestic, industrial, and agricultural; where the latter continues to consume more than 80 percent of all water resources in the Arab region).

When water users seek to protect or change existing water rights, conflicts over the allocation of these scarce resources arise.

Climate change and concern regarding water disputes have given resolution of water adjudications high political priority.

Countries' goal is to identify an efficient and cost-effective structure of dispute settlement mechanism considering the magnitude of water adjudications.

It was for this purpose that Valencians farmers established the water tribunal in Andalusia (Spain).

This Tribunal dates back to the Xth century, when the first water judges were peer-elected.

The forum for resolving topical water rights conflicts will be most often the water court, a revisited form of the water tribunal.

This paper depicts this long-standing and realistic example on dispute resolution in water.

The water tribunal can be redesigned to face the challenge of settling water disputes.

We will be looking for opportunities to more efficiently resolve current and avoid future water disputes in some Arab countries.