346
16 Integrated Urban and Rural Water Affair Management Reform …
Before the implementation of integrated urban and rural water affairs management
reform, the water resources management institution was in the information decomposition–information encapsulation mode. Under this mode, the regional government
decided water strategies and policies based on its perception and understanding of
water problems, and it assigned the tasks to water-related departments, including
water resources, environmental, and construction departments. These departments
independently dealt with problems and implemented strategies and policies. Within
departments, perception of the problem and departmental decision-making were
completely encapsulated; the decision of the regional government provided the
only coordination. Because there was no direct or effective horizontal information
linkage among departments, this system could be operated effectively only if there
was no strong complementarity among departmental tasks and the departmental
environments were not correlated.
However, when there is a strong technological and characteristic complementarity at the departmental level, horizontal communication is indispensable for coordinating tasks. Thus, from one perspective, it is necessary for the government to
design a formal organizational communication network for departments to share
pieces of public information; from another perspective, merging relevant departments and placing one in charge can eliminate the coordination unit that specifically
assimilates environmental information. Under the information decomposition–information encapsulation mode, an efficient way to improve communication is to merge
two complementary departments.
Thus, given the current water problems in China, the management system lacks
effective communication and coordination networks linking water quantity and
quality issues and urban and rural areas. To some degree, integrated urban and rural
water affairs management reform is a merging of water quality and quantity task
units and urban and rural task units (Fig. 16.1).
Figure 16.1 illustrates the organizational changes put in place by urban and rural
water affairs reform in China. Before the reform, the key functions of water-related
resources management, service regulation, and environmental management were
assigned to water, construction, and environmental departments; since the reform,
these functions have been concentrated in one or two departments. To some extent,
the reform aimed to solve information communication problems in tasks involving
departments with strong complementarity.
16.3 Reform Progress
China’s first integrated urban and rural water affairs management reform began in
1993 in Shenzhen, Guangdong Province, in southern China, with the formation of
Shenzhen WAB. The city is one of the most developed cities and the best-developed
special economic zone in China. From 1980 to 1990, extremely rapid economic
development and population growth resulted in a 43-fold increase in water use.
At the same time, institutional problems led to separate functions arranging the
16 Integrated Urban and Rural Water Affair Management Reform …
Before the implementation of integrated urban and rural water affairs management
reform, the water resources management institution was in the information decomposition–information encapsulation mode. Under this mode, the regional government
decided water strategies and policies based on its perception and understanding of
water problems, and it assigned the tasks to water-related departments, including
water resources, environmental, and construction departments. These departments
independently dealt with problems and implemented strategies and policies. Within
departments, perception of the problem and departmental decision-making were
completely encapsulated; the decision of the regional government provided the
only coordination. Because there was no direct or effective horizontal information
linkage among departments, this system could be operated effectively only if there
was no strong complementarity among departmental tasks and the departmental
environments were not correlated.
However, when there is a strong technological and characteristic complementarity at the departmental level, horizontal communication is indispensable for coordinating tasks. Thus, from one perspective, it is necessary for the government to
design a formal organizational communication network for departments to share
pieces of public information; from another perspective, merging relevant departments and placing one in charge can eliminate the coordination unit that specifically
assimilates environmental information. Under the information decomposition–information encapsulation mode, an efficient way to improve communication is to merge
two complementary departments.
Thus, given the current water problems in China, the management system lacks
effective communication and coordination networks linking water quantity and
quality issues and urban and rural areas. To some degree, integrated urban and rural
water affairs management reform is a merging of water quality and quantity task
units and urban and rural task units (Fig. 16.1).
Figure 16.1 illustrates the organizational changes put in place by urban and rural
water affairs reform in China. Before the reform, the key functions of water-related
resources management, service regulation, and environmental management were
assigned to water, construction, and environmental departments; since the reform,
these functions have been concentrated in one or two departments. To some extent,
the reform aimed to solve information communication problems in tasks involving
departments with strong complementarity.
16.3 Reform Progress
China’s first integrated urban and rural water affairs management reform began in
1993 in Shenzhen, Guangdong Province, in southern China, with the formation of
Shenzhen WAB. The city is one of the most developed cities and the best-developed
special economic zone in China. From 1980 to 1990, extremely rapid economic
development and population growth resulted in a 43-fold increase in water use.
At the same time, institutional problems led to separate functions arranging the