Is a clean river fun for all? Recognizing social vulnerability in watershed planning

Area of Science:

• Environmental Planning
• Social Science Research
• Environmental Justice

Background:

• Watershed planning aims for environmental protection but often struggles with community engagement, particularly from populations disproportionately affected by flooding and pollution.
• This limited engagement can perpetuate social inequalities, with environmental benefits often favoring more empowered residents.
• Existing watershed planning frameworks may not fully address the complex, place-based nature of social vulnerability.

Purpose of the Study:

• To assess if watershed planners' understanding of social vulnerability aligns with local realities and if conventional data can capture these nuances.
• To identify gaps in current conceptualizations and measurement of social vulnerability within watershed planning.
• To propose improved methods for assessing and integrating social vulnerability into watershed management.

Main Methods:

• Conducted 35 in-depth interviews with watershed planners and community stakeholders in the Milwaukee River Basin.
• Analyzed interview data to identify diverse definitions of social vulnerability.
• Compared identified definitions with conventional demographic and spatial data analysis.

Main Results:

• Identified five unique definitions of social vulnerability, with planners articulating a narrower range than stakeholders.
• Found that existing measurement approaches, while capturing spatial and demographic factors, do not adequately differentiate spatio-temporal dynamics of vulnerability.
• Developed two novel social vulnerability measures to better capture place-based and dynamic aspects.

Conclusions:

• Watershed planners' conceptualizations of social vulnerability may be limited, potentially obscuring place-based vulnerabilities.
• New assessment techniques combining interviews and demographic analysis can help planners recognize these limitations and acknowledge diverse vulnerabilities.
• The proposed methods offer a pathway to more comprehensive consideration of socially vulnerable populations, enabling targeted interventions to disrupt social vulnerability.