An institutional perspective on governance — the evolution of integrated river management in victoria, australia

Abstract

Integrated river management in the state of Victoria, Australia has evolved considerably over the last fifteen years on a range of fronts, including the policy framework, level of community involvement, the technical base and the institutional arrangements. The Victorian River Health Programme is now regarded as the most successful river management and restoration programme in Australia. This chapter describes that programme, looks at how it has evolved over the last fifteen years in particular, and analyses some of the key factors influencing this evolution. It then examines the Trialogue Model for ecosystem governance in the light of the Victorian experience, concluding that, whilst the Trialogue hypothesis is correct at a very high level, it needs to build in a third dimension — that of time. This recognises that action at any one point in time can only occur to the extent supported by the three components taken together, and that evolution will occur only incrementally, building on past achievements and knowledge.