From formal regulation to local practice: Water governance and community vulnerability among forest-fringe communities in Sumedang, Indonesia
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.37905/drsj.v5i1.185Keywords:
Authority, Power, Protection, Water ManagementAbstract
Water governance is particularly important in forest-fringe communities where households depend on spring water while access and management are mediated by multiple formal and community-based institutions. This study examines how formal regulatory authority over water resources is translated into local governance arrangements and shapes community access and vulnerability. A qualitative case study was conducted in Kadakajaya and Genteng Villages, Sumedang Regency, West Java, Indonesia, focusing on spring water sources located within or adjacent to forest areas managed by Perhutani, a state-owned forestry enterprise. The study integrates qualitative content analysis of national legal instruments within the 2014–2021 regulatory corpus with field research conducted from March to October 2024. Primary data were collected through field observations, semi-structured interviews with 15 purposively selected informants from the community and local institutions, and two focus group discussions involving community water-user groups, village officials, and local stakeholders. The focus group discussions also included participatory water-source mapping. The findings show that Indonesia’s regulatory framework establishes state responsibility for water-resource regulation and management while recognizing people’s rights to water for basic daily needs and providing a basis for community participation. Locally, however, formal authority is mediated through fragmented institutional arrangements involving Perhutani, village governments, the regional public water utility (PDAM), and community water-user groups. Community arrangements known as paten play an important role in everyday water distribution and infrastructure maintenance but have more limited influence over broader allocation and inter-institutional decisions. Vulnerability is shaped not only by dependence on particular springs and distribution systems but also by institutional access, coordination, and the capacity to influence decisions. From a structuration perspective, community agency sustains everyday water-governance practices within an uneven distribution of authoritative and allocative resources. The study identifies an institutional mediation gap between formal regulatory authority and local water-governance practices as a key governance challenge.
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Copyright (c) 2026 Desi Yunita, Nunung Nurwati, Wahyu Gunawan, Aditya Candra Lesmana, Elsa Lutmilarita Amanatin, Ardi Maulana Nugraha
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