Water supply and hydrosocial scarcity in the Rio de Janeiro Metropolitan Area

Abstract

Abstract This paper aims to analyse the water supply systems in the Rio de Janeiro Metropolitan Area in the light of the hydrosocial scarcity concept and the human right to water. It also assesses how bulk water availability may aggravate this situation. We argue that water access-related problems are directly related to several aspects: the way that water and sanitation services are managed, deficiencies in planning, technical choices, and the way in which existing systems are operated. In addition to these current structural problems, the vulnerability of supply systems also tends to increase in terms of lesser water availability as long as no changes are made in management processes to promote greater water security, as the 2014-2015 drought affecting the Piracicaba and Paraíba do Sul river basins.