Risk Management of Groundwater Pollution, Sustainability and Quality of Life: The Gap Between Theory and Practice in an Intermediate City of the Global South (Mar Del Plata, Argentina)

Within the multiple approaches to the concept of quality of life, access to safe water is, directly or indirectly, part of the variables that define its components. However, this ability to access safe water brings into play the environmental, socio-cultural, political and economic dimensions of sustainability. Thus, this chapter aims to analyze the relationship between sustainability and quality of life from the groundwater pollution risk management perspective, comparing policies (“what it should be”) with practice (“what it really is”) in each stage of the groundwater pollution risk management process (assessment, prediction, prevention and warning system), as well as proposing adjustment actions for the study case of an intermediate city of the Global South. Mar del Plata is a Global South intermediate city, where groundwater is the only water supply source. The city presents a sizeable peri-urban area, where multiple land uses have been developed; this development increases the occurrence of pollution processes because the majority of this area lacks water and sanitation systems. Hence, the policy aspect was reviewed from international and national guidelines and laws, while practice was obtained from semi-structured interviews. The main reasons that explain the gap between policy and practice are related to political, administrative, information, funding and accountability factors. As such, adjustment actions were proposed for the study area to reduce those gaps.