This chapter focuses on the ways in which public and stake-holder participation in public environmental decision-making is assumed to foster effective governance and secure environmental benefits. Claims abound that collaboration and participation in environmental governance can improve environmental outcomes, but decades of research and practice have yet to furnish an understanding of just how and under what conditions this should occur. The discursive space provided in the various participatory venues was generally not used to enter into intensive dialogue beyond the basic presentation of positions. Participation contributed to improving not just the ecological standard of planning documents, but also the implementation of measures and action on the ground. By exploring mechanisms in more cases of water resource management and beyond, findings of this analysis can potentially be set in a wider context, refined and contribute to a more solid understanding of the mechanisms at work.