Water Governance and Management
Water governance and management are inseparable from the historical development of the United States. They have influenced the development of the infrastructure and identity of the U.S. as a nation, from early canal systems that supported trades, regulations about clean water access, to large-scale initiatives such as dams construction projects. Several scholars have written about issues surrounding water supply. For instance, Soll 2018 explores the political and environmental history of New York City’s water supply, focusing on the period from 1905 to the late 20th century, while Koeppel 2001, narrates New York City’s long struggle to secure a clean water supply in the 1800s. Melosi 2008 chronicles the history of the development of urban water supply, wastewater management, and solid waste disposal from colonial times to the 2000s. Water governance and management are also extensively related to engineering and technologies, as exemplified by Teisch 2011, who provides an insightful historical analysis of how engineering and technologies influenced American management of fresh water during the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
Furthermore, water governance and management in America faced challenges regarding regulation and policy. Shanley 1988 discusses how the Roosevelt Administration, through the New Deal, addressed water pollution control as part of its environmental and public health policies before World War II. Apple 2003 offers an analysis that delves into the evolution of water policy in the U.S., particularly in the arid Western states, where conflicts over water access have grown with increasing populations and agricultural demands. Bridging water governance and its management in America to with its broader global impact, Schmidt 2017 examines the development of a philosophy of water management that began in the U.S. and has influenced global practices and academic discourse. Shifting our attention to water governance and management in Central Asian region, Peterson 2019 examines the environmental history of Russian and Soviet control over Central Asia, focusing on the historical and environmental implications of water management and irrigation practices.
Books
In this work, Koeppel explores the political conflicts, individual aspirations, and public health emergencies that influenced New York’s water history, starting with Dutch colonisation in the 1600s and ending with the building of the Croton Aqueduct in the 1830s. He contends that the city’s water problems were prolonged because of political scheming, which postponed necessary reforms.
Organized into three parts, “Age of Miasmas,” the “Bacteriological Revolution,” and the “New Ecology,” the book examines how changing theories of disease causation, scientific innovation, and environmental understanding influenced urban sanitary infrastructure. The book emphasizes the need for adaptable, modular designs to ensure sustainable urban development particularly for water infrastructure and management.
In this work, Peterson contends that Russian and Soviet attempts to transform Central Asian landscapes by building irrigation and doing agricultural projects were frequently limited by local ecological conditions, such as soil salinization and pest issues. She interprets these actions as colonial ambitions and modernization efforts that often benefit the economy at the expense of the well-being of local communities.
This book discusses America’s water management philosophy that promotes a liberal approach, emphasizing the management of water’s social and environmental roles, especially given water scarcity concerns. This book is divided into four parts, detailing the philosophy’s origins, its implications for post-colonial development, the concept of water security, and reflections on the Anthropocene.
The book details how political strategies and court decisions that prioritized urban expansion over rural concerns led to New York City’s aggressive expansion of its water resources, which resulted in ecological and social consequences. The book delves into the complexities of water management, and reflects on the environmental, geographical, and political consequences of the city’s search for more water.
Based on the American West, this book extends to contexts like colonial British India and early twentieth-century Palestine by featuring several prominent California engineers and the challenges they faced while implementing their projects. It also highlights the efforts of these engineers to emphasize the complexities of adapting local practices to diverse environments in the context of American environmental expertise on global water management.
Articles
An insightful piece that analyzes historical legal frameworks that have shaped water rights in the West, with particular attention to the development of the prior appropriation doctrine during the California Gold Rush. It draws attention to the federal government’s recognition of uncoordinated policies and the establishment of the Western Water Policy Review Advisory Commission to research and suggest improvements for better management.
This article draws attention to the debate surrounding whether the federal government should actively regulate pollution or assist state and local efforts. Even though the National Resources Committee was established to study pollution and provided funding for sewage treatment, it was unable to completely include pollution control into national planning. Roosevelt faced resistance from Congress and conservation groups, and his influence on domestic policy weakened over time. Although the problem was not entirely resolved during his presidency, Roosevelt’s actions laid the foundation for future federal involvement in pollution management in spite of these obstacles.