A Twenty-First Century US Water Policy
It is zero hour for a new US water policy! At a time when many countries are adopting new national approaches to water management, the United States still has no cohesive federal policy, and water-related authorities are dispersed across more than 30 agencies. Here, at last, is a vision for what we as a nation need to do to manage our most vital resource. In this book, leading thinkers at world-class water research institution the Pacific Institute present clear and readable analysis and recommendations for a new federal water policy to confront our national and global challenges at a critical time. What exactly is at stake? In the 21st century, pressures on water resources in the United States are growing and conflicts among water users are worsening. Communities continue to struggle to meet water quality standards and to ensure that safe drinking water is available for all. And new challenges are arising as climate change and extreme events worsen, new water quality threats materialize, and financial constraints grow. Yet the United States has not stepped up with adequate leadership to address these problems. The inability of national policymakers to safeguard our water makes the United States increasingly vulnerable to serious disruptions of something most of us take for granted: affordable, reliable, and safe water. This book provides an independent assessment of water issues and water management in the United States, addressing emerging and persistent water challenges from the perspectives of science, public policy, environmental justice, economics, and law. With fascinating case studies and first-person accounts of what helps and hinders good water management, this is a clear-eyed look at what we need for a 21st century U.S. water policy. Review " A Twenty- First Century US Water Policy is refreshingly forward-looking, almost exclusively emphasizing water policy. That is, it is a book that offers solutions." -- Great Plains Research "We are overdue for a wide-ranging national debate over use and conservation of our dwindling water resources. This book frames the issues and makes insightful and innovative suggestions for the directions we should take." --Bruce Babbitt, former United States Secretary of the Interior "It is the great achievement of Peter Gleick, long our foremost water policy thinker, and of Juliet Christian-Smith to transform the bewildering diversity and chaos that is current US water policy into a clear, comprehensive vision of the big issues and challenges defining the new water landscape. This is a must-read book and essential point-of-reference for anyone involved in water issues." --Steven Solomon, author of Water: The Epic Struggle for Wealth, Power, and Civilization (Finalist, L.A. Times Book Prize) " A Twenty-First Century U.S. Water Policy is certainly being published at an auspicious time, and its recommendations deserve serious consideration." --Brett Walton, Circle of Blue "[The authors] clearly lay out the problem and, unlike many other writers, provide readers with solutions, which makes this book an invaluable resource. Highly recommended." -- CHOICE "This is an edited collection of essays by experts in the fields of climate science, environmental justice, geography, and law, several of whom work at the Pacific Institute, a nonprofit with a research focus on sustainability, environment, and social equity."-Sam Duncan, Case Western Reserve University About the Author Juliet Christian-Smith is Senior Research Associate of the Water Program at the Pacific Institute. Peter H. Gleick is Co-founder and President of the Pacific Institute. Heather Cooley is Co-director of the Water Program at the Pacific Institute. Lucy Allen is a former Research Associate with the Water Program at the Pacific Institute and current law student at the University of California, Berkeley. Amy Vanderwarker is Co-coordinator of the California Environmental Justice