Envisioning the Agenda for Water Resources Research in the Twenty-First Century (2001) / Chapter Skim
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4. Water Institutions
4. Water Institutions
Pages 33-41
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From page 33... ...
water resources evolved in response to changing notions of societal needs. In the western United States, water allocation systems favored the development of water supplies, memorialized in the phrase "use it or lose it." Many decades later, water quality was recognized as a matter of national priority, and starting with the passage of the Clean Water Act ire 1972, a new set of federal and state laws was supenmposed on common law water doctrines.
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From page 34... ...
For example, adaptive management applies findings from carefully monitored experiments to the adjustment of future management and policy decisions in light of changing conditions. It aims to incorporate diverse stakeholder preferences within the context of complex ecosystems, and it underpins water management programs in several areas of the United States, such as the Flonda Everglades
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From page 35... ...
Policy- and legal-based research can improve our understanding of how water resource institutions can integrate adaptive management practices into existing management and legal regimes, while simultaneously protecting the rights of stakeholders. The water resources research agenda for the t~venty-f~rst century should give priority to developing new legal arrangements governing diversions and consumptive use that emphasize flexibility and facilitate the management of water scarcity.
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From page 36... ...
Additional research on economic institutions could help to resolve many of these issues and thereby facilitate the use of economic institutions in managing water scarcity. Continuing research is needed to develop improved methods for estimating the value of water In circumstances where it is not marketed or where market-generated prices do not adequately reflect true value.
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From page 37... ...
Much controversy still surrounds estimates of the price elasticity of demand for water.2 Empirical estimates of how water consumption for each water-using sector varies in response to different water prices would provide a useful basis for utilizing prices to manage water resources. The water resources research agenda of the twenty-first century should give priority to: ~ developing new and improved methods for estimating the value of nonmarketed attributes of water resources; ~ investigating the potential use of economic institutions to protect common pool and pure public good values as they relate to water resources; 2Price elasticity of demand is the percent change in the quantity demanded of a good divided by the percent change in price.
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From page 38... ...
Science-based methods such as mental modeling and value integration have received little recognition to date by the water management community as valuable approaches (Bostrom et al., 1992; Gregory et al., 2000~. Applied research utilizing these and other science-based methods is needed to determine the key factors that affect water-related risk perceptions, communicaiions, and decision processes.
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From page 39... ...
Only limited attention has been devoted to the cultural, religious, and ethical facets associated with water and its use (e.g., Brown and Ingram, 1987; Espeland, 1998~. Additional research is needed to identify~e special attributes that will have to be accounted for as the population of the United States becomes more culturally diverse and as water scarcity intensifies.
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From page 40... ...
Ex post evaluations of completed water projects, of water policies, and of experience with water management regimes should be high on the research agenda of the future. The water resources research agenda for the twenty-first century should give priority to:
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From page 41... ...
WA TER INSTITUTIONS 41 ~ determining the key factors that affect water-related risk communication and decision processes; ~ assessing the effectiveness of user-organized institutions for water distribution and identifying the legal and policy environments in which they succeed; ~ analyzing the range of experience with different processes for obtaining stakeholder input in the making of water policies and water plans; ~ elucidating the cultural and ethical factors associated with water use, and comparing institutions having different cultural and ethical bases; informing the policy-making process; and ~ evaluating the strengths and weaknesses of past water policies and projects.
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