1.

Record Nr.

UNINA9910824715703321

Autore

Barbier Ed

Titolo

The water paradox : overcoming the global crisis in water management / / Ed Barbier

Pubbl/distr/stampa

New Haven, CT : , : Yale University Press, , [2019]

©2019

ISBN

0-300-24057-0

978-0-300-24057-3

Descrizione fisica

1 online resource (288 p.)

Collana

Yale scholarship online

Disciplina

333.91

Soggetti

Water resources development

Water-supply - International cooperation

Water-supply - Management

Lingua di pubblicazione

Inglese

Formato

Materiale a stampa

Livello bibliografico

Monografia

Note generali

Also issued in print: 2019.

Nota di bibliografia

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Nota di contenuto

Front matter -- CONTENTS -- List of Figures, Tables and Boxes -- Preface -- Acknowledgments -- Introduction: The Water Paradox -- 1. Water as an Economic Good -- 2. Humankind and Water -- 3. Water in the Modern Era: Toward a Global Crisis? -- 4. A Global Crisis in Water Management -- 5. Reforming Governance and Institutions -- 6. Ending the Underpricing of Water -- 7. Supporting Innovations -- 8. Managing a Global Resource -- 9. The Future of Water -- Notes -- Select Bibliography -- Index

Sommario/riassunto

A radical new approach to tackling the growing threat of water scarcity Water is essential to life, yet humankind's relationship with water is complex. For millennia, we have perceived it as abundant and easily accessible. But water shortages are fast becoming a persistent reality for all nations, rich and poor. With demand outstripping supply, a global water crisis is imminent.   In this trenchant critique of current water policies and practices, Edward Barbier argues that our water crisis is as much a failure of water management as it is a result of scarcity. Outdated governance structures and institutions, combined with continual underpricing, have perpetuated the overuse and undervaluation of water and disincentivized much-needed



technological innovation. As a result "water grabbing" is on the rise, and cooperation to resolve these disputes is increasingly fraught. Barbier draws on evidence from countries across the globe to show the scale of the problem, and outlines the policy and management solutions needed to avert this crisis.