Principles of Water Resources: History, Development, Management and Policy.

Principles of Water Resources: History, Development, Management and Policy

Thomas V. Cech, 2003. John Wiley & Sons Inc., New York. ISBN: 0-471-43861-8 (hc) US$100.480 pp.

As a geomorphologist who teaches and researches in the area of water resources management, I have found it is difficult to provide for my students a comprehensive text that covers both the physical properties of flowing water as well as management of the resource as a whole. While I and some others in the field recognize the need for understanding how the resource behaves in the environment prior to making decisions about how (or if) the resource should be used, sadly we have been left lacking in our quest to provide for our students a single, representative reference. Too often reference materials are specific in one area and not the other, and making the important connections between physical properties of a resource and its use remains difficult.

Thomas Cech has put together a text that approaches the role of water management in the manner in which it should: understanding the resource before making decisions that affect it. While the text is not specifically intended for resource managers (it provides well thought out sections on natural physical processes of water, for example), it clearly should be required reading for students wanting to understand how decisions in the water resources field should be made. Alternatively, practitioners and students in the realm of physical geography (specifically fluvial geomorphology) would be well suited to read this text to provide context for their work. As the author himself states:

"The study of water resources can also be very frustrating.

Strange terminology, incomprehensible data, diverse

viewpoints, and wide ranging, complex topics can quickly

become overwhelming ...." (p. vi)

Cech then goes on to say the purpose of the text is to simplify the complexities of water as a resource and provide a manner in which the interrelations between the physical properties of water and the human component (resources management) within the environmental context can be understood.

The approach Cech takes in the layout of the text is well thought out. In all, seven main themes run through the book. The first theme, Historical Context, provides the reader with an understanding of how water has been utilized as a resource through time in varied parts of the world (Egypt, China and North America, for example). Reading this section gives a brief look at change over time and the evolution of water use, focusing on some elements of conflict and complexity.

The physical properties of water are considered next, starting with a summary of the hydrologic cycle and the relationship between weather and climate. Moving on to surface and groundwater processes, Cech manages to provide enough information for the reader to understand how the resource behaves without bogging down in jargon and techno-mumbo-jumbo. While I agree that dams and diversions are a major use of water around the world, I would suggest that this section is somewhat out of place--it would be best suited toward the end of the book, once all components of water and water policy are understood. Having said this, however, the section on dams and diversions is well presented, and being placed early in the text might provide 'grist for the mill' for the reader to keep in the back of their mind as institutional arrangements are presented in section four.

The fourth section, dealing with water agencies in the United States, clearly shows the connection between agencies at the local, state and federal level and how they work (or don't work). While this is specific to the US situation, we can all recognize by reading this section that problems dealing with water as a resource are common around the world. Cech clearly uses examples from the previous sections to put things into context, a practice that is quite helpful to the reader.

The section on water quality is an uncomplicated treatment of pollution (point source and non-point source) and the introduction of contaminants into the environment. The section also looks at basic parameters of water (i.e. organic and inorganic chemicals as well as properties such as temperature, turbidity, and so on). It finishes with a chapter on water quality management, in particular how pollutants are distributed within the surface and groundwater environments.

Cech recognizes for the reader that humans are not the only users of water. Section six focuses on water in the environment, in particular aquatic and terrestrial wildlife and their needs, through a series of case studies.

Finally, the section on water conflict highlights both the international and intra-national conflicts surrounding water use/allocation, using case studies in the US and the Middle East. As he states: "The next 100 years will inevitably witness continued conflict between states in the United States and between foreign countries over these water resource issues" (p. 405).

From a practical perspective, Cech has included in the text a number of Case Studies, Guest Essays, Sidebars, and a Glossary, which is located in the margins of the text where each term appears, rather than being located at the back of the text. At the end of each chapter Cech provides Questions for Discussion, a list of Recommended Readings, Recommended Websites, and the References cited within the chapter. This allows the interested reader to pursue any section of the book to their heart's content.

This book covers two very difficult and complicated topics in a well-organized manner. The reader and Instructor utilizing this text will see important connections between water processes and management practice, which is one of the main strengths of the text.

Cech's acknowledgements include the statement: "Writing a college textbook is enlightening, challenging and exhilarating at various stages of the process." That enthusiasm has resulted in a well-written, comprehensive text on water resources, which will educate and enrich those who read it.

Reviewed by John T. Beebe, Department of Geography, University of Guelph, Guelph, Ontario, Canada.