Drought and Water Crises: Science, Technology, and Management Issues

Series:
Books in Soils, Plants, and the Environment
Published:
March 22, 2005 by CRC Press - 432 Pages
Editor(s):
Donald A. Wilhite

Purchasing Options

Hardback
$165.95
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ISBN 9780824727710
Cat# DK2949
 

Features

  • Includes contributions from more than three dozen top scientists and engineers across numerous disciplines.
  • Considers both the social and natural dimensions of drought
  • Presents state-of-the-art management and technology for coping with drought
  • Provides the only comparative assessment of drought policies for Australia, South Africa, and the US
  • Presents case studies that show how other nations and localities implemented principles discussed in the book

    • Summary

    Today the world is facing a greater water crisis than ever. Droughts of lesser magnitude are resulting in greater impact. Even in years with normal precipitation, water shortages have become widespread in both developing and developed nations, in humid as well as arid climates. When faced with severe drought, governments become eager to act. Unfortunately, this eagerness usually wanes when precipitation returns to normal.

    Drought and Water Crises: Science, Technology, and Management Issues explains the complexities of drought and the role of science, technology, and management in resolving many of the issues associated with the world's expanding water crises.

    Contributors discuss a broad range of topics in attempting to answer these most pressing questions:

    How can we can improve planning tools and make mitigation tools more readily available and adaptable?

    How can we promote widespread adoption of new water-conserving technologies and encourage their use during non-drought periods?

    How can seasonal forecasts and early warning systems be made more reliable and expressed in ways to better meet the needs of end users?

    How can the drought-related policy experiences of some countries be systematically utilized to benefit others?

    Drought and Water Crises collates considerable information from diverse disciplines with the goal of reducing societal vulnerability to drought. Featuring case studies and stressing new technologies, the book seeks to encourage nations to adopt a more risk-based, proactive policy for water and drought management.

    Table of Contents

    OVERVIEW
    Drought as Hazard: Understanding the Natural and Social Context, Donald A. Wilhite and Margie Buchanan-Smith

    DROUGHT AND WATER MANAGEMENT: THE ROLE OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY
    The Challenge of Climate Prediction in Mitigating Drought Impacts, Neville Nicholls, Michael J. Coughlan, and Karl Monnik
    Drought Monitoring: New Tools for the 21st Century, Michael J. Hayes, Mark Svoboda, Douglas Le Comte, Kelly T. Redmond, and Phil Pasteris
    Drought Indicators and Triggers, Anne C. Steinemann, Michael J. Hayes, and Luiz F. N. Cavalcanti
    Drought Preparedness Planning: Building Institutional Capacity, Donald A. Wilhite, Michael J. Hayes, and Cody L. Knutson
    National Drought Policy: Lessons Learned from Australia, South Africa, and the United States, Donald A. Wilhite, Linda Botterill, and Karl Monnik
    Managing Demand: Water Conservation as a Drought Mitigation Tool, Amy Vickers
    The Role of Water Harvesting and Supplemental Irrigation in Coping with Water Scarcity and Drought in the Dry Areas, Theib Y. Oweis
    Drought, Climate Change, and Vulnerability: The Role of Science and Technology in a Multi-Scale, Multi-Stressor World, Colin Polsky and David W. Cash

    CASE STUDIES IN DROUGHT AND WATER MANAGEMENT: THE ROLE OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY
    The Hardest Working River: Drought and Critical Water Problems in the Colorado River Basin, Roger S. Pulwarty, Katherine L. Jacobs, and Randall M. Dole
    Drought Risk Management in Canada-U.S. Transboundary Watersheds: Now and in the Future, Grace Koshida, Marianne Alden, Stewart J. Cohen, Robert A. Halliday, Linda D. Mortsch, Virginia Wittrock, and Abdel R. Maarouf
    Drought and Water Management: Can China Meet Future Demand? Zhang Hai Lun, Ke Li Dan, and Zhang Shi Fa
    A Role for Streamflow Forecasting in Managing Risk Associated with Drought and Other Water Crises, Susan Cuddy, Rebecca Letcher, Francis H. S. Chiew, Blaire E. Nancarrow, and Tony Jakeman
    Droughts and Water Stress Situations in Spain, Manuel Menéndez Prieto

    INTEGRATION AND CONCLUSIONS
    Drought and Water Crises: Lessons Learned and the Road Ahead, Donald A. Wilhite and Roger S. Pulwarty
    Index

    Editorial Reviews

    "It brings together considerable information with the goal of reducing societal vulnerability to drought. Featuring case studies and stressing new technologies, the book seeks to encourage nations to adopt a more risk-based, proactive policy for water and drought management."
    -Natural Hazards Observer, July 2005

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