In the early twentieth century, there was a focus on land and Otis Tufton Mason (the second curator of the Smithsonian Museum) thought this ‘orientation failed to see how human actions modified an ever-evolving environment’ (45-6): what he called the ‘Land Problem’. In doing so, this replaced metaphysical understandings of water with ‘geological, social, and technopolitical arguments’ (88). Like the move from nature to natural resources and society to population, water became governed, calculated and controlled. In Part One, Schmidt recounts how water became a resource and was hereby brought under the watch of the state. In this book he shows, in great detail, how this belief developed. Overall, Schmidt contends that ‘normal water’– defined as ‘the program of bringing water’s social and evolutionary possibilities into service of liberal forms of life’ (6) – is key to understanding how water was managed throughout the twentieth century. Seeing water as a resource replaced alternative ways of managing water and this narrative has framed our understanding and conceptualisation of it. How water is managed today is the culmination of a century of US ideas on natural resources and US resource management and conservation techniques. He builds this global narrative by showing the progression of thought and reflecting on how it was influenced by a number of disciplines, particularly anthropology and geology. The book is divided into four parts –Abundance, Scarcity, Security and Rethinking the Anthropocene – and in each, Schmidt introduces experts and their key theories. In Water: Abundance, Scarcity, and Security in the Age of Humanity, Schmidt traces the development of this interdisciplinary approach to water from its nascent years in the early twentieth century in the United States to its global reach today. Schmidt takes the position that not only do we have a philosophy, but also that it has proved to be exceptionally resilient. For many, this global narrative has spouted questions as to whether we have a water management philosophy or even whether water can be managed at all. As a result of this shift, water is connected to security issues. Water: Abundance, Scarcity and Security in the Age of Humanity. In showing how water resources are far from a neutral category, this well researched and enlightening book is an important read for understanding how we perceive water today, writes Kathleen Chiappetta. Schmidt details the intellectual history of US water management philosophy, tracing the shift towards considering water a resource to be brought under the watch of the state as well as the transformation from a discourse of abundance to scarcity. In Water: Abundance, Scarcity and Security in the Age of Humanity, Jeremy J.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |