The Political Ecology of the Water Crisis in Israel

by Lees, Susan H.

• ISBN13: 9780761809692
• ISBN10: 0761809694
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 1997-12-18
• Publisher: UPA

Summary

This book illustrates the interactions of local-level actors and institutions which govern the management of resources at regional and national levels. It discusses irrigated agriculture, an ideal illustration of resource management's linkage of political power, technology, and the influence of unpredictable, uncontrollable forces of nature. The work attempts to delineate processes of change in a complex geopolitical and economic environment, where crises of various origins--climatic, political, technological and economic--present both obstacles and opportunities to resource managers at all levels. By placing the study of ecological management practices in time, the study directs our focus to accounting for change. The emphasis of this book is on opportunistic responses to crises which arise inevitably in the course of events. The case examined here, the water crisis in Israel, is closely connected to global conflict centered in the Middle East. The information provided in this study is important to an understanding of the local actors in this situation.

Table of Contents

PREFACE
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
CHAPTER 1: THE CONTEXT OF THE WATER CRISIS	1	(16)
INTRODUCTION	1	(2)
THEORETICAL BACKGROUND: CRISES IN ECOLOGICAL PROCESS	3	(3)
SMALL-HOLDERS	6	(1)
COMMON PROPERTY MANAGEMENT	7	(2)
IDEOLOGICAL FOUNDATIONS	9	(3)
THE WATER CRISIS	12	(5)
CHAPTER 2: SOURCES, INSTITUTIONS, POLICIES	17	(26)
SOURCES OF WATER	17	(7)
WATER POLICY AND INSTITUTIONS	24	(11)
Water Quotas	30	(2)
Encouragement of Innovation	32	(3)
CRITICISMS OF WATER POLICY	35	(4)
PERSONNEL	39	(4)
CHAPTER 3: BUREAUCRACY, NATIONAL POLITICS, AND RURAL SOCIAL ORGANIZATION	43	(20)
POLITICAL ECOLOGY	43	(2)
THE ORIGINS OF BUREAUCRATIC ROLES IN FARMING	45	(2)
THE MOSHAV	47	(3)
THE ROLE OF THE SETTLEMENT MOVEMENTS	50	(2)
A POWER SHIFT: SETTING THE STAGE FOR OPPORTUNISTIC CHANGE	52	(1)
DEPENDENCY AND PATERNALISM	53	(4)
CLASS, ETHNICITY, AND BUREAUCRACY	57	(1)
THE EFFECTS OF DEPENDENCE ON AGRICULTURAL DECISION-MAKING	57	(6)
CHAPTER 4: SMALL-HOLDER VILLAGE LIFE AND ECONOMY	63	(32)
THE MOSHAV AS AN ECONOMIC UNIT	64	(12)
THE ECONOMIC BASIS OF VILLAGE LIFE	76	(9)
Labor	77	(2)
Division of Labor	79	(5)
The Agricultural Cycle	84	(1)
FARMING AND WATER	85	(4)
COOPERATION IN THE MOSHAV: THE KAV NOA	89	(2)
ECONOMIC POWER AND INFLUENCE	91	(4)
CHAPTER 5: VILLAGE AND FARM DIFFERENCES IN LAND AND WATER USE	95	(28)
BUREAUCRACY AND DIVERSITY	95	(1)
HISTORICAL DIFFERENCES BETWEEN SETTLEMENTS	96	(4)
A COMPARISON OF VILLAGES	100	(5)
NORTH/SOUTH DIFFERENCES IN WATER USE	105	(2)
DECISIONS ABOUT FARMING	107	(14)
Farmers' Perceptions of Water Resources	107	(3)
Irrigation Technology	110	(3)
Sources of Information	113	(5)
Crop Differences	118	(1)
Crop Decisions	119	(2)
EFFICIENCY AND EFFECTIVENESS	121	(2)
CHAPTER 6: WHEN THINGS GO WRONG: CRISES AND THEIR MANAGEMENT	123	(26)
FARMERS AND TECHNICAL EXPERTS	124	(4)
ALGAE: A MINOR DISASTER	128	(8)
The Events	128	(3)
The Causes	131	(2)
The Responses	133	(3)
A SERIOUS WATER SHORTAGE	136	(6)
SALT	142	(7)
CHAPTER 7: CONCLUSIONS	149	(20)
HISTORICAL ROOTS OF THE CRISIS	151	(7)
LOCAL INITIATIVES	158	(1)
THE DEBT CRISIS AND THE WATER CRISIS	159	(1)
THE DEMISE OF SOCIALISM AND THE ECONOMIC DEBATE	160	(2)
CONCLUSIONS	162	(7)
REFERENCES	169