River Republic: The Fall and Rise of America's Rivers

Daniel McCool not only chronicles the history of water development agencies in America and the way in which special interests have abused rather than preserved the country's rivers, he also narrates the second, brighter act in this ongoing story: the surging, grassroots movement to bring these rivers back to life and ensure they remain pristine for future generations. The culmination of ten years of research and observation, McCool's book confirms the surprising news that America's rivers are indeed returning to a healthier, free-flowing condition. The politics of river restoration demonstrates how strong grassroots movements can challenge entrenched powers and win. Through passion and dedication, ordinary people are reclaiming the American landscape, forming a "river republic" of concerned citizens from all backgrounds and sectors of society. As McCool shows, the history, culture, and fate of America is tied to its rivers, and their restoration is a microcosm mirroring American beliefs, livelihoods, and an increasing awareness of what two hundred years of environmental degradation can do. McCool profiles the individuals he calls "instigators," who initiated the fight for these waterways and, despite enormous odds, have succeeded in the near-impossible task of challenging and changing the status quo. Part I of the volume recounts the history of America's relationship to its rivers; part II describes how and why Americans "parted" them out, destroying their essence and diminishing their value; and part III shows how society can live in harmony with its waterways while restoring their well-being―and, by extension, the well-being of those who depend on them.

Science & Math

McCool, Daniel

Earth Sciences

Columbia University Press

Business & Money

Economics

Much has been written about legal questions surrounding Indian water rights; this book now places them in the political framework that also includes water development. McCool analyzes the two conflicting doctrines relating to water use—one based on federal case law governing the rights of Indians on reservations, the other sanctioned by legislation and applied to non-Indians—based on the "iron triangles" of bureaucrats, legislators, and interest groups that dominate policy issues. He examines the way federal and BIA water development programs have reacted to conflict, competition, and opportunity from the turn of the century to the 1980s and updates the situation in an introduction written for this edition.

Command of the Waters: Iron Triangles, Federal Water Development, and Indian Water

History

Americas

Univ. Of California Pr.

Vision and Place: John Wesley Powell and Reimagining the Colorado River Basin

The Colorado River Basin's importance cannot be overstated. Its living river system supplies water to roughly forty million people, contains Grand Canyon National Park, Bears Ears National Monument, and wide swaths of other public lands, and encompasses ancestral homelands of twenty-nine Native American tribes. John Wesley Powell, a one-armed Civil War veteran, explorer, scientist, and adept federal administrator, articulated a vision for Euro-American colonization of the "Arid Region" that has indelibly shaped the basin--a pattern that looms large not only in western history, but also in contemporary environmental and social policy. &nbsp; One hundred and fifty years after Powell's epic 1869 Colorado River Exploring Expedition, this volume revisits Powell's vision, examining ts historical character and its relative influence on the Colorado River Basin's cultural and physical landscape in modern times. In three parts, the volume unpacks Powell's ideas on water, public lands, and Native Americans--ideas at once innovative, complex, and contradictory. With an eye toward climate change and a host of related challenges facing the basin, the volume turns to the future, reflecting on how--if at all--Powell's legacy might inform our collective vision as we navigate a new "Great Unknown."

Wilkinson, Charles

Robison, Jason

Minckley, Thomas

University of California Press

Native Vote: American Indians, the Voting Rights Act, and the Right to Vote

The right to vote is the foundation of democratic government; all other policies are derived from it. The history of voting rights in America has been characterized by a gradual expansion of the franchise. American Indians are an important part of that story but have faced a prolonged battle to gain the franchise. One of the most important tools wielded by advocates of minority voting rights has been the Voting Rights Act. This book explains the history and expansion of Indian voting rights, with an emphasis on seventy cases based on the Voting Rights Act and/or the Equal Protection Clause. The authors describe the struggle to obtain Indian citizenship and the basic right to vote, then analyze the cases brought under the Voting Rights Act, including three case studies. The final two chapters assess the political impact of these cases and the role of American Indians in contemporary politics.

Olson, Susan M.

Robinson, Jennifer L.

Cambridge University Press

An original approach to the study of bureaucratic behavior that formulates a model of agency power supported by analysis of seven federal natural resource agencies. Staking Out the Terrain is a provocative and thoughtful work. …It is, in fact, of potential value to anyone interested in public policy or organizational behavior. Journal of Policy Analysis and Management Using the methodologies of policy analysis, historical development, the case study, and budgetary analysis, the authors provide an insightful analysis of bureaucratic behavior that helps explain why the fragmented approach to environmental policy has persisted so long. Clarke and McCool analyze seven federal natural resource agencies to formulate a model of agency power that focuses on the ability of agencies to expand resources and jurisdiction for environmental control. Their conclusions challenge the views of those who decry the growth and fragmentation of the federal environmental bureaucracy as irrational. Policy Studies Journal This new edition provides a current and comprehensive analysis of some key federal agencies that manage natural resources: the Army Corps of Engineers, the U. S. Forest Service, the National Park Service, the Natural Resources Conservation Service (formerly the Soil Conservation Service), the U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the Bureau of Reclamation, and the Bureau of Land Management. Although the book's framework remains unchanged, the chapters have been revised and updated with over 50 percent new material, and more emphasis has been placed on the centrality of the budget process for policymaking. Staking Out the Terrain offers a wealth of historical detail as well as an analysis of current policy conflicts over natural resource management. In addition to examining current trends in water and land management, Clarke and McCool put forward an innovative proposal to reshape federal natural resource administration for the twenty-first century.

Staking Out the Terrain (Suny Series in Environmental Politics and Policy)

Clarke, Jeanne N.

State University of New York Press

Real Estate

University of Arizona Press

Since the beginning of the reservation era, the bitter conflict between Indians and non-Indians over water rights was largely confined to the courtroom. But in the 1980s the federal government began to emphasize negotiated settlements over lawsuits, and the settlements are changing water rights in fundamental ways—not only for tribes but also for non-Indian communities that share scarce water resources with Indians. In Native Waters, Daniel McCool describes the dramatic impact these settlements are having both on Indian country and on the American West as a whole. Viewing the settlements as a second treaty era, he considers whether they will guarantee the water future of reservations—or, like treaties of old, will require tribes to surrender vast resources in order to retain a small part of their traditional homelands. As one tribal official observed, "It's like your neighbors have been stealing your horses for many years, and now we have to sit down and decide how many of those horses they get to keep." Unlike technical studies of water policy, McCool's book is a readable account that shows us real people attempting to end real disputes that have been going on for decades. He discusses specific water settlements using a combination of approaches—from personal testimony to traditional social science methodology—to capture the richness, complexity, and human texture of the water rights conflict. By explaining the processes and outcomes in plain language and grounding his presentation in relevant explanations of Indian culture, he conveys the complexity of the settlements for readers from a wide range of disciplines. Native Waters illustrates how America is coming to grips with an issue that has long been characterized by injustice and conflict, seeking to enhance our understanding of the settlements in the hope that this understanding will lead to better settlements for all parties. As one of the first assessments of a policy that will have a pervasive impact for centuries to come, it shows that how we resolve Indian water claims tells us a great deal about who we are as a nation and how we confront difficult issues involving race, culture, and the environment.

Native Waters: Contemporary Indian Water Settlements and the Second Treaty Era

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Books by McCool, Daniel