Water Is for Fighting Over

"Illuminating." --New York Times WIRED's Required Science Reading 2016 When we think of water in the West, we think of conflict and crisis. In recent years, newspaper headlines have screamed, "Scarce water and the death of California farms," "The Dust Bowl returns," "A 'megadrought' will grip U.S. in the coming decades." Yet similar stories have been appearing for decades and the taps continue to flow. John Fleck argues that the talk of impending doom is not only untrue, but dangerous. When people get scared, they fight for the last drop of water; but when they actually have less, they use less. Having covered environmental issues in the West for a quarter century, Fleck would be the last writer to discount the serious problems posed by a dwindling Colorado River. But in that time, Fleck has also seen people in the Colorado River Basin come together, conserve, and share the water that is available. Western communities, whether farmers and city-dwellers or US environmentalists and Mexican water managers, have a promising record of cooperation, a record often obscured by the crisis narrative. In this fresh take on western water, Fleck brings to light the true history of collaboration and examines the bonds currently being forged to solve the Basin's most dire threats. Rather than perpetuate the myth "Whiskey's for drinkin', water's for fightin' over," Fleck urges readers to embrace a new, more optimistic narrative--a future where the Colorado continues to flow.

"John Fleck's Water is for Fighting Over is a smart, provocative, and ultimately hopeful look at how to solve water conflicts in the Colorado River Basin, the lifeline of the American Southwest. Fleck walks us away from the doomsday mentality of conflict and crisis toward a future that's already emerging--one of mutual adaptation that capitalizes on the numerous untapped opportunities to do more, and better, with less water. The story of the West is indeed a story of water, but not the narrative we've had drummed into our heads."--Sandra Postel, Director, Global Water Policy Project and co-author of "Rivers for Life", "An informative yet exceptionally compelling journey through the evolution of the Colorado River basin management...Fleck provides an accessible, informative, and captivating look into water management issues and the ways in which we have adapted and persevered through water scarcity." -- "Groundwater", "At the 1% extreme of thoughtful readble pieces on western water. The book is one of the most insightful and helpful works...since Cadillac Desert."-- "California WaterBlog", "Having covered environmental issues in the West for a quarter century, John Fleck brings a particular expertise to the pages of Water is for Fighting Over...[The book] is a fresh take on western water as it brings to light the true history of collaboration and examines the bonds currently being forged to solve the Basin's most dire threats."-- "Midwest Book Review", "Herald[s] a new genre, one less focused on catastrophe than innovation...Fleck may be writing about water, but his real subject is human nature."-- "Pacific Standard"

John Fleck is director of the University of New Mexico's Water Resources Program. For 25 years, he covered science and the environment for the Albuquerque Journal. He is author of The Tree Rings' Tale, a children's book about the climate of the West.