Term Paper on "Los Angeles Department of Water & Power"

Quoted Instructions for "Los Angeles Department of Water and Power" Assignment:

ESPM 60 RESEARCH ASSIGNMENT # 2

WATER MANAGEMENT

The purpose of this assignment is to help develop your understanding and analysis of water management issues in the United States. You will choose to research one of three possible case studies in California. The assignment will help enrich the material in Classes 9 to 11 with your own learning.

Your task is to evaluate a contemporary water issue. You will look at how the water issue is defined and what the contemporary management problems are. Then you will take a more historical look at how management has happened. Finally, you have the chance to think about how management might happen differently. Above all, we would like you to think about the reasons why a water issue is being managed in the ways that it is.

The best essays will be concise, well-expressed essays that use a range of references (not just websites). To achieve this standard, we suggest that you develop your paper from an outline, use the most relevant specific details of your case, and support your claims with evidence rather than emotive opinion. We will reward essays that include a clear problem statement at the start, try to address the points in order, and have a conclusion at the end.

First, you can choose from one of the following three cases of water management issues in California. This will allow you to focus your research efforts much more on the specific case.

1. The San Francisco Bay Delta Area and CALFED. Select one issue that CALFED deals with. For example, ecosystem restoration, wetlands, flooding, irrigation, or water rights allocation. Note that CALFED is a relatively new federal-state government agency and you may need to look back beyond CALFED to the prior managers of the Delta Area.

2. The Los Angeles Department of Water & Power and the water supply to the City of Los Angeles. Select one issue that affects the city*****s supplies now. For example, the California Aqueduct and the Colorado River Aqueduct. The LADWP is also

considering building a desalinization plant to provide more water for the city, and thinking about recycling water.

3. The Klamath River Basin and the conflict over water rights. In the last few years, there have been bitter battles between farmers, Native American tribes, the

Bureau of Reclamation, a private company that owns the dams there, and the Fishery and Wildlife Service *****“ regarding how to use the water rights. If you do this case study, select a specific issue in the Klamath River Basin. For example,

endangered species, or Native American water rights.

If you are unsure about what to focus on, please consult with me.

Then you write an essay that speaks to each of the three questions:

1. What is the water management issue? Begin with a description of the problem. What is the issue and who are the important actors involved (such as agencies and

farmers)? What are the most important problems (such as water scarcity or ecosystem damage) and why are they happening? This will be your *****problem statement*****.

2. What are four important historical milestones in the development of the issue? How do these milestones have an impact on how the issue is being managed now? Pick four agency decisions, legislation, court rulings, advocacy campaigns, or implementation steps. They can be in the last 10 years, or the last 100+! Explain what these are, why they are important and how they have helped shape how the issue is managed. For example, an agency might decide to build a dam instead of looking for water savings. Evaluate whether and how the management approach fit with any of the models for policy-making that we have discussed so far.

3. How might the water issue be managed differently? Reflect on the extent to which the issue is being managed *****successfully*****. For example, what are the reasons for any problems that you identify in managing the issue? How would you do things differently? Are there proposals for alternative management approaches?