Water Rights Reform: Lessons for Institutional Design

The first part of the book reviews the range of institutional options available for water rights reformers to consider, combine, and adapt in improving water allocation. Authors in the second part of the book build on their experience in Australia, Mexico, and other countries to identify practical lessons for implementing water rights reforms. The chapters in the third part examine equity issues of revising rules that regulate who has access to water, in South Africa, the western United States, and Andean countries of South America, especially potential impacts on rural communities. The chapters in the fourth part analyze implications of recent water laws for water rights reforms in Spain, Indonesia, and China, focusing on security of rights for existing users and potential transferability of water rights. The final chapter offers conclusions concerning patterns, goals, and institutional design of reforms in water rights, emphasizing the advantages of phased reforms in redesigning governance, resolving tenure, and regulating transfers.