Water in New Mexico: A History of Its Management and Use

Originally published in 1987, Water in New Mexico remains one of the most comprehensive studies of a natural resource for any state. It contains material from the earliest pueblo irrigation systems to recent judicial decisions. Clark explores the issues of land-grant water rights, the effects of coal and uranium mining on water quality, the allocation of groundwater, as well as the interstate and federal-state conflicts over land and water. These issues reflect the competing demands for private control, environmental quality, recreational access, and commercial use that influence the management of water to this day.

This volume brings together in one source a wealth of historical and contemporary material of great importance to lawyers, engineers, historians, economists, political scientists, environmentalists, and policy makers. Clark has effectively narrated a complex and tangled history in a style that is accessible to lay readers as well as to specialists.