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Integrated Resource and Environmental Management: The Human Dimension

Posted on: Sunday, 23 October 2005, 03:01 CDT

By Gerla, Philip J

Integrated Resource and Environmental Management: The Human Dimension, A.W. Ewert, D.C. Baker, and G.C. Bissix. Oxford Univ. Press, 198 Madison Ave., New York, NY 10016-4308. 2004. 290 pages. ISBN 0-85199-834-8.

Broadly defined, integrated natural resource and environmental management (IREM) refers to multiple, interrelated resources of a region and considers the linkage of humans to the environment and ecosystems, within a context of long term sustainability. Integrated Resource and Environmental Management: The Human Dimension fills the need for a text that thoroughly reviews and describes the management process and philosophy associated with the conflicting values and views of multiple stakeholders that often accompanies management of natural resources and the environment.

The text comprises three broad sections: historical and contemporary foundations, theory, and IREM models. In the first section, the authors consider the history of natural resource management with the strong focus on North America, followed by a description of the sources of conflict and other forces, including demographics, economics, indigenous population, environmental injustice, and international relationships. The second section examines the role and challenge of increasingly diverse stakeholders in IREM and some of the theoretical models that can serve as a basis for managing and mitigating complexity and conflict. Finally, the third section seeks to thoroughly define IREM and provides managers with a practical model in which to develop resource and environmental management plans.

The theory in the chapters and case studies that appear at the end of each chapter together provide excellent contrast and balance. The case studies, in particular, help to keep the reader engaged and interested. The examples include specific resource management issues in places as diverse as the Folly Farm in Somerset, England; dam construction in Belize; watershed management in Queensland, Australia; environmental protection and restoration in Calumet, Indiana; and the conflict between recreation and oil and gas production in the Kananaskis area west of Calgary, Alberta, among others.

Although the three authors come from different countries with somewhat contrasting natural resource management issues (U.S., U.K., and Australia), all three are associated with academic institutions, as are more than one-half of the case study authors. This perhaps gives a different view on the issues and conflicts than if grass roots managers presented it. The generally theoretical style of the text seems to reveal this bias. Notably lacking in the text is a consideration of IREM in poorer third-world and developing countries, where managers likely face the greatest political obstacles, conflict, and potential destruction of natural resources.

Although the book is generally easy to read, carefully written, and free from typographic errors, a few of the images in the case examples are difficult to decipher. For example, Figure 7.6 on page 147 shows an indiscernible map of the Chalillo Dam site in Belize. It is obvious that the map was reduced greatly and should have been redrawn to include only the most important features.

Each chapter includes thought provoking questions that help the reader connect the information in the chapters and case studies to their own experience and challenges. The questions focus on the content of the chapter and are carefully worded, which help to make the text appropriate for use in advanced undergraduate and graduate environmental management courses. In addition, a glossary provides definitions and brief explanations of unfamiliar words and phrases. Professional environmental managers may find the book useful in helping to build a foundation for successful management of natural resources where conflict and multiple stakeholders are involved.

Philip J. Gerla

Northern Tallgrass Prairie Hydrologist, The Nature Conservancy, and Associate Professor, Dept. of Geology and Geological Eng.

University of North Dakota

P.O. Box 8358

Grand Forks, ND 58202

Copyright American Water Resources Association Oct 2005

Source: Journal of the American Water Resources Association

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