Drought and Water Scarcity in the UK: Social Science Perspectives on Governance, Knowledge and Outreach

This book presents a social science perspective on drought and water scarcity in the UK. It puts forward a narrative of how different stakeholders manage drought and water scarcity, how they generate and manage knowledge and how power relationships between stakeholders shape drought and water scarcity management.
The book begins with an analysis and critique of all water resources management plans produced by English and Welsh water supply companies for the period 2014-2019 and introduces a novel typology for drought management options. It then moves on to discuss the effect of drought and water scarcity on businesses and production processes as well as how knowledge about drought and water scarcity is generated, by whom and for what purpose. Ultimately the book argues for the urgent need to engage people in the UK about water issues and offers a novel perspective on how to communicate and engage with drought research.
Kevin Grecksch is British Academy Postdoctoral Fellow at the Centre for Socio-Legal Studies, University of Oxford, UK. He is a social scientist specialising in water governance and climate change adaptation. He holds a doctorate in Economics from Carl von Ossietzky University Oldenburg, Germany.