Governing the Freshwater Commons: Lessons from Application of the Trilogy of Governance Tools in Australia and the Western United States

Common pool resources, by definition, are difficult to govern. The governance of water as a common pool resource is even more complex because of its unique physical characteristics, our special relation to it, and its necessity for life. Western societies have developed three approaches to governance of common pool resources: (1) government regulation; (2) the division of the resource into private property; and (3) self-organisation involving both governmental and nongovernmental actors. This chapter asserts that the unique nature of water requires the availability of all three approaches for use in combination if society is to rise to the challenge presented by the impact of growing population and climate change on water supply and demand. Long-term drought provides a window on potential future climate scenarios. In the face of long-term drought, Australia and the western United States have responded through innovation in water governance. This provides an opportunity for comparative analysis of reform to begin to understand the combination of governance approaches that lead to greater adaptive capacity.