Welsh Journals

Paper presented at the 9th World Congress of Sociology, Upsala, Sweden, August 1978. Book Reviews Water Planning and the Regions, edited byP.J.Drudy. Discussion Paper I, Regional Studies Association, 1977, No price quoted. In his foreword to this document, the proceedings of a conference held at the London School of Economics and Political Science in March 1977, Lord Nugent, Chairman of the National Water Council, expresses the opinion that the regional water authorities emerged well from the "Great Drought" of 1975-1976. If they fared well at the time then the next time around they should fare even better if the interest in water matters generated by the drought continues to pro- duce realistic assessments of our water resource potential such as the six papers in this publication. Whilst none relate specifically to the drought, the comments of a number of eminent authorities on a wide variety of water management problems are to be welcomed in the contribution they make towards bringing a general review of water resources in England and Wales up to date. Not only has the drought itself spurred an increased awareness of water as a resource, but the period of hyper-inflation accompanying it has forced many formerly high priorities to be thrown out with the bath-water. Recent natural events have pointed to the need to review afresh such schemes as water transfer between regions and barrage storage projects as suggested in the former Wales Resources Board 1973 report on the water resources of England and Wales. As usual one is always left wondering whatever happened to the Scottish regions! The six contributions deal with water as a resource, the problems of water supply and demand and the organisational structure of water management in England and Wales. Of particular relevance to Wales is the paper by Maurice Broady which very capably traces the politics of "Welsh Water" from its historical inception at the hands of the English with the establishment of the Elan Valley reservoir complex, and others similar, at the turn of the century, to the links with the growth of nationalism at the present time, and the unfortunate water cost differentials which arose following the implementation of the 1973 Water Act. If cost differentials created ire amongst many Welshmen, the seasonal pressures upon environment, water and man alike, induced by the thousands of recreating tourists every summer, provide headaches for water engineers and managers in general. The Chairman of the Water Space Amenity Commission, J.A.C.Humphries, paints a rather depressing picture of water re- creation in the near future; promising a significantly increased demand for all types of water-based leisure (and thus also of conflict