Struggle over water in Boston and Oakland subject of new book

How Boston and Oakland resolved their water crises at the end of the 19^th century is the subject of a new book written by a historian at the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point.

Sarah S. Elkind, assistant professor of history, has just published "Bay Cities and Water Politics," a 288-page comparative historical analysis of Boston, Mass. and Oakland, Calif. water resource management issues at the turn of the century. Water contamination and recurring water shortages were common in both cities during that era.

Martin Melosi, author of "Garbage in the Cities," said Elkind’s book "is part of a new generation of books concerning the urban environment that make more understandable the administration of key sanitary services, the changing role of public authority and the implications of metropolitan growth."

Bay Cities and Water Politics, according to Elkind, represents a reversal in water management policy and how urban water resource issues helped give rise to improved public services and political reform in the early 1900s. In her book, she demonstrates how water played a key role in defining the limits of growth for both municipalities. Both cities eventually abandoned municipal water and sewer networks for metropolitan, and hence, regional water systems.

A regional solution solved their existing water contamination and water shortage problems, but led to some other unforeseen problems. One such issue was voters having less control over local utilities and their policies. "With less accountability, the environmental costs of urbanization went far beyond city limits, and subsequently, impacted water management issues in many neighboring communities," Elkind said.

"The book provides a comprehensive look at the transformation of cities, their natural surroundings, and urban problem solving 100 years ago," said the author. "But it also cautions many of our urban centers and urban resource professionals that struggle to balance regional water systems with urban growth issues and the overall health of the urban ecosystem. Creative thinking at the local and regional levels of society are crucial for any long-term solutions to water resource management."

Elkind, who came to UWSP in 1994, received a bachelor of arts degree from Wesleyan University, Middletown, Conn., a master’s and doctorate degrees in history from the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor.

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