Institutional Evolution in Lake Okeechobee Management in Florida: Characteristics, Impacts, and Limitations

Authors

Neeraj Vedwan, Montclair State UniversityFollow
Sajjad Ahmad, Desert Research Institute, Las Vegas, NVFollow
Fernando Miralles-Wilhelm, Florida International UniversityFollow
Kenneth Broad, University of Miami, Florida
David Letson, University of Miami, FloridaFollow
Guillermo Podesta, University of Miami, Florida

Document Type

Article

Publication Date

6-2008

Publication Title

Water Resources Management

Volume

22

Issue

6

First page number:

699

Last page number:

718

Abstract

The management of Lake Okeechobee in Florida has undergone significant changes in the last decade. Socio-political, environmental and demographic factors have driven changes in the environmental and water policy, which in turn have led to wide-ranging institutional changes and a shift toward multiobjective planning and implementation in the Lake management. This article describes the changes in the philosophy and practice of water resources management in South Florida hydrologic system, of which Lake Okeechobee is a crucial component. The impacts of the changes on management goals and decision processes are illustrated through a case study of the use of climate information in Lake management. The article concludes with a brief examination of the implications of the institutional changes, including greater public participation, for the long-term sustainability of the social-ecological system in South Florida.

Keywords

Adaptive management; Adaptive natural resource management; Climate information; Climatology; Decision making; Hydrology; Institutional evolution; Lake Okeechobee; Lakes; Lakes—Management; Policy; Stakeholder; Water; Water--Government policy; Water resources management; Water resources development--Management

Disciplines

Civil and Environmental Engineering | Environmental Engineering | Environmental Sciences | Water Resource Management

Language

English

Permissions

Use Find in Your Library, contact the author, or interlibrary loan to garner a copy of the item. Publisher policy does not allow archiving the final published version. If a post-print (author's peer-reviewed manuscript) is allowed and available, or publisher policy changes, the item will be deposited.

Repository Citation

Vedwan, N., Ahmad, S., Miralles-Wilhelm, F., Broad, K., Letson, D., Podesta, G. (2008). Institutional Evolution in Lake Okeechobee Management in Florida: Characteristics, Impacts, and Limitations. Water Resources Management, 22(6), 699-718.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s11269-007-9187-8