Water management on the Mexico-US border: a review of the literature

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to examine literature relating to water management on the Mexico-US border. It suggests avenues that may be valuable in improving cooperation in policy-making between the USA and Mexico on water management issues. Design/methodology/approach: A review of the literature associated with water management on the border of Mexico and the USA is conducted in this paper. The studies are chosen from scholarly databases (pre-eminently EBSCOHost and JSTOR), and are chosen for their depth, authoritativeness of the authors involved, and because of the empirical and quantifiable data they present. The studies selected ranged from the mid-1990s to 2017. Findings: The literature selected for review in this paper demonstrates that shared water resources must be managed in a combination of national and binational ways to lead to sustainability. In the border region, recent initiatives to resolve inequalities have emerged, including steps taken by North American Development Bank to purchase bonds as loans. Originality/value: Historical approaches to policy have been moderately successful, but policy needs to be updated in line with current circumstances and requirements. There appears to be a misunderstanding of what is currently needed from policy. This paper identifies areas that need updated policy and makes policy recommendations.