Trajectories in Australian Water Policy

Abstract

This paper discusses past and current Australian water policy and management, with comparison to trends in the European Union and United States. Particular attention is paid to the policy directions made explicit in Australia’s National Water Initiative for the period 2004-2014. To move beyond description toward a stronger analytical purchase, we begin with a historical perspective, and use the concepts of policy discourses and political drivers to identify underlying motivations of policy change.