Where Rivers Meet the Sea : The Political Ecology of Water

A creative, narrative approach to environmental destruction in urban waterscapes, focusing on neighborhood activists who pressure their governments to follow existing law Where fresh water appears to be abundant and generally accessible, chronic pollution may be relatively ignored as a public issue. Yet there are those whose lives, livelihoods and traditions are touched directly by the destructive albeit essential relationship between humans and water. In her passionate and persuasively argued Where Rivers Meet the Sea Stephanie Kane compares two cities and nations - Salvador, Brazil and Buenos Aires, Argentina - as she tells the stories of those who organize in the streets, petition the courts, and challenge their governments to implement and enforce existing laws designed to protect springs, lakes, harbours and rivers. Illuminating the complex and distinctive cultural forces in the South Atlantic that shape conflicts and collaborations pertaining to particular waterfront settings, Kane shows the dilemmas, inventiveness and persistence that provide the foundation for environmental and social justice movements writ large. Introduction Sense and science at the Lake of Dark Waters Dune shenanigans and festival memories Of sewage, sacrifice and sacred springs Water history, water activism Iconic bridges of La Boca and Madero (dereliction as opportunity) Neighbors fight to reverse eco-blind engineering in Tigre Delta Convergent protest from the provinces: hydroelectricity + gold-mining = water predation Conclusion.