Water, Ecosystems, and Society: a confluence of disciplines

Water resources constitute a vital component of ecosystems of the earth.They are being threatened by unsustainable use with its evergrowing ecological foot prints far exceeding its carrying capacity.This book by Professor Jayanta Bandyopadhyay, a well known ecologist, while arguing for a need for interdisciplinary approaches, explains the role of different disciplines in the ecologically sustainable management of water resources.It highlights the importance of interdisciplinary approaches in dealing with fl oods, a curse as well as a benefactor, especially in many developing countries including India and interlinking the rivers to avoid fl oods and ensure more equitable distribution of water, both geographically and temporally.This book also rightly points out that the economic valuations of water system services require interdisciplinary approaches.This book underscores the importance of developing the knowledge of water systems in an interdisciplinary perspective for developing strategies to ensure the sustainable supply of ecological services they provide.It observes that there is a disconnect between water systems knowledge and water resource development in India.There is an urgent need for understanding the past growing inter-disciplinary knowledge on water systems and the emerging paradigm shift in their management all over the world.