Water Quality: Management of a Natural Resource is the first text in the field to discuss aquatic ecosystems in the context of human valuation, human decision making, and how those attributes vary among cultures. The approach is interdisciplinary and cross-cultural and offers four critical new dimensions to the existing literature on water quality management.

The book addresses a social dimension and an understanding of how water quality management has evolved to its present state; an integrated dimension, in which the interactions among chemical, physical, biological, and social aspects are explored; an ecological dimension to yield a proactive management strategy; and an international dimension demonstrating the care required in applying water quality management across borders and regions and among many cultures.

Each chapter of the book begins with an overview and concludes with a list of review papers, texts, and primary journal articles. Written for advanced students in water quality management and decision makers interested in a broad and integrated approach to water quality management, Water Quality: Management of a Natural Resource is the most comprehensive source in the field.