This research had two objectives. The first was to explain the ideal components of a
municipal drought contingency plan. The elements include public involvement, drought response
triggering criteria, successive stages of response, drought response management measures, enforcement,
and plan adoption. The second objective is to assess the drought contingency plans of retail public water
suppliers submitted to the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) to determine which
retail public water suppliers utilized the model drought contingency plan and how close all the plans met
the ideal components. The overall assumption of this research is that the model drought contingency plan
developed by the TCEQ is an effective tool for retail public water suppliers in Texas to aid them in
meeting the regulatory components of drought contingency plans.
The first portion of this research examines, from a national level, the concept of drought, drought impacts,
future impacts facing municipal public water suppliers, problems with traditional drought planning,
drought policy, and lessons learned from previous droughts. A conceptual framework for a municipal
drought contingency plan is developed from the review of available literature. The purpose of the review
is to explain the components of an ideal plan.
The paper later focuses on Texas, the setting for this research. A brief overview of Texas droughts and
projections are presented. A description is provided for both the model drought contingency plan and the
municipal drought contingency plans selected for assessment.
The later part of the paper discusses the methodology used to assess the municipal drought contingency
plans submitted to the TCEQ by retail public water suppliers in Texas. Content analysis is used to
determine which municipal public water suppliers utilized the TCEQ model drought contingency plan in
developing their plans and which did not. After determining which suppliers utilized the model, content
analysis is further used for each of the drought contingency plans to determine which ideal components
are included in all of the plans. A discussion of how the practical ideal type of a municipal drought
contingency plan is operationalized into measurable items for assessment is provided. The findings of the
analysis confirm that the model plan in Texas is an effective tool for retail public water suppliers in
meeting the required components of drought contingency plans.
The paper concludes with a summary of the research findings in relation to the practical ideal type of the
model drought contingency plan in Texas and concludes with recommendations and suggestions for
additional research. Includes 32 references, tables.
| Edition : | Vol. - No. |
| File Size : | 1
file
, 530 KB |
| Note : | This product is unavailable in Ukraine, Russia, Belarus |
| Number of Pages : | 34 |
| Published : | 01/11/2004 |
