The Ovidian Water Drop: Negotiations in the Klamath Basin

The Klamath Basin agreements represent an imperfect, yet workable, framework for water management in the Upper and Lower Klamath Basin. After decades of conflict, the collaborative nature of the agreements provides a vision of stability for stakeholders and a potentially useful model for future water resource conflicts. With dozens of parties involved—including local, state, and federal actors—the agreements represent not only an integrative vision but also a profoundly symbolic redirection for a conflict-ridden basin. Like the water drop hollowing the stone, the ultimate solution in the basin did not spring from force or conflict but emerged, over time, from the perseverance and continual resolve of the parties involved: parties jaded by the status quo and determined to find some version of a sustainable solution.