Announcing LA499-04 (73863) Los Angeles Aqueduct Seminar at Cal Poly Pomona this fall!
A Seminar on the Romance, Reality & Politics of the Owens Valley Aqueduct
Fall 2012 Wednesdays 12:00PM – 1:50PM Location: 7-217 2 credits
The Romance – Did Los Angeles ‘steal’ the water from the Owens Valley? How would the Owens Valley look today without the Aqueduct? How did the failed bank of the Watterson Brothers fuel the controversy in the 1920s? Will the current restoration efforts truly return the Valley to its natural landscape?
The Realty – How did the Aqueduct come to be and who were the major players? Why did Los Angeles need so much water? William Mulholland – progressive or exploiter? How did the San Fernando Mission Land Company and the Los Angeles Times contribute to the aqueduct’s construction? Who is JP Lippincott and what role did he play with both the Feds and Angelenos in making the Aqueduct a reality?
The Politics – What public policy drove the desire for ‘imported’ water and how has the precedent of the Owens Valley Aqueduct shaped the subsequent Colorado Aqueduct and California Aqueduct? How did Audubon Society v. Superior Court of Alpine Valley and the Public Trust Doctrine change the policy framework in the Valley? What factors, including dust storms and a depressed economy, challenge the Owens Valley today?
This seminar is open to all upper-division students at Cal Poly Pomona.
An optional multi-day field trip (with LA301L & LA401L) to see the Aqueduct and meet the people of the Owens Valley is being offered from October 14th to 17th.
Student evaluations will be based upon class participation, a research paper about one topic related to the Aqueduct, and a collaborative multimedia project.
About the instructor:
Meredith McKenzie, JD, is a recognized California water policy expert, has been a faculty member at Cal Poly Pomona in the Urban & Regional Planning Department since 2008, where she teaches graduate and undergraduate students in environmental planning and the California Water course. She also serves as a faculty representative to the university-wide ‘water initiative’ planning group.
As a consultant, McKenzie directs water-related projects for such clients as the City of Pasadena, Arroyo Seco Foundation, and Friends of the Los Angeles River, and serves on numerous committees, including the Upper Los Angeles River Integrated Regional Water Management Steering Committee and the Los Angeles Dept of Water & Power Recycled Water Advisory Group.
Aqueduct Futures 