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Paper long abstract:

The paper aims to provide an in-depth analysis of the water management practices and conflicts in the late Modern Greece. It explores the dynamics of expertise and authority in the public debates relevant water management and specifically the management of rivers, the construction of water dams and the implementation of projects of rivers' diversion. Emphasis is given in the case of the river Acheloos in central Greece, an emblematic case of incomplete water management project and a case that influenced dramatically both the regional politics in Thessaly and the national techno-political culture. The public policies and public debates about the diversion of the river of Acheloos initiated in the 1930s but since 1960s there were continuous public conflicts that involved local communities, engineering institutes, local authorities, local rural communities, consulting companies, NGOs and environmental groups. Two are the major contributions of the paper. Firstly, I argue that the politics of expertise as it was developed in the historical transition of the public debate contributed in the configuration of public policies in water management, rural development and energy and agricultural policies. The establishment of credible expert advice was co-constructed with regimes of sustainability and natural commons. Secondly, the paper contributes a historical perspective in the public debate. Thus it will shed light on the roles and actions of different actors and institutions and on the changing character of networks of power over a period of 70 years. The paper is based on interviews and original research in local and national archives.