Integrated water resources management is a conceptual framework that is meant to describe the complexity of water decisions and the importance of balancing stakeholder viewpoints. Implementation is difficult because of institutional barriers and because of definitional confusion over the precise meaning of IWRM. Improved governance is required to overcome institutional barriers. Specific and unambiguous language may reduce confusion, but it may oversimplify the complexity. The present paper offers a brief definition of integrated water resources management and a list of seven elements for integration. Brief examples are then given from different countries in order to illustrate each of these elements. Coordination across geographic areas is recognized as a special challenge of integration and emerging efforts toward integration in some countries will bear close scrutiny to measure their success. Regardless of the ultimate success in promoting the concept of integrated water resources management, it communicates to stakeholders the notion that water decisions require balance and the promotion of shared values, such as conservation and the alleviation of poverty. If institutional barriers and confusion about the concept are overcome, actual improvements in water stewardship may result.

Drought is a complex natural phenomenon that lacks a universally accepted definition, thus it is difficult to confront holistically. Several efforts have been made towards managing the widespread and catastrophic drought impacts. In this quest, the concept of vulnerability to drought seems to offer some significant potential. In the present attempt, a standardized drought vulnerability index (SDVI) is presented, applied, and spatially visualized through geostatistical methods on a country scale. Greece, experiencing frequent and intense droughts, was selected as the study site. In an effort to link drought characteristics to impacts, the index incorporates water supply information, demand data, the state of the relevant water infrastructure and climatic parameters represented by the standardized precipitation index. The index showed potential in portraying various vulnerability states and followed satisfactorily the vulnerability fluctuations in Greece in relation to recorded drought hazard dimensions and impacts. The SDVI may be considered as a first step for the emergence of an integrated SDVI with multiscalar applications in environmental research and decision-making. It is believed that improving techniques in index formulation may complement more reasonable and acceptable solutions to water challenges posed by droughts and help avoid a drifting sense of continuous 'water crises'.

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With implementation of the Flood Insurance Act of 1968 many additional local flood protection projects are being considered. Consulting engineers and local agencies need consistent methods to estimate flood damage in order to perform feasibility studies. Federal agencies have a great deal of data and long experience in making damage estimates but no comprehensive guides are available at the local level. Curves of flood damages to different residential structure types are presented. The relationships in use by the U. S. Federal Insurance Administration are shown to be reasonable and are recommended for use as approximate guides. Additional research is recommended and discussion of the paper is invited in order to make additional data available in the literature.

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