Hydro-social systems, state management and legalization of the private role: effects of the drought and the struggle of water in the early twentieth century in Provincia de Santiago

Abstract

This paper studies the drought that affected the province de Santiago during the second half of the 1900s. Through the analysis of official documents from the National Historical Archive of Chile, written press and specialized secondary bibliography, we study the factors that affected the decrease of available water and state responses to this environmental challenge. We propose that the State sought to exercise greater control over the rivers of the province, along with legalizing the administration of channels to private associations. Consequently, this drought, influenced by natural and human factors, was an opportunity to adopt water privatization measures.