Surprise in water‐resource design

Abstract

Abstract Recent literature has suggested that optimality alone is not a sufficient characteristic of acceptable system design, and that it might not be a necessary characteristic under certain conditions. Given the policy‐making and the institutional constraints into which a water‐resource system is imposed, minimization of the likelihood of ‘surprise’ is suggested as an alternative criterion, and recent water‐resource experience is examined to identify various types and measures of surprise for design practitioners.