This study analyses the evolution of irrigation and water distribution policies in Chile during the first half of the 20th century, highlighting the growing role of the State in shaping the countrys hydrological geographies.It argues that the enactment of the 1948 Water Code, aimed at regulating water use rights, generated strong opposition from landowners, who managed to suspend its application through political and economic pressure, leading to the approval of and a new code in 1951.Through the analysis of bibliography, official documents, parliamentary debates, and contemporary press, the study reconstructs the process of approval and subsequent repeal of this key legislation for water management in Chile, which not only involved control over a vital resource, but also influenced the power relations that shape spatial organization of the territory.
P. Camus (Thu,) studied this question.