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Abstract: The laws and policies implemented to achieve food security or energy security are often incompatible. The source of this incompatibility is often water management. Some countries have attempted to achieve energy security by diversifying energy sources, for example, by developing biofuels produced from palm oil, sugar cane, or corn-based ethanol. Other countries have attempted to achieve energy security by increasing production of more conventional hydrocarbon energy sources, for example, through hydraulic fracturing of shale formation to produce natural gas. In each of these instances, the attempt to achieve energy security threatens food security, not only because food prices increase as arable land is converted from food production to energy production, but also because these energy crops are often more water-intensive than the food crops they replace. This Article argues that shifting the policy aim to water security will represent a more integrated approach to natural resource development and will ultimately reconcile the often competing demands of food and energy security.
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