Law Commons^™

Thresholds Of Harm In Environmental Litigation: The Michigan Environmental Protection Act As Model Of A Minimal Requirement, Robert H. Abrams

Journal Publications

The Michigan Environmental Protection Act of 1970 (MEPA)I creates a broad private cause of action by which citizens and other entitiescan prevent environmental degradation. As with all statutes, the scope of MEPA's coverage is a critical issue in determining its effectiveness. The central argument of this article is that MEPA, in contrast to other environmental legislation, is intended to govern an extraordinarily wide variety of cases unfettered by a substantial threshold of harm requirement.

Interbasin Transfer In A Riparian Jurisdiction, Robert Haskell Abrams

Journal Publications

This Article explores some issues pertaining to interbasin diversion of water in the East. The major issues surveyed are the physical and political aspects of interbasin transfers and the legal doctrines that govern them. Intrastate transfers are studied separately from interstate transfers to delineate unique problems that attend the latter. When possible, the Article will focus on Virginia as a state that has importing regions where interbasin transfer is a possibility.

Governmental Expansion Of Recreational Water Use Opportunities, Robert Haskell Abrams

Journal Publications

The growing popularity of public boating and related water-based recreation is increasingly taxing the capacity of available lakes and strearns. As a result, accelerating demands have been made for public use of otherwise unavailable, "private" bodies of water. Although existing 'economic' and governmental mechanisms to expand recreational opportunities may be adequate in theory, they have failed to respond to these new demands coherently." This Article proposes that government enjoys additional power to increase the public's opportunity for water-based recreation.

The purpose of this Article is to lay a comprehensive, doctrinal foundation for broad governmental action. Simultaneously, this Article counsels a …