Law Commons^™

Anti-Waste, Michael Pappas

Faculty Scholarship

It may be a bad idea to waste resources, but is it illegal? Legally speaking, what does “waste” even mean? Though the concept may appear completely subjective, this Article builds a framework for understanding how the law identifies and addresses waste.

Drawing upon property and natural resource doctrines, the Article finds that the law selects from a menu of five specific, and sometimes competing, societal values to define waste. The values are: 1) economic efficiency, 2) human flourishing, 3) concern for future generations, 4) stability and consistency, and 5) ecological concerns. The law recognizes waste in terms of one or …

Agenda: The Future Of Natural Resources Law And Policy, University Of Colorado Boulder. Natural Resources Law Center, Rocky Mountain Mineral Law Foundation

The Future of Natural Resources Law and Policy (Summer Conference, June 6-8)

The Natural Resources Law Center's 25th Anniversary Conference and Natural Resources Law Teachers 14th Biennial Institute provided an opportunity for some of the best natural resources lawyers to discuss future trends in the field. The conference focused on the larger, cross-cutting issues affecting natural resources policy. Initial discussions concerned the declining role of scientific resource management due to the increased inclusion of economic-cost benefit analysis and public participation in the decision-making process. The effectiveness of this approach was questioned particularly in the case of non-market goods such as the polar bear. Other participants promoted the importance of public participation and …

Wells And Streams: Relationship At Law, Peter N. Davis

Faculty Publications

Groundwater constitutes one of the major sources of water for municipalities, irrigators, and rural dwellers. Conflicts between groundwater users are bound to arise from time to time, as is evidenced by a recent Missouri case, Higday v. Nickolaus, discussed elsewhere in this issue.' Such conflicts may increase in frequency in the future as the demand for groundwater increases. Although a majority of cases will involve allocation of groundwater between users of that class of water, many groundwater diversion cases will involve adverse effects on the flow of water in streams. It is –to the latter situation that this article is …