Water Law Commons^™

Great Lakes—St. Lawrence River Basin Sustainable Water Resources Agreement, The State Of Illinois, The State Of Indiana, The State Of Michigan, The State Of Minnesota, The State Of New York, The State Of Ohio, The Province Of Ontario, The Commonwealth Of Pennsylvania, The Government Of Québec, The State Of Wisconsin

Water Law Documents

1. The objectives of this Agreement are:
a. To act together to protect, conserve and restore the Waters of the Great Lakes—St. Lawrence River Basin because current lack of scientific certainty should not be used as a reason for postponing measures to protect the Basin Ecosystem;
b. To facilitate collaborative approaches to Water management across the Basin to protect, conserve, restore, improve and efficiently and effectively manage the Waters and Water Dependent Natural Resources of the Basin;
c. To promote co-operation among the Parties by providing common and regional mechanisms to evaluate Proposals to Withdraw Water;
d. To create a …

Great Lakes—St. Lawrence River Basin Water Resources Compact

Water Law Documents

The states of Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, New York, Ohio and Wisconsin and the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania hereby solemnly covenant and agree with each other, upon enactment of concurrent legislation by the respective state legislatures and consent by the Congress of the United States as follows:

ARTICLE 1: SHORT TITLE, DEFINITIONS, PURPOSES AND DURATION

ARTICLE 2: ORGANIZATION

ARTICLE 3: GENERAL POWERS AND DUTIES

ARTICLE 4: WATER MANAGEMENT AND REGULATION

ARTICLE 5: TRIBAL CONSULTATION

ARTICLE 6: PUBLIC PARTICIPATION

ARTICLE 7: DISPUTE RESOLUTION AND ENFORCEMENT

ARTICLE 8: ADDITIONAL PROVISIONS

ARTICLE 9: EFFECTUATION

A Hydrogeological Perspective Of The Status Of Ground Water Resources Under The Un Watercourse Convention, Gabriel Eckstein

Faculty Scholarship

When the U.N. General Assembly adopted the Convention on the Non-Navigational Uses of International Watercourses in 1997, it took a decisive step in recognizing the important role that transboundary ground water resources play in human progress and development. In so doing, it also acknowledged the need to establish principles of law governing this "invisible" but valuable natural resource. Transboundary ground water historically has been neglected in treaties, ignored in projects with international implications, and cursorily misunderstood in much of legal discourse.

While the Convention provides substantial clarification on the status of ground water under international law, it also leaves considerable …

Slides: Establish True Basin-Wide Institutions: The Return To The River Basin As The Unit Of Management, Charles W. (Chuck) Howe

Hard Times on the Colorado River: Drought, Growth and the Future of the Compact (Summer Conference, June 8-10)

Presenter: Charles Howe, University of Colorado.

13 pages and 10 slides.

Contains references.

New Mexico Water Stake In The Colorado River, Estevan R. Lopez

Hard Times on the Colorado River: Drought, Growth and the Future of the Compact (Summer Conference, June 8-10)

Presenter: Estevan R. Lopez, Interstate Stream Commission, New Mexico.

2 pages.

Slides: Tightening Water Supplies: Key Colorado River Issues For Wyoming, Patrick T. Tyrrell

Hard Times on the Colorado River: Drought, Growth and the Future of the Compact (Summer Conference, June 8-10)

Presenter: Patrick T. Tyrrell, Wyoming State Engineer.

14 slides.

Slides: The Multi-Species Conservation Program: What It Means For Water Users And The Environment In The Lower Basin, Joe Vanderhorst, Bob Johnson

Hard Times on the Colorado River: Drought, Growth and the Future of the Compact (Summer Conference, June 8-10)

Presenter: Joe Vanderhorst, Metropolitan Water District of Southern California.

Respondent on US-Mexico Issues and Other Lower Basin Matters: Bob Johnson, US Bureau of Reclamation.

26 slides.

Slides: "Tightening Water Supplies”: Arizona And The Lower Basin States, Herb Guenther

Hard Times on the Colorado River: Drought, Growth and the Future of the Compact (Summer Conference, June 8-10)

Presenter: Herb Guenther, Arizona Department of Water Resources.

31 slides.

Slides: Statewide Water Supply Initiative And Colorado River Compact Development, Rick Brown

Hard Times on the Colorado River: Drought, Growth and the Future of the Compact (Summer Conference, June 8-10)

Presenter: Rick Brown, Colorado Water Conservation Board.

29 slides.

Slides: Do The Upper Basin States Have Enough Water To Grow?: Is There Enough Water To Go Around?, Don A. Ostler

Hard Times on the Colorado River: Drought, Growth and the Future of the Compact (Summer Conference, June 8-10)

Presenter: Don A. Ostler, Upper Colorado River Commission.

24 slides.

How Does The Cap Water Bank Influence Short-Term And Long-Term Water Supply Vulnerability In The Basin?, Larry R. Dozier, Bob Johnson

Hard Times on the Colorado River: Drought, Growth and the Future of the Compact (Summer Conference, June 8-10)

Presenter: Larry R. Dozier, Central Arizona Project.

Respondent on US-Mexico Issues and Other Lower Basin Matters: Bob Johnson, US Bureau of Reclamation.

6 pages (includes color illustrations).

Agenda: Hard Times On The Colorado River: Drought, Growth And The Future Of The Compact, University Of Colorado Boulder. Natural Resources Law Center, Western Water Assessment (Program), Colorado Water Conservation Board, Center For Advanced Decision Support For Water And Environmental Systems, Hydrosphere Resource Consultants, Rocky Mountain Mineral Law Foundation, Colorado Foundation For Water Education, Patrick, Miller & Kropf, P.C., William & Flora Hewlett Foundation

Hard Times on the Colorado River: Drought, Growth and the Future of the Compact (Summer Conference, June 8-10)

Sponsors and Contributors: Colorado Water Conservation Board, Center for Advanced Decision Support for Water and Environmental Systems, Western Water Assessment, CU-CIRES/NOAA, Hydrosphere Resource Consultants, Rocky Mountain Mineral Law Foundation, Colorado Foundation for Water Education, Patrick, Miller & Kropf, P.C., William and Flora Hewlett Foundation.

The Colorado River is approaching a crossroads. For the first time in its history, satisfying water demands in one state may require curtailing legally-recognized uses in another. This is not the first instance of water shortages in the region, and conflict among the seven Colorado River states is certainly not new. But the potential shortages on …

History Of Colorado River Law, Development And Use: A Primer And Look Forward, Greg Hobbs, Jr.

Hard Times on the Colorado River: Drought, Growth and the Future of the Compact (Summer Conference, June 8-10)

Presenter: Greg Hobbs, Jr., Colorado Supreme Court.

25 pages.

Contains references.

Slides: Flowing Down The Basin: Federal Litigation On The Colorado River, Michael Gheleta

Hard Times on the Colorado River: Drought, Growth and the Future of the Compact (Summer Conference, June 8-10)

Presenter: Michael Gheleta, US Department of Justice.

53 slides.

Slides: Gila River Indian Community Water Settlement, Rodney B. Lewis

Hard Times on the Colorado River: Drought, Growth and the Future of the Compact (Summer Conference, June 8-10)

Presenter: Rodney B. Lewis, Gila River Tribal Attorney.

60 slides.

Slides: Last In Line: Environmental Impacts Of Increased Colorado River Stress And Shortages, Michael Cohen

Hard Times on the Colorado River: Drought, Growth and the Future of the Compact (Summer Conference, June 8-10)

Presenter: Michael Cohen, Pacific Institute.

35 slides and 34 pages (includes color illustrations and map).

Stormwater Utility Fees: Considerations & Options For Interlocal Stormwater Working Group (Iswg), New England Environmental Finance Center

Economics and Finance

Stormwater utilities are a concept whose time seems to have arrived. Established by relatively few communities in the 1970s as a method of funding flood control measures, stormwater utilities now exist in over 400 municipalities and counties throughout the United States. During the next 10 years, their numbers are expected to swell dramatically – by one estimate to over 2,000 by the year 2014.

The reasons for this growth are multifold. Federal stormwater regulations passed in the 1980s (Phase I of the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System Program, or NPDES), motivated many larger communities to seek alternative funding sources and …

On Integrity: Some Considerations For Water Law, Christine A. Klein

UF Law Faculty Publications

Expanding upon the aspects of integrity protected under the Clean Water Act, this Article will explore the relevance to water law of chemical,physical, ecosystem, social, and ethical integrity. Just as the Clean Water Act intended to prevent unacceptable "perturbations" of ecosystems, so also this Article will consider the extent to which the law itself may work an unacceptable perturbation of fundamental hydrologic and social principles. In many instances, water policy compartmentalizes the law in ways that have little to do with hydrologic reality and in ways that are antithetical to wholeness and integrity. Examples include the legal bifurcation of surface …

Debacle In Dixie: A Story Of Six Rivers, Three States, Two Compacts And One Well-Paved Path, George William Sherk

Publications

No abstract provided.

Delawate River Basin Compact, Jeffrey Featherstone

Publications

No abstract provided.

The Law Of Later-Developing Riparian States: The Case Of Afghanistan, (With J. Mcmurray), A. Dan Tarlock

All Faculty Scholarship

No abstract provided.

Indigenous Peoples' Rights To Water Under International Norms, David H. Getches

Publications

In this article, Dean Getches examines the nature of international law as it relates to indigenous water rights and evaluates the kinds of claims that native peoples might assert when they are deprived of access to water. Around the world, indigenous peoples have experienced depletion or pollution of their traditional water sources caused by the uses made by dominant, non-native societies. As a result, native peoples' ability to perform water-dependent vocations like farming and fishing, and to perpetuate cultures and spiritual practices requiring water is limited. While a few countries recognize water rights of indigenous peoples in their domestic laws, …

The Uncertain Future Of Water Rights In California: Reflections On The Governor's Commission Report, Brian E. Gray

Faculty Scholarship

No abstract provided.

A Conversation About Takings And Water Rights, John D. Leshy

Faculty Scholarship

No abstract provided.

Protecting A Hidden Treasure: The U.N. International Law Commission And The International Law Of Transboundary Ground Water Resources, Gabriel E. Eckstein

Faculty Scholarship

Ground water is the most extracted natural resource in the world. It provides more than half of humanity's freshwater for everyday uses such as drinking, cooking, and hygiene, as well as twenty percent of irrigated agriculture. Given the world's considerable reliance on this precious resource, it is reasonable to assume that international attention to, and especially legal consideration of, ground water would be substantial. Nothing is further from the truth. Despite the growing dependence, legal and regulatory attention to ground water resources have long been secondary to surface water, especially among legislatures and policymakers and above all in the international …

Can The Farmers Sue Uncle Sam When The Bureau Of Reclamation Reduces Deliveries To The Water District?, Robert H. Abrams

Journal Publications

Are farmers who have received water from an irrigation district "intended" third-party beneficiaries of that water district's service and repayment contracts with the United States Bureau of Reclamation and, therefore, within the scope of a waiver of sovereign immunity that would otherwise bar a suit by the farmers against the Bureau of Reclamation?

Pollution Without Solution: Flow Impairment Problems Under Clean Water Act Section 303, Reed D. Benson

Faculty Scholarship

"This Article deals with one section of the CWA, section 303, and its implications for flow-impaired streams and related policy issues. While the CWA's main thrust is controlling pollution from "point sources" through a system of permits and technology-based effluent limits, section 303 takes a different approach, focusing on the quality of individual waterbodies and requiring corrective steps for each one that falls below standards. Section 303 addresses not only point source discharges, but other human activities that affect the chemical, physical, and biological integrity of the nation's waters, including pollution from non-point sources, and perhaps even flow impairment. Thus, …

The Supreme Court Of Science Speaks On Water Rights: The National Academy Of Sciences Columbia River Report And Its Water Policy Implications, Reed D. Benson

Faculty Scholarship

Professor Benson reviews the Report on Columbia River water withdrawals and their effects on salmon recently issued by the National Academy of Sciences to the Washington State Department of Ecology, the agency responsible for managing Washingtons water withdrawals from the Columbia and its tributaries. After reviewing the Report, Professor Benson compares its recommendations with western water law's doctrine of prior appropriation and finds that many of the Report's recommendations are in direct conflict with prior appropriation principles. Finally, Professor Benson discusses the potential impact of the Report on water law in Washington and throughout the West. He concludes that, because …

Doing Water Quality Credit Trading Right, Alexandra Dapolito Dunn

Elisabeth Haub School of Law Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

The Supreme Court's Water Pollution Jurisprudence: Is The Court All Wet?, Jeffrey G. Miller

Elisabeth Haub School of Law Faculty Publications

Part I of this article sets the stage with a brief survey of federal water pollution control, focusing on the CWA. Part II examines statistical conclusions and inferences from a cursory review of the Court's CWA opinions. Part III examines some of the opinions in a more qualitative manner to determine whether the statistical conclusions withstand analysis and whether the Court understands the CWA. The latter determination requires examining the nature and severity of the Court's misinterpretations of the statute. Part IV examines the Court's decisions with anti-environmental results to determine whether they reflect an anti-environmental bias or the other …