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Full-Text Articles in Law
Developing An International Carbon Tax Regime, Steven Specht
Developing An International Carbon Tax Regime, Steven Specht
Steven Specht
As atmospheric CO2 remains in the range of 400 ppm, it is necessary to find new international coordination to deal with climate change. The best way forward is an international regime of harmonized domestic carbon taxes. By agreeing to a minimum amount of taxation on domestic, point-source producers, money can be set aside for adaptation costs and alternative means of energy production. Finally, such a plan will overcome the problem of non-participation of countries in agreements like the Kyoto Protocol. As this is a treaty dealing with economics and trade, countries can place taxes on imports of non-participatory countries under …
Endangered Species In The Oil Patch: Challenges And Opportunities For The Oil And Gas Industry, Gabriel Eckstein, Jesse Snyder
Endangered Species In The Oil Patch: Challenges And Opportunities For The Oil And Gas Industry, Gabriel Eckstein, Jesse Snyder
Gabriel Eckstein
Tension among competing interests is nothing new in environmental law. Even among the most tenacious adversaries, the ability to find common ground can serve as an impetus to further the aims of both industry and environmental proponents. Broadly speaking, advocates of the oil and gas industry prefer few restraints, if any, on exploration, development, and production. Comparatively, champions of biological and ecological preservation favor regulatory protections to conserve these interests. Cutting across these often disparate objectives, the Endangered Species Act (ESA) presents a not-so-obvious opportunity for both sides to receive a share of the pie through cooperation and forward planning. …
Maintaining A Healthy Water Supply While Growing A Healthy Food Supply: Legal Tools For Cleaning Up Agricultural Water Pollution, Mary Jane Angelo, Jon Morris
Maintaining A Healthy Water Supply While Growing A Healthy Food Supply: Legal Tools For Cleaning Up Agricultural Water Pollution, Mary Jane Angelo, Jon Morris
Mary Jane Angelo
This article will explore a number of legal mechanisms that could play a role in ensuring that discharges from agricultural activities do not cause or contribute to violations of water quality standards. Specifically, this article will evaluate the relative effectiveness of: (1) narrative nutrient criteria as compared with numeric nutrient criteria; (2) Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) implementation through regulatory and non-regulatory mechanisms; and (3) the relative efficacy of design-based standards such as Best Management Practices (BMPs) and performance-based standards in reducing water pollution from agriculture. The article will draw on experiences from the State of Florida, including Everglades' restoration …
A Taxing Endeavor: Local Government Protection Of Our Nation's Coasts In The "Wake" Of Climate Change, Simone Savino
A Taxing Endeavor: Local Government Protection Of Our Nation's Coasts In The "Wake" Of Climate Change, Simone Savino
Simone Savino
A storm is brewing, and not just in our nation’s coastal waters. The effects of climate change are becoming alarmingly apparent: sea levels are rising, storm surges are intensifying and ocean temperatures are warming at increasing speeds. Higher storm surges have led to increased flooding in coastal zones and nearby low-lying regions. The need for greater disaster preparedness in areas vulnerable to storm surges is evident, not just in the United States, but worldwide. As a direct result, coastal towns and cities have been left with the daunting task, and cost, of implementing littoral adaptation measures such as beach renourishment …
The Public Trust Doctrine, Private Water Allocation, And Mono Lake: The Historic Saga Of National Audubon Society V. Superior Ct., Erin Ryan
Erin Ryan
This article tells the epic tale of the fall and rise of Mono Lake—the strange and beautiful Dead Sea of California—which fostered some of the most important environmental law developments of the last century, and which has become a platform for some of the most potentially important developments in the new century. It shares the backstory and legacy of the California Supreme Court’s famous decision in National Audubon Society v. Superior Court, 658 P.2d 709 (Cal. 1983), known more widely as “the Mono Lake case.” Inspired by innovative legal scholarship and advocacy, the decision spawned a quiet legal revolution in …
Anti-Waste, Michael Pappas
Anti-Waste, Michael Pappas
Michael Pappas
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 …
Antimonopoly And The Radical Lochean Origins Of Western Water Law, Michael Blumm
Antimonopoly And The Radical Lochean Origins Of Western Water Law, Michael Blumm
Michael Blumm
This review of David Schorr's book, The Colorado Doctrine: Water Rights, Corporations, and Distributive Justice on the American Frontier, maintains that the book is a therapeutic corrective to the standard history of the origins of western water law as celebration of economic efficiency and wealth maximization. Schorr's account convincingly contends that the roots of prior appropriation water law--the "Colorado Doctrine"--lie in distributional justice concerns, not in the supposed efficiency advantages of private property over common property. The goals of the founders of the Colorado doctrine, according to Schorr, were to advance Radical Lochean principles such as widespread distibution of water …
Constitutional Limitations On Land Use Controls, Environmental Regulations And Governmental Exactions, 2013 Edition, Garrett Power
Constitutional Limitations On Land Use Controls, Environmental Regulations And Governmental Exactions, 2013 Edition, Garrett Power
Garrett Power
This electronic book is published in a searchable PDF format as a part of the E-scholarship Repository of the University of Maryland Francis King Carey School of Law. It is an “open content” casebook intended for classroom use in courses in Constitutional Law, Land Use Control, and Environmental Law and. It consists of 130 odd judicial opinions (most rendered by the U.S. Supreme Court) carefully selected from the two hundred years of American constitutional history which address the clash between public sovereignty and private property. The text considers both the personal right to liberty and the personal right in property. …
Shifting Sands: A Meta-Theory For Public Access And Private Property Along The Coast, Melissa K. Scanlan
Shifting Sands: A Meta-Theory For Public Access And Private Property Along The Coast, Melissa K. Scanlan
Melissa K. Scanlan
Over half the United States population currently lives near a coast. As shorelines are used by more people, developed by private owners, and altered by extreme weather, competition over access to water and beaches will intensify, as will the need for a clearer legal theory capable of accommodating competing private and public interests. One such public interest is to walk along the beach, which seems simple enough. However, beach walking often occurs on this ambulatory shoreline where public rights grounded in the public trust doctrine and private rights grounded in property ownership intersect. To varying degrees, each state has a …
Climate Change And Water Transfers, Christine A. Klein
Climate Change And Water Transfers, Christine A. Klein
Christine A. Klein
Climate change adaption is all about water. Although some governments have begun to plan for severe water disruptions, many have not. The consequences of inaction, however, may be dire. As a report of the U.N. Environment Programme warns, “countries that adopt a ‘wait and see’ approach potentially risk the lives of their people, their ecosystems and their economies.” In the United States, according to one study, nearly 60% of the states are unprepared to deal with the impending crisis. Responding to this void, we offer what we believe is the first comprehensive, state-by-state survey of water allocation law and its …
Escaping The Sporhase Maze: Protecting State Waters Within The Commerce Clause, Mark S. Davis, Michael Pappas
Escaping The Sporhase Maze: Protecting State Waters Within The Commerce Clause, Mark S. Davis, Michael Pappas
Michael Pappas
Eastern states, though they have enjoyed a history of relatively abundant water, increasingly face the need to conserve water, particularly to protect water-dependent ecosystems. At the same time, growing water demands, climate change, and an emerging water-oriented economy have intensified pressure for interstate water transfers. Thus, even traditionally wet states are seeking to protect or secure their water supplies. However, restrictions on water sales and exports risk running afoul of the Dormant Commerce Clause. This Article offers guidance for states, partciularly eastern states concerned with maintaining and improving water-dependent ecosystems, in seeking to restrict water exports while staying within the …
Interstate Water Compact Version 3.0: Missouri River Basin Compact Drafters Should Consider An Inter-Sovereign Approach To Accommodate Federal And Tribal Interests In Water Resources, Jeffrey T. Matson
Jeffrey T Matson
In the aftermath of the historic 2011 Missouri River flood, Missouri River Basin (MRB) state representatives and governors criticize the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Corps) for operating the Missouri River Mainstem Reservoir System (System) in support of the multiple, often conflicting, purposes outlined in the Flood Control Act of 1944. These officials envision entering into an interstate compact to divest the Corps of some of its operational authority and to broaden their role in managing water resources. Similarly, MRB tribal leaders argue that the Corps fails to operate its System in a manner that respects the interrelated issues of …
Modernizing Water Law: The Example Of Florida, Christine A. Klein, Mary Jane Angelo, Richard Hamann
Modernizing Water Law: The Example Of Florida, Christine A. Klein, Mary Jane Angelo, Richard Hamann
Mary Jane Angelo
This Article takes a national view of the modernization of water law. Using Florida as an example, it identifies some of the most important and controversial challenges faced by states. Part II provides an overview of the process of water law reform. As states attempt to improve water management, they have modified their common law water allocation systems with an overlay of statutory law. Often, the process occurs in a piecemeal fashion, resulting in a patchwork of rules -- common law and statutory, old and new. In rare cases -- including that of Florida -- the process may be more …
Integrating Water Management And Land Use Planning: Uncovering The Missing Link In The Protection Of Florida's Water Resources?, Mary Jane Angelo
Integrating Water Management And Land Use Planning: Uncovering The Missing Link In The Protection Of Florida's Water Resources?, Mary Jane Angelo
Mary Jane Angelo
Except for limited provisions, Florida law does not establish a formal link between land planning and water planning. In light of the importance of water resources for the future development of the State, this is a significant "missing link." Land use planners and water managers live in very different worlds and speak very different languages. Water managers point to poor planning as the cause of environmentally inappropriate development, and planners point to the shortcomings of water management regulatory programs as the cause of environmental woes. So what is the problem?Why are water management and planning not better integrated? Should they …
Like Water For Energy: The Water-Energy Nexus Through The Lens Of Tax Policy, Roberta F. Mann
Like Water For Energy: The Water-Energy Nexus Through The Lens Of Tax Policy, Roberta F. Mann
Roberta F Mann
Water is essential for life. Inadequate potable water supplies lead to poverty, disease, starvation, and civil strife. Climate change is likely to put more pressure on the world’s supply of fresh water. Rising sea levels will introduce salt into some fresh water systems. As high mountain snow cover and glaciers decline, they will store less fresh water. As regions heat up, droughts will become more persistent. Producing energy uses water. How much water is used depends on the source of the energy. Yet in the rush to transition to a renewable energy economy, policy makers have paid little heed to …
The Public Trust Navigates California's Bay Delta, Paul Stanton Kibel
The Public Trust Navigates California's Bay Delta, Paul Stanton Kibel
Paul Stanton Kibel
No abstract provided.
The Unbearable Cost Of Skipping The Check: Property Rights, Takings Compensation & Ecological Protection In The Western Water Law Context, Scott A. Shepard
The Unbearable Cost Of Skipping The Check: Property Rights, Takings Compensation & Ecological Protection In The Western Water Law Context, Scott A. Shepard
Scott A. Shepard
Western-state non-riparian water-law regimes remain legally vital and highly useful in the age of increased scarcity and ecological concern. Claims that the property rights central to these regimes can be revoked without Fifth-Amendment takings implications – as a result of applying various doctrines or of limitations inherent in the rights as granted – are historically and legally unsound, and doctrinally unwise. Declaring water rights non-compensable would require accepting a maxim of legal interpretation that could not be limited to the water-rights (or even property-rights) context, and would render all constitutional guarantees liable to negation without constitutional process. Moreover, such a …
A Line Drawn In Water: Aquifers Beneath The Mexico-United States Border, Paul Stanton Kibel
A Line Drawn In Water: Aquifers Beneath The Mexico-United States Border, Paul Stanton Kibel
Paul Stanton Kibel
No abstract provided.
Rio Grande Designs: Texans’ Nafta Water Claim Against Mexico, Paul Stanton Kibel, Jonathan R. Schutz
Rio Grande Designs: Texans’ Nafta Water Claim Against Mexico, Paul Stanton Kibel, Jonathan R. Schutz
Paul Stanton Kibel
No abstract provided.
Grasp On Water: A Natural Resource That Eludes Nafta's Notion Of Investment, Paul Stanton Kibel
Grasp On Water: A Natural Resource That Eludes Nafta's Notion Of Investment, Paul Stanton Kibel
Paul Stanton Kibel
No abstract provided.
Palazzolo, The Public Trust, And The Property Owner’S Reasonable Expectations: Takings And The South Carolina Marsh Island Bridge Debate, Erin Ryan
Erin Ryan
South Carolina recently promulgated new guidelines regulating the State’s consideration of requests by private marsh island owners to build bridges for vehicular access through publicly owned marsh and tidelands. Many thousands of these islands hug the South Carolina coast, but they are surrounded by tidelands subject to South Carolina’s formidable public trust doctrine, which obligates the State to manage submerged lands and waterways for the benefit of the public. This piece evaluates the relationship between the public trust doctrine and the takings subtext to the debate over the new guidelines – a relationship that has become particularly interesting in the …
Sprawl And “Paper Water”: A Reality Check From The California Courts, Paul Stanton Kibel, Barry H. Epstein
Sprawl And “Paper Water”: A Reality Check From The California Courts, Paul Stanton Kibel, Barry H. Epstein
Paul Stanton Kibel
No abstract provided.
Public Trust & Distrust: Theoretical Implications Of The Public Trust Doctrine For Natural Resource Management, Erin Ryan
Erin Ryan
This essay reviews the theoretical underpinnings of the public trust doctrine, received at common law and constitutionalized in many states, and explores its contentious reception by green legal theorists. Since Professor Joseph Sax's revival of the ancient common law doctrine as a vehicle for environmental advocacy in the early 1970s, it has been hailed by many environmentalists as the most powerful tool available for protecting natural resource commons. At the same time, however, it has been attacked by others who argue that use of the property rights-based doctrine reifies an ownership approach to natural resources and obstructs the development of …