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Full-Text Articles in Law
Oil Development In Anwr: The Precautionary Principle Is Compatible With The Fish And Wildlife Service's Statutory Mandate, Trisna Tanus
Oil Development In Anwr: The Precautionary Principle Is Compatible With The Fish And Wildlife Service's Statutory Mandate, Trisna Tanus
Washington Journal of Environmental Law & Policy
The potential for oil production in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR) coastal plain, otherwise known as the 1002 Area, is significant, with a current value of $770 billion. Yet, there are considerable knowledge gaps and disagreements over the environmental impacts of oil development in ANWR. The Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) manages ANWR and is tasked with advancing the refuge’s mission of ecological conservation. Before it can approve oil development in ANWR, the FWS is statutorily required to ensure that oil development is compatible with ANWR’s mission. This Comment argues that the precautionary principle is embedded within the laws …
Legal And Policy Implications Of The Perception Of Property Rights In Catch Shares, Mark Fina, Tyson Kade
Legal And Policy Implications Of The Perception Of Property Rights In Catch Shares, Mark Fina, Tyson Kade
Washington Journal of Environmental Law & Policy
Catch shares are a fishery management strategy under which persons are allocated exclusive access to specific portions of the total allowable catch of a fishery. Proponents of catch share management argue that these programs allow for more efficient management of annual catch limits and mitigate the negative biological and economic impacts associated with other management programs. Because of the exclusivity of their allocations, catch share programs have been characterized by their opponents as privatizing the public fisheries resource and granting catch share holders a property right to fish. However, case law suggests that a court is unlikely to conclude that …
Leopold's Last Talk, Eric T. Freyfogle
Leopold's Last Talk, Eric T. Freyfogle
Washington Journal of Environmental Law & Policy
During the last decade of his life, Aldo Leopold (1887–1948) delivered more than 100 conservation talks to various popular, professional, and student audiences. In them, he set forth plainly the central elements of his conservation thought. By studying the extensive archival records of these talks one sees clearly the core elements of Leopold’s mature thinking, which centered not on specific land-use practices (good or bad), but instead on what he saw as deep flaws in American culture. Leopold’s sharp cultural criticism—more clear in these talks than in his lyrical, muted classic, A Sand County Almanac—called into question not just …
The Overlooked Role Of The National Environmental Policy Act In Protecting The Western Environment: Nepa In The Ninth Circuit, Michael C. Blumm, Keith Mosman
The Overlooked Role Of The National Environmental Policy Act In Protecting The Western Environment: Nepa In The Ninth Circuit, Michael C. Blumm, Keith Mosman
Washington Journal of Environmental Law & Policy
Critics widely disparage the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) for being a mere “paper tiger” or bureaucratic red-tape. The U.S. Supreme Court has surely encouraged this perception by treating the statute with consistent hostility, reducing it to a requirement only to follow prescribed administrative procedures but not produce any environmental results. But in the Ninth Circuit, NEPA lives a more important life, since that court has not forgotten NEPA’s essential environmental purpose. This article examines four lines of cases in the Ninth Circuit that may show that NEPA’s future might reflect its conservation purpose. These cases 1) deny NEPA plaintiffs …
Climate Change And The Columbia River Treaty, Rachael Paschal Osborn
Climate Change And The Columbia River Treaty, Rachael Paschal Osborn
Washington Journal of Environmental Law & Policy
The year 2014 is a key date for the potential re-negotiation of the Columbia River Treaty between the United States and Canada. The Treaty coordinates hydropower operations at 14 mainstem and multiple tributary dams, with the dual goals of maximizing flood control and electrical power generation. In 2024, either party may terminate, with ten years’ notice to the other. Regardless of termination, a key Treaty provision will change, requiring the United States to maximize use of its reservoirs before asking Canada to do the same, leading to deeper drawdowns in Grand Coulee’s Lake Roosevelt and other major reservoirs and potential …
The Flood Control Regime Of The Columbia River Treaty: Before And After 2024, Nigel Bankes
The Flood Control Regime Of The Columbia River Treaty: Before And After 2024, Nigel Bankes
Washington Journal of Environmental Law & Policy
This article examines the flood control rules established by the Columbia River Treaty and Protocol between Canada and the United States before and after 2024. The flood control operations change automatically in 2024. Part I discusses the flooding risks posed by the Columbia and Kootenay Rivers. Part II offers an account of the general international law pertaining to flood protection and in particular the duties that one basin state may owe to another. This section draws on the work of the International Law Commission which informed the adoption of the United Nations Convention on the Non-Navigational Uses of International Watercourses. …
Looking Forward: The Columbia River Treaty, A. Paul Firuz
Looking Forward: The Columbia River Treaty, A. Paul Firuz
Washington Journal of Environmental Law & Policy
Since 1964, the Columbia River Treaty has shaped the joint use of the Columbia River by the United States and Canada. The Treaty will be impervious to change until 2024, but either party may give notice of an intent to alter it as soon as 2014. Since the Treaty’s ratification, changes in United States domestic law have reflected a shift in attitude toward the environment and the Columbia River. These changes have impacted the Columbia River’s governance on the United States side of the border and though domestic law has evolved in response to environmental concerns, the Treaty has remained …
(When) Does A Contract Claim Trump A Takings Claim? Lessons From The Water Wars, David W. Spohr
(When) Does A Contract Claim Trump A Takings Claim? Lessons From The Water Wars, David W. Spohr
Washington Journal of Environmental Law & Policy
As in other river basins, the disparity in the Columbia is growing between ever-expanding water demands and ever-shrinking water availability. Looming near the forefront of decisions on how to manage such waters is the potential liability the government faces if it reduces water distributions to further environmental objectives. While recent cases raise fascinating takings and contract issues, the most interesting issue may be the intersection of the available remedies. Does the contractual relationship between an aggrieved water user and the government preclude a takings claim, even where the contract claim ultimately fails? On one end of the spectrum, courts have …