Water Law Commons^™

Slides: Pvid/Mwd Land Management, Crop Rotation And Water Supply Program, Ed Smith

Evolving Regional Frameworks for Ag-to-Urban Water Transfers (December 11)

Presenter: Ed Smith, General Manager, Palo Verde Irrigation District, Southern California

25 slides

Bridging The Governance Gap: Strategies To Integrate Water And Land Use Planning, Sarah Bates Van De Wetering, University Of Montana (Missoula). Public Policy Research Institute

Shifting Baselines and New Meridians: Water, Resources, Landscapes, and the Transformation of the American West (Summer Conference, June 4-6)

16 pages.

Includes bibliographical references

"2007"

"Collaborative Governance Report 2"

Slides: Adapting Western Water Policy For Resilience Under Climate Change, Bonnie G. Colby

Shifting Baselines and New Meridians: Water, Resources, Landscapes, and the Transformation of the American West (Summer Conference, June 4-6)

Presenter: Dr. Bonnie G. Colby, Professor of Resource Economics & Hydrology, University of Arizona Department of Agriculture & Resource Economics

22 slides

Slides: Rethinking Western Water Law: Whatever Happened To The Public Interest?, Mark Squillace

Shifting Baselines and New Meridians: Water, Resources, Landscapes, and the Transformation of the American West (Summer Conference, June 4-6)

Presenter: Mark Squillace, Director, Natural Resources Law Center, University of Colorado Law School

15 slides

Rethinking Western Water Law: Instream Flows, Reed D. Benson

Shifting Baselines and New Meridians: Water, Resources, Landscapes, and the Transformation of the American West (Summer Conference, June 4-6)

Presenter: Reed D. Benson, University of New Mexico School of Law

1 page.

Sustainable Water Policies In The Rocky Mountain West: An Action Agenda, Sarah Bates

Shifting Baselines and New Meridians: Water, Resources, Landscapes, and the Transformation of the American West (Summer Conference, June 4-6)

Presenter: Sarah Bates, Western Progress

10 pages.

Includes bibliographical references

"Review Draft, May 15, 2008"

Agenda: Shifting Baselines And New Meridians: Water, Resources, Landscapes, And The Transformation Of The American West, University Of Colorado Boulder. Natural Resources Law Center

Shifting Baselines and New Meridians: Water, Resources, Landscapes, and the Transformation of the American West (Summer Conference, June 4-6)

The Center’s 29th annual conference will focus on the changes in the West resulting from rapid population growth, development, disrupted historical weather patterns and the effects of those changes on land, water, and energy resources. Speakers and panelists will address the adaptability of the legal and political institutions and how the transformation of the West may foreshadow fundamental changes to these institutions.

The agenda includes panel discussions that will address:

• Water for the 21^st Century —the big questions in Western water and rethinking Western water law.
• The Future of Energy —practical and sophisticated solutions to overcome the energy …

Agenda: Securing Environmental Flows On The Colorado River In An Era Of Climate Change: Issues, Challenges, And Opportunities, Western Water Policy Program, University Of Colorado Boulder. Natural Resources Law Center, Nature Conservancy (U.S.), Trout Unlimited, Environmental Defense (Organization), Western Water Assessment (Program), Western Resource Advocates, United States. Bureau Of Reclamation

Securing Environmental Flows on the Colorado River in an Era of Climate Change: Issues, Challenges and Opportunities (March 21)

The Colorado River is the primary surface water resource of the Southwest, providing water to approximately 30 million residents. Studies and policy decisions associated with a recently completed EIS point to an ever-tightening water supply due to longstanding growth pressures exacerbated by significant climate change impacts. Given these trends, how can the river’s environmental needs be satisfied?

On March 21st, the Center’s Western Water Policy Program brought together four leading Colorado River experts along with an audience of approximately 70 water professionals to discuss “Securing Environmental Flows on the Colorado River in an Era of Climate Change: Issues, Challenges, and …

Panel: Ethics-Based Decision-Making In Societal Water Management, Amy Hardberger

Faculty Articles

There is an ethical overlay to water-related decision-making and management, frequently drawing on personal experiences with water and the ubiquitous need for water. The modern South African Bill of Rights, ensuring its people’s access to water; the movement towards recognizing water as a basic human right; and even occurrences in Texas, including the passage of “environmental flows legislation” and the efforts to preserve and protect the Edwards Aquifer, reflect the presence of ethics in decision-making with respect to water management. Ethics are a part of water management decision-making.

Water Transfers: The Case Against Transbasin Diversions In The Eastern States, Christine A. Klein

UF Law Faculty Publications

Water policy in the western states consistently has embraced a nineteenth century, supply-side mentality, requiring cities and other water providers to satisfy an ever-growing demand for water at virtually any cost. As a result, the western states rely upon thousands of engineered water transfers-even siphoning water from one side of mountain ranges to the other-in an un-sustainable attempt to support growth. This article challenges the conventional reliance upon transbasin diversions as a response to shortage. It argues that importing water from distant watersheds lulls growing communities into a false sense of security, subsidizes unsustainable growth, and exacts significant social, economic, …

Climate Change And Freshwater Resources, Robert H. Abrams, Noah D. Hall, Bret B. Stuntz

Journal Publications

Earth's climate is warming. This is the unequivocal conclusion of climate scientists. Despite the complexities of climatology, certain consistent trends emerge with implications for water availability: as the world gets warmer, it will experience increased regional variability in precipitation, with more frequent heavy precipitation events and more susceptibility to drought. These simple facts will have a profound impact on freshwater resources throughout the United States, as the warmer climate will reduce available water supplies and increase water demand. Unfortunately, current water law and policy are not up to the new challenges of climate change and resulting pressures on freshwater resources. …

Currents In Water Resources Law And Policy: How Is “Prior” Coping With New Stresses? [Outline], A. Dan Tarlock, David H. Getches

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

3 pages.

Includes bibliographical references

"A. Dan Tarlock, Distinguished Professor of Law and Director, Program in Environmental and Energy Law, Chicago-Kent College of Law"

"David H. Getches, Dean and Raphael J. Moses Professor of Natural Resources Law, University of Colorado Law School"

The Growing Influence Of Tort And Property Law On Natural Resources Law: Case Studies Of Coal Bed Methane Development And Geologic Carbon Sequestration, Alexandra B. Klass

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

19 pages.

"Alexandra B. Klass, Associate Professor of Law, University of Minnesota Law School"

Precious, Worthless, Or Immeasurable: The Value And Ethic Of Water, Gabriel Eckstein

Faculty Scholarship

This Article introduces and briefly explores some of the topics related to the value and ethics of water that were considered at the symposium, Precious, Worthless, or Immeasurable: The Value and Ethic of Water, which took place November 2-4, 2006, at the Texas Tech University School of Law. The purpose of the Symposium was to consider how this precious liquid is valued, assessed, and perceived with regard to law and regulations, economics and commerce, people and communities, culture and religion, and others aspects of society that are impacted by water. While far from a comprehensive analysis of the subject matter, …

The Law Of The Lakes: From Protectionism To Sustainability, Christine A. Klein

UF Law Faculty Publications

This Article has a practical goal: to convince state lawmakers of the need to regulate in a comprehensive and evenhanded manner, avoiding short-sighted fixes or politically appealing shortcuts. To accomplish that goal, Part I focuses upon another region of the country-the Colorado River Basin-where residents have also undertaken the task of managing a water system that includes two nations(The United States and Mexico) and numerous states. Learning from the successes and failures of the resultant Law of the River, this Article derives guiding principles for the emerging Law of the Lakes. Part II makes a crucial distinction between protectionism and …

Drinking From A Deep Well: The Public Trust Doctrine And Western Water Law, Carol N. Brown

Law Faculty Publications

American water law reflects the diverse geography and population patterns of this expansive country.1 In the eastern states, where water is rather abundant, the doctrine of riparian rights dominates water law.2 The arid western states, in contrast, rejected the doctrine of riparian rights in favor of the doctrine of prior appropriation due to a natural scarcity of water and increasing population growth.3 The western states provide fertile ground to consider the burdens of a rapidly growing region on already scarce water resources.4 My thesis is that the public trust doctrine is being underutilized by the states and that the optimal …

Of Rainbows And Rivers: Lessons For Telecommunications Spectrum Policy From Transitions In Property Rights And Commons In Water Law, Dale B. Thompson

ExpressO

A number of industries utilize the telecommunications spectrum to provide billions of dollars of services. However, some have noted that technological development and implementation of spectrum applications have not progressed as fast in the United States as in other parts of the world To improve technological development, many have recommended significant changes in United States policy of allocating spectrum, some based on a “property rights” approach, and others based on a “commons” approach. This article takes a novel approach to this problem, by applying lessons from our two hundred year history of water law to spectrum policy. Also, instead of …

United States Court Of Federal Claims: Walker V. United States, Michael J. Graetz

Faculty Scholarship

Walker v. United States, 69 Fed. Cl. 222, (Fed. Cl. 2005) (granting motion for reconsideration upon finding that water, access and forage rights were legally distinct from surface estate rights determined in a prior action).

Water Follies: Groundwater Pumping And The Fate Of America's Fresh Waters [Review Of Book By Robert Glennon], Robert H. Abrams

Journal Publications

This is a fun book to read. Most books of this genre decry a serious environmental problem and seek to influence a particular legal response to it. Those books tend to be long on details and heavy-handed in their advocacy. Many operate on the premise that the solution being presented requires an active effort at persuasion to convince the reader of the proposal's worth. This book is better: it tells fascinating stories, weaves together a series of poignant vignettes, and guides the reader to the desired conclusion implied by the book's title-America's water law in relation to groundwater pumping is …

Tribal Sovereignty Over Water Quality, Jessica Owley

Articles

No abstract provided.

Water Wrongs: Why Can’T We Get It Right The First Time?, David Getches

Publications

No abstract provided.

Equitable Apportionment Of Ecosystem Services: New Water Law For A New Water Age, J.B. Ruhl

Vanderbilt Law School Faculty Publications

This article examines the interstate water controversy between Florida, Georgia, and Alabama regarding allocation of water in the Apalachicola-Chattahoochee-Flint River Basin (ACF). The three states have been unable after 20 years of negotiation to resolve conflicts between urbanization in Atlanta, commercial uses in Alabama, and ecological protection in Florida. This article proposes that, were the states to seek apportionment of water by the Supreme Court under the Court's doctrine of equitable apportionment, the ecosystem services flowing within the ACF should be an integral allocation factor in deciding the flow regime Georgia and Alabama must ensure enters the Florida portion of …

Slides: The Myth Of Certainty: Water, Law, And Climate, David H. Getches

Water, Climate and Uncertainty: Implications for Western Water Law, Policy, and Management (Summer Conference, June 11-13)

Presenter: David H. Getches, Raphael J. Moses Professor of Natural Resources Law, University of Colorado School of Law

16 slides

Improved Drought Planning For Arizona, Katharine Jacobs, Barbara Morehouse

Water, Climate and Uncertainty: Implications for Western Water Law, Policy, and Management (Summer Conference, June 11-13)

Presenter: Barbara Morehouse

7 pages and 22 slides

Includes bibliographical references

"Katharine Jacobs is currently the Special Assistant for Policy and Planning, Arizona Department of Water Resources."

"Barbara Morehouse is Associate Research Scientist at the University of Arizona’s Institute for the Study of Planet Earth. She manages the Climate Assessment for the Southwest (CLIMAS) project, which is supported by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Office of Global Programs."

Implications For Interstate Compacts, With An Emphasis On The Colorado River Basin, James S. Lochhead

Water, Climate and Uncertainty: Implications for Western Water Law, Policy, and Management (Summer Conference, June 11-13)

Presenter: James S. Lochhead, Senior Counsel, Brownstein Hyatt & Farber, P.C.

3 slides and 7 pages

Agenda: Water, Climate And Uncertainty: Implications For Western Water Law, Policy, And Management, University Of Colorado Boulder. Natural Resources Law Center, United States. National Oceanic And Atmospheric Administration, National Center For Atmospheric Research (U.S.), Western Water Assessment (Program), University Of Colorado Boulder. Cooperative Institute For Research In Environmental Sciences, Hydrosphere Resource Consultants, Colorado Foundation For Water Education, Bp North America

Water, Climate and Uncertainty: Implications for Western Water Law, Policy, and Management (Summer Conference, June 11-13)

The swollen creeks of Boulder, Colorado provided a fitting backdrop for the “Water, Climate and Uncertainty” conference at the Natural Resources Law Center of the University of Colorado in June 2003. Recognizing the importance of providing a forum for discussions between water managers, lawyers, policy makers, and scientists, Doug Kenney, the conference's organizer, assumed the responsibility of master of ceremonies, providing thoughtful transitions between speakers and sessions while throwing some humor into the mix. Under his direction, luminaries in the fields of science, law and policy engaged a wide range of issues related to the future of water management.

The …

Conference Guidebook: Water, Climate And Uncertainty: An Introduction To The Issues, Language, Literature And The Conference Materials, Doug Kenney

Water, Climate and Uncertainty: Implications for Western Water Law, Policy, and Management (Summer Conference, June 11-13)

20 pages.

"Prepared as a Supplement to: Water, Climate and Uncertainty: Implications for Western Water Law, Policy, and Management, Natural Resources Law Center, University of Colorado School of Law, June 11-13, 2003"

"Doug Kenney, Ph.D."

Includes bibliographical references

Contents:

Part I: What Are Climate Researchers Saying About Western Water? A Guide for Non-Scientists

Part II: What Should Climate Researchers Know About the Realm of Western Water Law, Policy and Management?

Part III: Where to Find Additional Information

Piney Run: The Permits Are Not What They Seem, Jessica Owley

Articles

In 2001, the Fourth Circuit addressed the permit shield provision of the Clean Water Act and found it to provide broad-scale protection for polluters. In Piney Run Preservation Association v. County Commissioners of Carroll County, the Fourth Circuit held that facilities with discharge permits are protected from lawsuits even when discharging pollutants not contained within their permits. Under this ruling, permit holders may discharge, without fear of penalty, any disclosed pollutant within the reasonable expectation of the permitting authority. This decision is worrisome because it does not protect the goals of the Clean Water Act and deprives the public …

Community Acequias In Colorado's Rio Culebra Watershed: A Customary Commons In The Domain Of Prior Appropriation, Gregory A. Hicks, Devon G. Pena

University of Colorado Law Review

No abstract provided.

Reversing The Winters Doctrine?: Denying Reserved Water Rights For Idaho Wilderness And It's Implications, Michael C. Blumm

University of Colorado Law Review

No abstract provided.