Water Law Commons^™

The United Nations Water Courses Convention On The Dawn Of Entry Into Force, Ryan B. Stoa

Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law

The United Nations Convention on the Law of the Non-Navigational Uses of International Watercourses (Watercourses Convention) entered into force in August 2014. Despite overwhelming support when signed in 1997, the ratification process has been slow. As a binding treaty, the Watercourses Convention provides hope that its provisions will articulate legal principles of transboundary water management capable of promoting cooperation and regional agreements. Despite entry into force, however, global support for the Watercourses Convention is weak, concurrent efforts to develop treaty regimes governing water resources create competition for resources and may obscure understandings of international water law, and the foundational principles …

Women, Water & Privatization: A Human Rights-Based Approach To Global Water Governance, Tara Pistilli

Cardozo Journal of Equal Rights & Social Justice

The note argues that recognizing and clearly defining the human right to water is essential for ensuring equitable access, particularly for women and children, who are disproportionately affected by water scarcity and privatization. It emphasizes that a human rights-based approach to water governance is necessary to prevent conflicts and protect vulnerable populations, as demonstrated by the Cochabamba Water War. This approach, supported by international law, provides a legally binding framework to hold states and corporations accountable for fulfilling the right to water.

Flowback: Federal Regulation Of Wastewater From Hydraulic Fracturing, Jeffrey M. Gaba

Faculty Journal Articles and Book Chapters

Natural gas produced through hydraulic fracturing remains a critical, and controversial, component of U.S. energy production. A key environmental issue associated with fracking is the management and disposal of the enormous quantities of wastewater generated in the process.

Substantial federal authority exists to regulate fracking wastewater under the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act and the Clean Water Act. Regulation under RCRA, however, depends on classification of the wastewater as a RCRA “hazardous waste.” Although EPA has generally exempted oil and gas wastes, including fracking wastewater, from classification as a RCRA hazardous waste, it appears that fracking wastewater would not generally …

Busted Pipes: A Review Of Tarrant Regional Water District V. Herrmann And The Lack Of Direction For Oklahoma And Texas Moving Forward In A Dry Environment, Jordan Lepage

American Indian Law Review

No abstract provided.

Solving The Cso Conundrum: Green Infrastructure And The Unfulfilled Promise Of Federal-Municipal Cooperation, Casswell F. Holloway, Carter H. Strickland Jr., Michael B. Gerrard, Daniel M. Firger

Faculty Scholarship

Faced with mounting infrastructure construction costs and more frequent and severe weather events due to climate change, cities across the country are managing the water pollution challenges of stormwater runoff and combined sewer overflows through new and innovative "green infrastructure" mechanisms that mimic, maintain, or restore natural hydrological features in the urban landscape. When utilized properly, such mechanisms can obviate the need for more expensive pipes, storage facilities, and other traditional "grey infrastructure" features, so named to acknowledge the vast amounts of concrete and other materials with high embedded energy necessary in their construction. Green infrastructure can also provide substantial …

The United Nations Watercourses Convention On The Dawn Of Entry Into Force, Ryan Stoa

Faculty Publications

The United Nations Watercourses Convention entered into force in August 2014. Despite overwhelming support when signed in 1997, the ratification process has been slow. As a binding treaty, the Watercourses Convention provides hope that its provisions will articulate legal principles of transboundary water management capable of promoting cooperation and regional agreements. Despite entry into force, however, global support for the Watercourses Convention is weak, concurrent efforts to develop treaty regimes governing water resources create competition for resources and may obscure understandings of international water law, and the foundational principles of the Watercourses Convention remain ambiguous. These limitations are illustrated in …

Florida Water Management Districts And The Florida Water Resources Act: The Challenges Of Basin-Level Management, Ryan Stoa

Faculty Publications

Florida’s plentiful freshwater resources are indispensable to the state’s municipal, agricultural, and environmental interests. As such, decision-makers presiding over complex water management decisions wield extraordinary powers. The Water Resources Act of Florida vests these powers in five water management districts drawn according to hydrological (not political) boundaries. The water management districts have robust technical, financial, and regulatory powers, and hold the key to Florida’s sustainable development. But with the stakes so high, Florida’s water management districts are at the center of a broader fight for control of water resources. In particular, transboundary water conflicts, political pressure, and ecological needs show …

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 …

Limpopo River Basin Monograph, Sergio Sitoe, Peter Qwist-Hoffman

Policy

The purpose of the Limpopo River Basin Monograph Study (LRBMS) is to compile essential baseline information on the Limpopo River Basin. This is required for the preparation of alternative development scenarios and an Integrated Water Resources Management Strategy and Plan (IWRM Strategy and Plan) for the sustainable management of the Basin. Six themes were agreed for the structure of the monograph and each is described below: Basin Characteristics Socio-economy River Basin Ecosystem Water Resources Water Governance LIMIS There are two main elements of the monograph that are the core outputs of the study, and they bring together the information from …

Tribal Advocacy And The Art Of Dam Removal: The Lower Elwha Klallam And The Elwha Dams, Julia Guarino

American Indian Law Journal

No abstract provided.

Asserting Treaty Rights To Harness The Wind On The Great Lakes, Gerald Carr

American Indian Law Journal

No abstract provided.

Native American Winters Doctrine And Stevens Treaty Water Rights: Recognition, Quantification, Management, Rachael Paschal Osborn

American Indian Law Journal

No abstract provided.

The Washington State Indian Child Welfare Act: Putting The Policy Back Into The Law, William N. Smith, Richard T. Okrent

American Indian Law Journal

No abstract provided.

A Mild Winter: The Status Of Environmental Preliminary Injunctions, Sarah J. Morath

Seattle University Law Review

Since the enactment of environmental legislation in the 1970s, the preliminary injunction standard articulated by the Supreme Court for environmental claims has evolved from general principles to enumerated factors. In Winter v. Natural Resource Defense Council, Inc., the Court’s most recent refinement, the Court endorsed but failed to explain the application of a common four-factor test when it held that the alleged injury to marine mammals was outweighed by the public interest of a well-trained and prepared Navy. While a number of commentators have speculated about Winter’s impact on future environmental preliminary injunctions, this article seeks to more precisely determine …

The Columbia River Treaty's Canadian Entitlement: The Role Of Liberalized And Integrated North American Electricity Markets In A New Calculation, Kevin Kirkpatrick

Washington Journal of Environmental Law & Policy

The Columbia River Treaty between the United States and Canada may be terminated unilaterally by either nation beginning next year; this has brough attention within the Pacific Northwest and beyond to the 1964 agreement on river flows. Much of the discussion about updating the accord highlights important goals such as bettering the protection of fish and increasing public participation in ecosystem governance, but often neglects analysis of how electricity markets have changed over the past fifty years. This Comment, through an examination of key developments in utilities law and application of economic theory, attempts to parse principles that may prove …

The Undersigned Attorney Hereby Certifies -- The Washington Supreme Court Rule On Standards And Its Implications, Justice Sheryl Gordon Mccloud, Justice Susan Owens, Marc Boman, Joanne Moore

Seattle Journal for Social Justice

No abstract provided.

G Forces: Gideon V. Wainwright And Matthew Adler's Move Beyond Cost-Benefit Analysis, Janet Moore

Seattle Journal for Social Justice

No abstract provided.

Dark Medicine: How The National Research Act Has Failed To Address Racist Practices In Biomedical Experiments Targeting The African-American Community, Anietie Maureen-Ann Akpan

Seattle Journal for Social Justice

No abstract provided.

Do We Have It Right This Time? An Analysis Of The Accomplishments And Shortcomings Of Washington's Indian Child Welfare Act, Karen Gray Young

Seattle Journal for Social Justice

No abstract provided.

Securing Food Justice, Sovereignty & Sustainability In The Face Of The Food Safety Modernization Act (Fsma), Eve Kerber

Seattle Journal for Social Justice

No abstract provided.