A treatise for energy law

It is now over 20 years since the seminal paper on energy law as a discipline was published. The aim of this article is to review what currently constitutes energy law after this 20-year hiatus. There are two main ambitions of this article, which we hope will have a similar impact on the field. The first is to develop for scholars and practitioners a view of what constitutes energy law-and to make this accessible to both law and non-law energy scholars. The second is to advance a set of core principles that guide energy law, in essence a treatise for energy law. We advocate for a paradigm shift in our current understanding of what constitutes energy law. We advance that it should revolve around this set of guiding principles; however, we acknowledge that to some degree it is perhaps not a paradigm shift due to the current absence of any core principles of energy law. Nevertheless we argue that in our advancing of a guiding set of principles we set out a new path for the study of energy law and thus we aim to change what constitutes energy law and challenge the assumptions of existing researchers as globally society moves towards a transition to low-carbon economies.Peer reviewe

Near-bed and surface flow division patterns in experimental river bifurcations

Understanding channel bifurcation mechanics is of great importance for predicting and managing multichannel river processes and avulsion in distributary river deltas. To date, research on river channel bifurcations has focused on factors determining the stability and evolution of bifurcations. It has recently been shown that, theoretically, the nonlinearity of the relation between sediment transport and flow discharge causes one of the two distributaries of a (slightly) asymmetrical bifurcation to grow and the other to shrink. The positive feedback introduced by this effect results in highly asymmetrical bifurcations. However, there is a lack of detailed insight into flow dynamics within river bifurcations, the consequent effect on bed load flux through bifurcating channels, and thus the impact on bifurcation stability over time. In this paper, three key parameters (discharge ratio, width-to-depth ratio, and bed roughness) were varied in order to examine the secondary flow field and its effect on flow partitioning, particularly near-bed and surface flow, at an experimental bifurcation. Discharge ratio was controlled by varying downstream water levels. Flow fields were quantified using both particle image velocimetry and ultrasonic Doppler velocity profiling. Results show that a bifurcation induces secondary flow cells upstream of the bifurcation. In the case of unequal discharge ratio, a strong increase in the secondary flow near the bed causes a larger volume of near-bed flow to enter the dominant channel compared to surface and depth-averaged flow. However, this effect diminishes with larger width-to-depth ratio and with increased bed roughness. The flow structure and division pattern will likely have a stabilizing effect on river channel bifurcations. The magnitude of this effect in relation to previously identified destabilizing effects is addressed by proposing an adjustment to a widely used empirical bed load nodal-point partition equation. Our finding implies that river bifurcations can be stable under a wider range of conditions than previously thought. Key Points Secondary flow in symmetrical bifurcations causes strong near-bed flow curvature A disproportional amount of near-bed flow enters the dominant downstream channel Flow curvature adds a stabilizing feedback on bifurcation evolution

The law relating to the rights and duties of landlords and tenants concerning residential premises : a re-assessment

Despite its vital importance to a large segment of the Australian public, very little attention in the past has been given to the need for a review of the existing law relating to the renting of residential premises. Although a large body of consumer protection legislation has been enacted in recent years by the Australian Government and many States, no such protection has been extended to consumers in the rental housing market. Indeed, although piecemeal legislative changes have been made from time to time by each State, there has never been a systematic all embracing review of the legal rights and duties of landlord and tenants of residential premises covering tenancies both in the private sector and in the public sector. This thesis is designed to rectify this deficiency. It argues for the need for a fundamental re-assessment of three aspects of the rights and duties of landlords and tenants: the common law principles, supplemented by State legislation, which are applicable to those tenancies unaffected by rent control legislation; the existing systems of rent control in Victoria, New South Wales and South Australia; and the relationship of three of the State Housing Commissions with their tenants. Changes in governmental policy are suggested where appropriate. The need for the various reforms and policy changes was dictated not only by library research but also by a' considerable, volume of field research undertaken in Melbourne, Sydney and Adelaide in the preparation of this study. The reforms suggested by the author represent a combination of original ideas and experience in other common law jurisdictions, especially the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom and New Zealand. The author has attempted to mould the reforms in such a manner as to preserve the most useful parts of the existing landlord-tenant law while abolishing those parts which have either outlived their usefulness or are unfair to one or both of the parties. The aim throughout has been to strike a fair balance between the rights and obligations of the landlord and the tenant

A Human Dimension to the Energy Debate: Access to Modern Energy Services

This article examines the link between the need for universal access to modern energy services and poverty alleviation in developing nations. It first outlines the practical significance of the issue, identifies the factors that appear to have contributed to the lack of progress in this area and then considers the legal strategies that have so far been adopted by states to address this issue. The article makes the case for access to modern energy services to be incorporated within the human rights framework and analyses the potential that such an approach offers as a means of alleviating poverty