AGENDA: The Future of Natural Resources Law and Policy

The Natural Resources Law Center\u27s 25th Anniversary Conference and Natural Resources Law Teachers 14th Biennial Institute provided an opportunity for some of the best natural resources lawyers to discuss future trends in the field. The conference focused on the larger, cross-cutting issues affecting natural resources policy. Initial discussions concerned the declining role of scientific resource management due to the increased inclusion of economic-cost benefit analysis and public participation in the decision-making process. The effectiveness of this approach was questioned particularly in the case of non-market goods such as the polar bear. Other participants promoted the importance of public participation and explained how meaningful engagement between an agency and the public can lead to superior decisions. The conference has also provided the Natural Resources Law Center with the opportunity to sponsor a new book titled The Evolution of Natural Resources Law and Policy. The book will be edited by former NRLC Director Larry MacDonnell and former Associate Director, Sarah Van De Wetering (Bates)

AGENDA: The Future of Natural Resources Law and Policy

The Natural Resources Law Center\u27s 25th Anniversary Conference and Natural Resources Law Teachers 14th Biennial Institute provided an opportunity for some of the best natural resources lawyers to discuss future trends in the field. The conference focused on the larger, cross-cutting issues affecting natural resources policy. Initial discussions concerned the declining role of scientific resource management due to the increased inclusion of economic-cost benefit analysis and public participation in the decision-making process. The effectiveness of this approach was questioned particularly in the case of non-market goods such as the polar bear. Other participants promoted the importance of public participation and explained how meaningful engagement between an agency and the public can lead to superior decisions. The conference has also provided the Natural Resources Law Center with the opportunity to sponsor a new book titled The Evolution of Natural Resources Law and Policy. The book will be edited by former NRLC Director Larry MacDonnell and former Associate Director, Sarah Van De Wetering (Bates)

AGENDA: Hard Times on the Colorado River: Drought, Growth and the Future of the Compact

Sponsors and Contributors: Colorado Water Conservation Board, Center for Advanced Decision Support for Water and Environmental Systems, Western Water Assessment, CU-CIRES/NOAA, Hydrosphere Resource Consultants, Rocky Mountain Mineral Law Foundation, Colorado Foundation for Water Education, Patrick, Miller & Kropf, P.C., William and Flora Hewlett Foundation. The Colorado River is approaching a crossroads. For the first time in its history, satisfying water demands in one state may require curtailing legally-recognized uses in another. This is not the first instance of water shortages in the region, and conflict among the seven Colorado River states is certainly not new. But the potential shortages on the horizon are larger in scale and magnitude than ever seen before, and the regional insurance policy against this sort of catastrophe, the storage reservoirs of Lake Powell and Mead, are being pushed to their limits. Key water decision-makers from throughout the basin will come together to explore a variety of topics pertaining to the Law of the River: the ability of the system to meet water delivery and hydropower obligations, potential impacts of shortages to water users and the environment, and solutions for future management

AGENDA: Hard Times on the Colorado River: Drought, Growth and the Future of the Compact

Sponsors and Contributors: Colorado Water Conservation Board, Center for Advanced Decision Support for Water and Environmental Systems, Western Water Assessment, CU-CIRES/NOAA, Hydrosphere Resource Consultants, Rocky Mountain Mineral Law Foundation, Colorado Foundation for Water Education, Patrick, Miller & Kropf, P.C., William and Flora Hewlett Foundation. The Colorado River is approaching a crossroads. For the first time in its history, satisfying water demands in one state may require curtailing legally-recognized uses in another. This is not the first instance of water shortages in the region, and conflict among the seven Colorado River states is certainly not new. But the potential shortages on the horizon are larger in scale and magnitude than ever seen before, and the regional insurance policy against this sort of catastrophe, the storage reservoirs of Lake Powell and Mead, are being pushed to their limits. Key water decision-makers from throughout the basin will come together to explore a variety of topics pertaining to the Law of the River: the ability of the system to meet water delivery and hydropower obligations, potential impacts of shortages to water users and the environment, and solutions for future management

Colorado Acequia Handbook: Water Rights and Governance Guide for Colorado\u27s Acequias

51 pages (includes 1 color map) Introduction -- Definitions -- Water rights -- Change of water right -- Transfers of water rights -- Water sharing agreements -- Losing your water rights ( use it or lose it ) -- Preventing the transfer of water out of the acequia -- Conservation easements -- Governing the acequia -- Assessments -- Easements -- Enforcement -- Tort liability -- Water quality -- The Rio Grande Compact -- Main government water entities -- Where can an acequia get legal assistance? -- Appendix I. Water rights : frequently asked questions -- Appendix II. Acequia bylaws : frequently asked questions -- Appendix III. Acequia incorporation : frequently asked questions -- Appendix IV. Model bylaws -- Appendix V. Catlin provision (Also included at Art. 10 in Model Bylaws) -- Appendix VI. Topics to consider about bylaws -- Appendix VII. The new Acequia laws passed in 2009 and 2013 -- Appendix VIII. Process for incorporating -- Appendix IX. Protest to Revised Abandonment List -- Appendix X. Contacts for organizations and agencies. Acequias are unique and longstanding cultural and legal institutions in Colorado. Spanish and Mexican farmers and ranchers who settled here long before Colorado became a state created these systems for irrigation and water sharing that ensure sustainable use of water, and create important community bonds. Despite their long history, which includes acknowledgment in the session laws of the Colorado Territory, it was not until 2009 that acequias received recognition in Colorado state statutes. The 2009 Acequia Recognition Law, which was amended in 2013, allows acequias to continue to exercise their traditional roles in governing community access to water, and also strengthens their ability to protect their water. For acequias in Colorado to take full advantage of the statute, it is necessary to have a set of written bylaws that formalize existing customs and adopt the recently recognized powers. This Handbook was drafted in part to highlight the opportunities presented by the Acequia Recognition Law, as well as to explain the basics of Colorado water law for acequia members and those who work with acequias. --Introductionhttps://scholar.law.colorado.edu/books_reports_studies/1188/thumbnail.jp