One of my pet peeves (and I am way too sensitive about this) sometimes happens when people ask me, “What kind of law do you teach/study?”. When I respond, “Water Law,” people will sometimes say something like, “That seems very narrow.” Narrow?! Water?!
But that has really started to change as the drought in California has raised general public awareness of the scope and importance of water issues and the role of the law in water management. So I guess that’s one silver lining in this whole “devastating drought” thing. There are other silver linings, though. I was talking to a friend who writes on police misconduct. She said, “I feel like your field is even more depressing than mine right now.” The drought is awful. It is just as much a man-made disaster as a natural one, as it reflects a failure to plan and adapt. Still, I think there is a little too much gloom and doom on the drought. There are reasons to be hopeful.
A reduction of only 9% in agricultural water consumption in the Central and Imperial valleys would double the amount of water available for domestic and industrial uses in those regions. Improved irrigation efficiency will help farmers achieve those kinds of water savings. But legal reforms are necessary to create the right incentives for conservation. Right now, improved agricultural efficiency could mean farmers risk forfeiting rights to unused water. One possible approach is to establish a state water trust, similar to what the state of Washington uses to maintain stream flows for salmon fisheries. Farmers that conserve water could place that water in trust with the state for in-stream uses, and while in trust, the water would be shielded from forfeiture. New techniques and technologies, like root demand irrigation, make these kinds of water savings possible.
Speaking of technology, other reasons to hope are the advances made
Comments
I went to law school many years ago, at an east coast school, and one of our pals was from Nevada. He took every course he could in water and gaming law and then convinced professors to sponsor advanced self-studies in those courses. We ribbed him constantly but he kept insisting that water law was the law of the future. I recall him saying that “In Nevada, we take gaming and water seriously.” Paraphrasing his comments, “Water law is property law, is economic development law, is real estate law.” We were wrong, he was right. Bet long on water law.
Posted by: anon | Oct 27, 2015 11:26:39 PM