Environmental Issues in the Allocation and Management of Western Interstate Rivers
21 Pages Posted: 22 Aug 2013 Last revised: 4 Jun 2015
Date Written: August 20, 2013
Abstract
This essay briefly examines environmental issues in the allocation and management of western interstate rivers. Part I provides background on interstate water allocation in the West, on western water projects built by the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation (the Bureau), and on the resulting environmental problems facing western rivers. Part II examines one Supreme Court decree and two compacts apportioning the waters of three western rivers, to illustrate how interstate water allocation has addressed — or more accurately, not addressed — environmental concerns. Part III explains how the need for ESA compliance has influenced the management of these three western rivers, and considers the relationship between these environmental developments and the compacts and decrees that formally allocate interstate waters.
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