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Property Rights Along the Watershed

Property Rights Along the Watershed. Sarah Kendall Gault, Nathaniel Zev Goldman, and Amy Michelle Russ Oglethorpe University Atlanta, GA Honors 201: Ecology and Economy in the Chattahoochee River Watershed October 23, 2008. Outline. Major Problem 3 Guiding Questions

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Property Rights Along the Watershed

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  1. Property RightsAlong the Watershed Sarah Kendall Gault, Nathaniel Zev Goldman, and Amy Michelle Russ Oglethorpe University Atlanta, GA Honors 201: Ecology and Economy in the Chattahoochee River Watershed October 23, 2008

  2. Outline • Major Problem • 3 Guiding Questions • Reasonable Use vs. Natural Flow • Inadequacies with The System • Tragedy of the Commons • A Potential Solution • Flaws of Markets • Final Thoughts

  3. Major Problem • While the overall supply of fresh water remains constant or declines, the demand increases exponentially with our growing society.

  4. 3 Guiding Questions • What is the current water law in Georgia? • Would markets be such a bad things? • And if not markets, how else can Georgia move its water law forward?

  5. Current Water Law in Georgia • Georgia’s system seems to be “a version of the natural flow theory of riparian rights doctrine as modified by a reasonable use provision.” --Justice Harold Hill, Jr.

  6. Reasonable Use Theory • Riparian owners have the right to the water to do with as they so choose under the stipulation that they act within reason. • The water may be moved as long as it is not intended for a use that may harm another riparian owner.

  7. Natural Flow Theory • Owners of the Riparian regions have the right to the water as it is naturally present as long as they do not disturb its natural course or remove the water from its original path.

  8. Reasonable Use TheoryandNatural Flow TheoryCombined…A Direct Contradiction?

  9. Inadequacies of The System • What is “reasonable” use? • Court Definition • Stewart v. Bridges • Water for the Everglades • “Public Interest” and “Legal Uses” • Leads to a “Tragedy of the Commons”

  10. Tragedy of the Commons • This comes about due to the knowledge that a non-renewable resource is diminishing at a rapid rate. • Courts are reluctant to make rulings and set a precedent for future proceedings.

  11. A Potential Solution • Public Property System • Alleged Government Regulation • Markets • What are markets? • Truly Private Property System

  12. 3 Guiding Questions • What is the current water law in Georgia? • Would markets be such a bad things? • And if not markets, how else can Georgia move its water law forward?

  13. Flaws of Markets • Bad for Lower Class • Negative Externalities - Third Party Issues • Chattanooga purchase of TAWC: downstream effects? • City and County of Denver v. Fulton Irrigating Ditch Co. • Regulation and Interstate Commerce

  14. “Water…is the quintessential public good for which markets simply do not work.”

  15. 3 Guiding Questions • What is the current water law in Georgia? • Would markets be such a bad things? • And if not markets, how else can Georgia move its water law forward?

  16. Final Thoughts • If not markets, what can be done with regard to Georgia’s water laws? • How do national laws compare to those of Georgia statutes? • On a national level, what could be done to improve water law?

  17. Resources • Dellapenna, J. W. Georgia water law: how to go forward now? [Internet] The Georgia Water Resources Conference; 2005 April [Cited 2008 October 7]. Available from http://www.uga.edu/water/GWRC/Papers/DellapennaJ%20GWRC%20paper%20revised.pdf • Environmental law online forum. Economics v. equity: do market-based environmental reforms exacerbate environmental injustice? [Internet] Mercer University School of Law [Cited 2008 October 13]. Available from http://www.law.mercer.edu/elaw/Economics.htm • Kundell, J. E. Georgia water resources: a comprehensive look. [Internet] The Georgia Water Resources Conference; 2007 March [Cited 2008 October 13]. Available from http://cms.ce.gatech.edu/gwri/uploads/proceedings/2007/0.1.pdf • Melville, D. Whiskey is for drinking…recent water law developments in Florida. [Internet] Florida State University School of Law [Cited 2008 October 13]. Available from http://www.law.fsu.edu/Journals/landuse/vol20_2/Melville.pdf • The Tennessee river-Atlanta diversion and Memphis sand aquifer case studies as water allocation controversies. [Internet] [Cited 2008 October 13]. Available from http://eerc.ra.utk.edu/divisions/wrrc/water_supply/chapter5.htm

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