Decoupling environmental water markets from water law
Environmental water markets have emerged as a tool for restoring flows in rivers across the world. Prior literature suggests that certain legal conditions are necessary for these markets to function. However, we find substantial market activity has occurred without these legal conditions through mar...
| Main Authors: | , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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IOP Publishing
2022-01-01
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| Series: | Environmental Research Letters |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1088/1748-9326/ac6d6d |
| _version_ | 1797746981196529664 |
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| author | Philip Womble Allen Townsend Leon F Szeptycki |
| author_facet | Philip Womble Allen Townsend Leon F Szeptycki |
| author_sort | Philip Womble |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Environmental water markets have emerged as a tool for restoring flows in rivers across the world. Prior literature suggests that certain legal conditions are necessary for these markets to function. However, we find substantial market activity has occurred without these legal conditions through market and legal data collected in five core U.S. Colorado River basin states (Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico, Utah, and Wyoming) from 2014 to 2020. Ninety-five percent of the 446 water transactions sidestepped formal legal processes to transfer water rights to the environment. We also find that government regulatory and conservation programs, not private-sector investment, have driven most environmental water market activity. Government spending is the dominant funding source, with 90% of the $53 million spent coming from governments and 68% from the U.S. federal government alone. Finally, our analysis finds that current market activity would be insufficient to stave off future curtailment of critical water users under the Colorado River Compact and that $86–89 million annually in new investment is required to do so. In a basin experiencing a historic megadrought, our analysis suggests prioritizing such new investments over legal reform. Global implications are that such flow restoration is possible where legal regimes for environmental water markets do not already exist. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-12T15:45:34Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-f1ed69f9a9794ee0a4ecc813502fd635 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1748-9326 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-12T15:45:34Z |
| publishDate | 2022-01-01 |
| publisher | IOP Publishing |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Environmental Research Letters |
| spelling | doaj.art-f1ed69f9a9794ee0a4ecc813502fd6352023-08-09T15:30:17ZengIOP PublishingEnvironmental Research Letters1748-93262022-01-0117606500710.1088/1748-9326/ac6d6dDecoupling environmental water markets from water lawPhilip Womble0https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4503-8745Allen Townsend1https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4350-9953Leon F Szeptycki2Woods Institute for the Environment, Stanford University , Stanford, CA, United States of America; Stanford Law School , Stanford, CA, United States of AmericaEngineering Systems and Environment, School of Engineering and Applied Science, University of Virginia , Charlottesville, VA, United States of AmericaUniversity of Virginia School of Law , Charlottesville, VA, United States of America; Environmental Resilience Institute, University of Virginia , Charlottesville, VA, United States of AmericaEnvironmental water markets have emerged as a tool for restoring flows in rivers across the world. Prior literature suggests that certain legal conditions are necessary for these markets to function. However, we find substantial market activity has occurred without these legal conditions through market and legal data collected in five core U.S. Colorado River basin states (Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico, Utah, and Wyoming) from 2014 to 2020. Ninety-five percent of the 446 water transactions sidestepped formal legal processes to transfer water rights to the environment. We also find that government regulatory and conservation programs, not private-sector investment, have driven most environmental water market activity. Government spending is the dominant funding source, with 90% of the $53 million spent coming from governments and 68% from the U.S. federal government alone. Finally, our analysis finds that current market activity would be insufficient to stave off future curtailment of critical water users under the Colorado River Compact and that $86–89 million annually in new investment is required to do so. In a basin experiencing a historic megadrought, our analysis suggests prioritizing such new investments over legal reform. Global implications are that such flow restoration is possible where legal regimes for environmental water markets do not already exist.https://doi.org/10.1088/1748-9326/ac6d6dwater rightsdemand managementwater governanceinformal water marketswater reallocationenvironmental flows |
| spellingShingle | Philip Womble Allen Townsend Leon F Szeptycki Decoupling environmental water markets from water law Environmental Research Letters water rights demand management water governance informal water markets water reallocation environmental flows |
| title | Decoupling environmental water markets from water law |
| title_full | Decoupling environmental water markets from water law |
| title_fullStr | Decoupling environmental water markets from water law |
| title_full_unstemmed | Decoupling environmental water markets from water law |
| title_short | Decoupling environmental water markets from water law |
| title_sort | decoupling environmental water markets from water law |
| topic | water rights demand management water governance informal water markets water reallocation environmental flows |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1088/1748-9326/ac6d6d |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT philipwomble decouplingenvironmentalwatermarketsfromwaterlaw AT allentownsend decouplingenvironmentalwatermarketsfromwaterlaw AT leonfszeptycki decouplingenvironmentalwatermarketsfromwaterlaw |