Abstract
Historically, rights in water originated as public property and only later became individualized rights to utilize the public resource, in a manner consistent with the public welfare needs of society, but protected by principles of property law. Five basic regulatory systems for rights in groundwater in the United States have evolved to date. The problems raised by the hydrologic differences between groundwater hydraulically connected to stream systems and groundwater in non-replenished aquifers have been resolved to some extent by a couple of leading court cases. Numerical modeling and other technical methodologies have also evolved to evaluate the scientific issues raised by the different hydrologic conditions, but these are not immune from criticism. The current role of aquifers is evolving into that of storage facilities for recycled water, and their utilization in this manner may be expanded even further in the future. The policy implications of the choices relating to joint management of ground and surface water cannot be overstated. As this paper demonstrates, proactive administration of future groundwater depletions that affect stream systems is essential to the ultimate ability to plan for exploitation, management and utilization of water resources in a rational way that coordinates present and future demand with the reality of scarcity of supply. The examples utilized in this paper demonstrate the need for capacity building, not just to develop good measurement techniques, or to train talented lawyers and judges to write good laws, but also for practical professional water managers to keep the process on a rational course, avoiding limitless exploitation of the resource as well as conservative protectionism that forever precludes its use.
Résumé
Historiquement, les droits d’eau étaient à l’origine un bien public; ils sont devenus plus tard des droits individualisés pour utiliser la ressource publique conformément aux besoins de salut public de la société, mais protégés par des principes de lois de propriété. Cinq systèmes de réglementation de base pour les droits sur les eaux souterraines aux États-Unis ont évolué jusqu’à aujourd’hui. Les problèmes posés par les différences hydrologiques entre les eaux souterraines hydrauliquement connectées aux cours d’eau et celles d’aquifères non réalimentés ont été résolus jusqu’à un certain point par quelques cas de jugement. La modélisation numérique et d’autres méthodologies techniques ont également évolué pour évaluer les résultats scientifiques apportés dans différentes conditions hydrologiques, mais ne sont pas à l’abri de critiques. Le rôle courant des aquifères évolue entre celui des possibilités de stockage pour l’eau recyclée et leur utilisation dans ce but peut être même étendue plus loin dans le futur. Les implications politiques des choix relatifs à la gestion simultanée des eaux souterraines et de surface ne doivent pas être exagérées. Comme le montre cet article, la gestion active de l’épuisement futur des nappes qui affecte les systèmes fluviaux est essentielle pour la capacité finale à planifier l’exploitation, la gestion et l’utilisation des ressources en eau d’une manière rationnelle qui coordonne la demande actuelle et future à la réalité de la rareté de l’alimentation. Les exemples utilisés dans cet article démontrent le besoin d’une capacité d’élaboration, non seulement pour développer de bonnes techniques de mesure, ou pour former d’excellents avocats et juges pour écrire de bonnes lois, mais aussi pour que des praticiens gestionnaires de l’eau maintiennent le processus dans un cours rationnel pour éviter une exploitation sans limite des ressources aussi bien qu’un protectionnisme conservateur qui empêche son usage à jamais.
Resumen
Históricamente, los derechos del agua se originaron como un bien público que se transformaron después en derechos individualizados para usar los recursos públicos, de forma coherente con las necesidades de bienestar social, pero protegidos por los principios de la ley de propiedad. Hasta el momento, cinco sistemas reguladores básicos han evolucionado en los Estados Unidos de América en relación a los derechos en las aguas subterráneas. Los problemas surgidos por las diferencias hidrológicas entre las aguas subterráneas conectadas a corrientes superficiales y las aguas subterráneas en acuíferos sobreexplotados han sido resueltos hasta cierto punto por un par de casos judiciales notables. La modelación numérica y otras metodologías técnicas han evolucionado también para evaluar aspectos científicos asociados a diversas circunstancias hidrológicas, pero no son inmunes a las críticas. El papel actual de los acuíferos está evolucionando hacia el de instalaciones de almacenamiento de agua reciclada y su utilización de esta forma puede expandirse incluso más en el futuro. Las implicaciones políticas de las decisiones relativas a la gestión conjunta de las aguas superficiales y subterráneas no pueden ser exageradas. Como este artículo demuestra, una administración proactiva de las extracciones futuras de aguas subterráneas con efectos en los ecosistemas superficiales es esencial para la capacidad final de planificar la explotación, gestión y utilización de los recursos hídricos de forma racional, coordinando las demandas presentes y futuras con la realidad de la escasez de suministro. Los ejemplos empleados en este artículo demuestran la necesidad de construir capacidad y no únicamente de desarrollar buenas técnicas de medida, o la de educar reguladores y jueces de talento que redacten buenas leyes, pero también de gestores profesionales y aplicados del agua que mantengan el proceso en un compromiso entre evitar la explotación ilimitada del recurso y ejercer un proteccionismo conservador que impida su uso para siempre.
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Notes
The State Engineer also uses the model to estimate whether the proposed groundwater withdrawal will result in excessive water level decline rates.
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DuMars, C.T., Minier, J.D. The evolution of groundwater rights and groundwater management in New Mexico and the western United States. Hydrogeology Journal 12, 40–51 (2004). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10040-003-0303-3
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10040-003-0303-3