Water Laws in the United States of America - Literature review Example

Water Laws in the United s of America number Water Laws in the United s of America The laws regarding the use of the environment and its conservation are extremely important for any country. The United States of America takes the conservation of its environment very seriously and owing to its diversity in terms of its population, making laws for this is a very tricky issue. There are rights of tribes that need to be taken into account while framing these laws. Apart from this, there is also the issue of balancing conservation with development, which has become a major issue in the understanding of the use of natural resources. An awareness of the need for sustainable development has led to a greater amount of care being put into the conservation of the environment. Framing appropriate laws is one of the most important parts of the conservation of the environment. This paper shall look at the different laws that govern the use of water and water bodies in America. It shall also look at the conflicts that have arisen as a result of such laws and the violations that have happened. All of these go to show how important the preservation of the environment is and the problems that may result as a result of neglect and avarice. The United States Environment Protection Agency seeks to ensure the quality of the water that is found in American water bodies. Water Quality Standards are set to be maintained that are then strictly enforced. These not only prevent unauthorised factory effluents from dirtying the water, they also prevent the contamination of the water by people who live near these rivers and lakes. An important part of this endeavour is the Clean Water Act that results in the standards being constantly monitored. This act lays down specific standards that need to be revised regularly to meet the needs of the community and also to make it scientifically viable. Section 304(a)(1) makes it necessary for the criteria that are laid down for the quality standard of the water found in rivers and lakes to be measured according to the latest scientific discoveries. These discoveries are required to be done taking into consideration the state of the fish that live in these water bodies. CWA §316(b) requires that the different aspects that are associated with cooling water intake structures are required to meet certain standards that take into account the environmental impact that they have (Surface Water Standards & Guidance, 2012). The rights of the separate communities of America too have to be maintained while framing the laws regarding them. The maintenance of the peaceful fabric of the American society is to be given a great deal of importance while framing these laws. Laws that reserve a certain amount of water from certain water bodies are commonly known as Winter Rights. They prohibit the use of water that is reserved for the use of Native American tribes that are federally recognized, by others. It prohibits such use, unless such instances are those where the tribes relinquish their rights. These laws are created in such a way that they coincide with the laws that are created by the states for the protection of the rights of the Native American tribes. This has been done to avoid conflicts that may escalate into racial tension. Such laws need to exist to maintain the culture of America that integrates people of different backgrounds and ensures their cultural and economic welfare. There is however, conflict regarding this law where it is felt that certain sections of the populations seeks to appropriate the water that is reserved for the federally recognized tribes in America (Winters Rights (Decision), 2011). Riparian rights are also an important part of the legal framework governing the use of water. It provides a person who owns a piece of land in front of a water body the rights to usage of the water and other resources associated with it. The owner of the land is allowed to use the vegetation of the bottom of the river right in front of his or her land. He is also allowed to fish in these waters. The property owner is allowed to fish, swim and travel on a boat on the waters that are owned by the other riparian rights owners (on the same lake). The resources of the river that are a part of the bottomlands of the river are thus, a part of the property of the person who owns the upland property. There may be differences in the specifics details of these laws but the broad laws have been given above. The different variants that are in practice in the different states are only different versions of the same basic framework (Riparian Rights, n.d.). Despite the existence of a strong framework of different laws that seeks to define the working and distribution of water in America, there are still conflicts regarding the use of water that lead to many disputes. Many of these disputes occur between two different states when they have access to water from the same river. Diversions in the course of the river may often lead to one state receiving less water than it used to and this may become a source of great conflict between the two parties involved. One such case was the one involving the two states of Arizona and California. This case occurred in the year of 1963 and it was a major case as it involved two states which were not in agreement about the manner in which they were to use the water of the river Colorado. The dispute centered on whether states that are geographically located on the lower basin of the rivers can appropriate the water before they mingle with other tributaries. The Supreme Court ruled in favor of Arizona and ended a twenty five year old argument between the two states. The judgement was of great importance as it set a precedent for how such conflicts would be decided in the future by the state apparatus (Western Water Assessment, n.d.). Conservation of the environment is not an optional action as one needs to understand that the planet needs to be saved for the sustenance of future generations of mankind (Soluk, 2010). For this, one needs to have laws that regulate the actions of various characters who interact in the world and may act in ways that are detrimental to the health of the environment. Identifying such elements and spelling out different ways in which they may be resolved. The presence of relatively water-tight laws in the United States of America for the use of water bodies have resulted in a situation where the quality of the water has not deteriorated as much as it may have in their absence. The conflicts that happen in spite of these laws point to the lack of these resources and the fact that they have the potential to cause rifts that are political as well. Amidst speculations that the next major war that shall happen on the earth shall be over control to water resources, laws that safeguard the rights of communities that use water from a certain portion of a water body needs to be put in place. Apart from this, there also needs to be a system that ensures that this process does not hinder the development of an area in a significant manner. The development of a place must thus be carried out in a sustainable way that enables people to live a life that is in harmony with their surroundings. References Winters Rights (Decision). (2011). From Ecology Dictionary Online. Retrieved 31st August, 2012, from http://www.ecologydictionary.org/WINTERS_RIGHTS_(DECISION) Surface Water Standards & Guidance. (2012). EPA. Retrieved 31st August, 2012, from http://water.epa.gov/scitech/swguidance/ Riparian Rights. (n.d.). Retrieved 31st August, 2012, from http://www.mlswa.org/murray-lake-437/Raparian.htm Western Water Assessment. (n.d.). Retrieved 31st August, 2012, from http://wwa.colorado.edu/colorado_river/law.html Soluk, Andrew. (2010). “Why We Need to Protect Our Environment”. From New Polity Online. Retrieved 31st August, 2012, from http://www.newpolity.com/2010/10/21/why-we-need-to-protect-our-environment/ Read More