Hostname: page-component-7479d7b7d-fwgfc Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-07-10T13:57:34.388Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEWS AND CASE STUDIES: Ensuring Compliance with Interstate Water Compacts at the State and Local Levels: A Case Study of the Arkansas River Compact

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  13 May 2014

Megan M. DeMasters
Megan M. DeMasters*
Affiliation:
Doctoral Student, Department of Political Science, Environmental Politics and Policy, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, Colorado.
*
Address correspondence to: Megan M. DeMasters, Department of Political Science, Environmental Politics and Policy, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO 80523; (phone) 801-717-8426; (e-mail) demamega@rams.colostate.edu.
Get access

Abstract

In the United States (US), interstate water compacts are used to ensure the equitable division of water resources. It is necessary to understand how interstate water compacts affect intrastate water management so that administrators of water resources can effectively manage state water resources and comply with the agreed-upon allocation schemes. Although interstate compacts are more prevalent in the western US, concerns surrounding changing climate conditions, as well as water scarcity issues, have increased disputes over the management of shared water resources throughout the US. Drawing upon a case study from Colorado, the question this article seeks to answer is, how effectively does Colorado implement compliance of interstate compacts? More specifically, this report assesses implementation at the local level of government: water divisions. Using a modified version of Denise Scheberle’s implementation model, this article examines how Colorado’s Water Division 2 ensures compliance by water users party to the Arkansas River Compact. This research provides useful lessons for both academics interested in implementation studies and practitioners who are responsible for managing state resources such as water effectively, equitably, and in line with state laws and regulations. Findings suggest that compact compliance is contingent upon the effective implementation of rules curtailing water use at the local level and includes water divisions having the capacity to communicate effectively with water users and other entities involved in the maintenance of compact compliance.

Environmental Practice 16: 151–161 (2014)

Type
Features
Information
Environmental Practice , Volume 16 , Issue 2 , June 2014 , pp. 151 - 161
Copyright
© National Association of Environmental Professionals 2014 

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Arkansas River Compact Administration (ARCA). 1980. April 24. Resolution Concerning an Operating Plan for John Martin Reservoir. ARCA, Denver, 9 pp. Available at http://water.state.co.us/DWRIPub/Documents/ARCA_1980JMROperPlan_2010Revision.pdf (accessed April 6, 2013).Google Scholar
Bennett, L.L., Howe, C.W., and Shope, J.. 2000. The Interstate River Compact as a Water Allocation Mechanism: Efficiency Aspects. American Journal of Agricultural Economics 82(4):1006–1015.Google Scholar
Birkland, T.A. 2011. An Introduction to the Policy Process: Theories, Concepts, and Models of Public Policy Making, 3rd edition. M.E. Sharpe, Armonk, New York, 339 pp.Google Scholar
Bowman, A. 2004. Horizontal Federalism: Exploring Interstate Interactions. Journal of Public Administration Research and Theory 14(4):535–546.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Bowman, A.O., and Woods, N.D.. 2007. Strength in Numbers: Why States Join Interstate Compacts. State Politics & Policy Quarterly 7(4):347–368.Google Scholar
Carpenter, D. 1925. January 7. South Platte River Compact Report of Delph E. Carpenter, Commissioner of Colorado. Colorado State University, Fort Collins, 23 pp. Available at http://digitool.library.colostate.edu/R/?func=dbin-jump-full&object_id=98161 (accessed March 20, 2013).Google Scholar
Colorado Division of Water Resources (CDWR). 2013a. Tributary Water Use and Measurement Rules. CDWR, Denver, 23 pp. Available at http://water.state.co.us/groundwater/GWAdmin/UseAndMeasurement/Pages/default.aspx (accessed March 20, 2013).Google Scholar
Colorado Division of Water Resources (CDWR). 2013b. Division 2 (Pueblo) Arkansas River Basin. CDWR, Denver, Available at http://water.state.co.us/DivisionsOffices/Div2ArkansasRiverBasin/Pages/Div2ArkansasRB.aspx (accessed March 24, 2013).Google Scholar
Colorado State Judicial Branch. 2013. Water Courts. Colorado State Judicial Branch, Denver, Available at http://www.courts.state.co.us/Courts/Water/Index.cfm (accessed February 5, 2014).Google Scholar
Colorado State Legislature. 1963. Colorado Water Rights Determination and Administration Act (L. 69: p. 1200, 1; CRS 1963: 148-21-1). Colorado State Legislature, Denver. Available at http://www.lpdirect.net/casb/crs/37-92-101.html (accessed April 28, 2014).Google Scholar
Colorado State Legislature. 1922a. Colorado River Compact. Colorado State Legislature, Denver, 5 pp. Available at http://water.state.co.us/DWRIPub/Documents/coloradocompact.pdf (accessed September 13, 2013).Google Scholar
Colorado State Legislature. 1922b. La Plata River Compact. Colorado State Legislature, Denver, 3 pp. Available at http://water.state.co.us/DWRIPub/Documents/laplatacompact.pdf (accessed September 13, 2013).Google Scholar
Colorado State Legislature. 1923. April 27. South Platte River Compact. Colorado State Legislature, Denver, 5 pp. Available at http://water.state.co.us/DWRIPub/Documents/splattecompact.pdf (accessed September 13, 2013).Google Scholar
Colorado State Legislature. 1938. Rio Grande River Compact. Colorado State Legislature, Denver, 10 pp. Available at http://water.state.co.us/DWRIPub/Documents/riograndecompact.pdf (accessed September, 13, 2013).Google Scholar
Colorado State Legislature. 1942. Republican River Compact. Colorado State Legislature, Denver, 8 pp. Available at http://water.state.co.us/DWRIPub/Documents/rrcompact.pdf (accessed September 13, 2013).Google Scholar
Colorado State Legislature. 1948. Upper Colorado River Compact. Colorado State Legislature, Denver, 11 pp. Available at http://water.state.co.us/DWRIPub/Documents/uppercoloradocompact.pdf (accessed September 13, 2013).Google Scholar
Colorado State Legislature. 1949, June 30. Arkansas River Compact: Kansas–Colorado (L. 49: p. 509, 1; CRS 1949:145-152). Colorado State Legislature, Denver, 10 pp. Available at http://water.state.co.us/DWRIPub/Documents/Ark_River_Compact_CO_KS.pdf (accessed March 20, 2013).Google Scholar
Colorado State Legislature. 1963a. Amended Costilla Creek Compact. Colorado State Legislature, Denver, 9 pp. Available at http://water.state.co.us/DWRIPub/Documents/costillacompact.pdf (accessed September 13, 2013).Google Scholar
Colorado State Legislature. 1963b. Colorado Water Rights Determination and Administration Act (L. 69: p. 1200, 1; CRS 1963: 148-21-1). Colorado State Legislature, Denver. Available at http://www.lpdirect.net/casb/crs/37-92-101.html (accessed April 28, 2014).Google Scholar
Colorado State Legislature. 1969. Animas-La Plata Project Compact. Colorado State Legislature, Denver, 1 p. Available at http://water.state.co.us/DWRIPub/Documents/animaslaplatacompact.pdf (accessed September 13, 2013).Google Scholar
Colorado Water Conservation Board (CWCB). 2006. By-laws for the Arkansas River Basin Roundtable. CWCB, Denver, 15 pp. Available at http://cwcbweblink.state.co.us/weblink/docview.aspx?id=113009&searchhandle=17059 (accessed March 24, 2013).Google Scholar
Colorado Water Conservation Board (CWCB). N.d. Key Events in History of the Arkansas River Compact. CWCB, Denver, 2 pp. Available at http://cwcb.state.co.us/legal/Documents/InterstateCompacts/HistoryArkansasRiverCompact.pdf (accessed March 20, 2013).Google Scholar
Colorado’s Decision Support Systems (CDSS). 2013. Call Chronology Data. CDSS, Denver. Available at http://cdss.state.co.us/onlineTools/Pages/CallChronology.aspx (accessed March 20, 2013).Google Scholar
Elazar, D.J. 1987. Exploring Federalism. University of Alabama Press, Tuscaloosa, 335 pp.Google Scholar
Elmore, R.F. 1979. Backward Mapping: Implementation Research and Policy Decisions. Political Science Quarterly 94(4):601–616.Google Scholar
Evans, C.R. 1997. Feasibility Report Loan Contract. Arkansas Groundwater Users Association, Pueblo, CO, 27 pp. Available at http://cwcbweblink.state.co.us/WebLink/0/doc/70629/Page1.aspx (accessed September 13, 2013).Google Scholar
Florestano, P.S. 1994. Past and Present Utilization of Interstate Compacts in the United States. Publius: Journal of Federalism 24(4):13–24.Google Scholar
Gerring, J. 2006. Case Study Research Principles and Practice. Cambridge University Press, New York, 278 pp.Google Scholar
Green, B. 2001. January 24. Agenda Item No. 11 c.—Water Supply Planning and Finance—Severance Tax Trust Fund Perpetual Base Account New Loans—Colorado Water Protective and Development Association—Purchase of Water Rights. Memo. Colorado Water Conservation Board, Denver, 8 pp. Available at http://cwcbweblink.state.co.us/weblink/0/doc/49736/Page1.aspx (accessed September 13, 2013).Google Scholar
Hobbs, G.J., Jr. 2004. Citizen’s Guide to Colorado Water Law, rev. edition, ed. K.A. Brown. Colorado Foundation for Water Education, Denver, 34 pp. Available at http://www.colorado.edu/geography/class_homepages/geog_4501_sum13/readings/CG-Law2004.pdf (accessed February 1, 2014).Google Scholar
Kansas Department of Agriculture. 2009. Fact Sheet: Kansas-Colorado Arkansas River Compact. Kansas Department of Agriculture, Topeka, 2 pp. Available at http://agriculture.ks.gov/docs/default-source/iwi---kansas-colorado-arkansas-river-compact/arkcompactfactsheet_2013-08-13.pdf?sfvrsn=4 (accessed March 24, 2013).Google Scholar
Lipsky, M. 1980. Street-Level Bureaucracy: The Dilemmas of the Individual in Public Service. Russell Sage Foundation, New York, 244 pp.Google Scholar
May, P.J., and Winter, S.C.. 2009. Politicians, Managers, and Street-Level Bureaucrats: Influences on Policy Implementation. Journal of Public Administration Research and Theory 19(3):453–476.Google Scholar
Mazmanian, D.A., and Sabatier, P.A.. 1983. Implementation and Public Policy, Scott, Foresman Public Policy Analysis and Management Series. University Press of America, Lanham, MD, Scott, Foresman, Saddle River, NJ, 299 pp.Google Scholar
McCool, D.C. 1994. Command of the Waters: Iron Triangles, Federal Water Development, and Indian Water. University of Arizona Press, Tucson, 321 pp.Google Scholar
McCool, D.C. 2012. River Republic: The Fall and Rise of America’s Rivers. Columbia University Press, New York, 408 pp.Google Scholar
Sabatier, P.A. 1986. Top-Down and Bottom-Up Approaches in Implementation Research: A Critical Analysis and Suggested Synthesis. Journal of Public Policy 6(1):21–48.Google Scholar
Santistevan, D., Colorado Water Division One Engineer. 2013, March 14. Personal communication.Google Scholar
Schantz, B., Colorado Water Division One River Operations and Compact Coordinator. 2013, February 18. Personal communication.Google Scholar
Scheberle, D. 2004. Federalism and Environmental Policy: Trust and the Politics of Implementation, 2nd edition. Georgetown University Press, Washington, DC, 224 pp.Google Scholar
Schlager, E., and Heikkila, T.. 2009. Resolving Water Conflicts: A Comparative Analysis of Interstate Compacts. Policy Studies Journal 37(3):367–392.Google Scholar
Schlager, E., and Heikkila, T.. 2011. Left High and Dry? Climate Change, Common-Pool Resource Theory, and the Adaptability of Western Water Compacts. Public Administration Review 71(3):461–470.Google Scholar
Schlager, E., Heikkila, T., and Case, C.. 2012. The Cost of Compliance with Interstate Agreements: Lessons from Water Compacts in the Western United States. Publius: Journal of Federalism 42(3):494–515.Google Scholar
US Supreme Court. 1907. Kansas v. Colorado—206 US 46 (27 S. Ct. 655, 51 L. Ed. 956). Supreme Court, Washington, DC. Available at http://supreme.justia.com/cases/federal/us/206/46/ (accessed April 28,2014).Google Scholar
US Supreme Court. 1985. Kansas v. Colorado—475 US 1079 106 (SCt 1454, 89 LEd 2d 736). US Supreme Court, Washington, DC, 192 pp. Available at http://water.state.co.us/DWRIPub/Documents/KSvsCO105_5thReportV3_Alittleworth_20071010.pdf (accessed March 20, 2013).Google Scholar
US Supreme Court. 2009. Kansas v. Colorado—556 US. US Supreme Court, Washington, DC, 8 pp. Available at http://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/08pdf/105orig.pdf (accessed March 20, 2013).Google Scholar
Van Horn, C.E., and Van Meter, D.S.. 1976. The Implementation of Intergovernmental Policy. In Public Policy Making in a Federal System, C.O. Jones and R.D. Thomas, eds. Sage, Beverly Hills, CA, 39–64.Google Scholar
Weissert, C., and Hill, J.. 1994. The Low-Level Radioactive Waste Compacts: Lessons Learned from Theory and Practice. Publius: Journal of Federalism 24(4):27–43.Google Scholar
Witte, S. Colorado Water Division 2 Engineer. 2013, March 22 and 24. Personal communication.Google Scholar
Yin, R.K. 2009. Case Study Research: Design and Methods, 4th edition. Sage, Thousand Oaks, CA, 219 pp.Google Scholar
Zimmerman, J.F. 2002. Interstate Cooperation: Compacts and Administrative Agreements. Praeger, Westport, CT, 257 pp.Google Scholar