Frameworks For Water Law Reform

This book develops an analytical framework for water law reform, using case studies across four jurisdictions, for academics, students and policy makers.

In the face of growing freshwater scarcity, most countries of the world are taking steps to conserve their water and foster its sustainable use. Water crises range from concerns of drinking water availability and/or quality, the degradation or contamination of freshwater, and the allocation of water to different users. To meet the challenge, many countries are undergoing systemic changes to the use of freshwater and the provision of water services, thereby leading to greater commercialization of the resource as well as a restructuring of the legal, regulatory, technical and institutional frameworks for water. The contributions to this book critically analyse legal issues arising under international law, such as environment and human rights provisions, concerning the economic, environmental and social consequences of proposed water regulatory changes and their implementation at the national level. The book examines the situation in India which is currently in the midst of implementing several World Bank led water restructuring projects which will have significant impacts on the realisation of the right to water and all other aspects of water regulation for decades to come. In analysing the situation in India the volume is able to detail the interactions between international law and national law in the field of water, and to ask broader questions about the compliance with international law at the national level and the relevance of international law in national law and policy-making.

According to a famous Talmudic story (Babylonian Talmud, Tractate Shabbat: 31a), a gentile once approached Rabbi Hillel and asked to be taught the entire Torah while standing on one foot. Hillel replied, ‘Love your neighbour as yourself. That is the entire Torah. The rest is simply an explanation. Go and learn it!’ In much the same way, Jewish law can be described in one word—Torah. All the rest is simply an explanation. The Torah, also known as the Bible, the five books of Moses, and the Pentateuch, was written over 3,000 years ago. Since then, Jewish law has developed various interpretations and applications of the Torah, interpretations of those interpre- tions, and so on. Jewish law contains civil dictates as well as religious protocol. Problems that arose in the framework of religious life and problems surrounding civil relationships both found solutions in the same legal source—the Torah and the Halacha, the Jewish legal interpretations and rulings. This chapter on water law in the Jewish tradition provides insight into Jewish law and custom in general, and rules related to the protection of water sources in particular. One should not look, however, to find a written code of Jewish law, as there is none.

This book provides a first comprehensive legal examination of water rights arrangements and water rights trading in China. Although recent water reform in China has made substantial progress in policy development and practice, how its legal and institutional framework facilitates or hinders the application of tradable water rights remains less addressed in the existing scholarship. Against the backdrop of China’s water reform and the wider international debate in water governance, this book aims to provide an innovative approach to the complex issue of water governance by critically analysing the recent legal and policy developments in China towards tradable water rights. It examines the deficiencies of the current systems for water rights arrangements and trading, explores how China may learn from and build on the international trends in water rights trading practice (mainly Australia and the US), and proposes legal and policy frameworks for defining and administering tradable water rights in China that underpin sustainable water use in the face of exacerbated water scarcity, variability, and uncertainty. All in all, the book proposes pragmatic strategies for China’s water law and policy reform to move towards tradable water rights, which encompasses a comprehensive prescription from initialising and defining tradable water rights to administering water rights and trading. By reflecting on the deepening water reforms in both China and other jurisdictions, the book aims to contribute to the international water governance debate by exploring from a legal and policy perspective, how China, comparative to other cases around the world, can find a balanced combination of water allocation mechanisms to address its water challenges. It is hoped that the observations and proposed implications for China’s water reform will contribute to developing a better understanding of the way in which experiences in water markets can be shared from jurisdiction to jurisdiction.

"Water Governance in Motion: Towards Socially and Environmentally Sustainable Water Laws" focuses on the work undertaken by International Environmental Law Research Centre IELRC on water law reforms in India. It seeks to provide a broader understanding of the conceptual framework informing existing water law and ongoing reforms. The book is divided into two parts. The first part critically analyses the context of international law for water reforms and the second part discusses the multifaceted aspects of water sector reforms in India. It assembles in one volume the contributions made by a broad range of scholars working on various law and policy issues arising in the context of water sector reforms in India. The contributions have been specifically selected in order to address the wide range of issues including water distribution to households, irrigation, industrial use and wastewater treatment. These questions are dealt with from a range of perspectives including human rights, environment, agriculture, development and trade. The book would be of interest to academia, researchers, NGOs and policy-makers.

Effective water governance capacity is the foundation of efficient management of water resources. Water governance reform processes must work towards building capacity in a cohesive and articulated approach that links national policies, laws and institutions, within an enabling environment that allows for their implementation. This guide shows how national water reform processes can deliver good water governance, by focussing on the principles and practice of reform. RULE guides managers and decision makers on a journey which provides an overview of what makes good law, policy and institutions, and the steps needed to build a coherent and fully operational water governance structure.

The fifteen chapters of this book analyse the living community-based water laws in Africa, Latin America and Asia and critically examine the interface between community-based water laws, formal water laws and a variety of other key institutional ingredients of on-going water resources management reform.

This study assesses the use of economic instruments for water resources management in Georgia and considers options for reform following the 2014 signature of an Association Agreement with the EU committing to alignment with the EU’s Water Framework Directive.