Conclusion — The Politics of Water Rights Formalization and the Missing Ingredient of Water Security

2016 ◽  
pp. 173-189
Author(s):  
Miriam Seemann
Keyword(s):  
Water Rights ◽  
Water Security

scholarly journals Water Rights in a Time of Fragility: An Exploration of Contestation and Discourse around Cape Town’s “Day Zero” Water Crisis

Water ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (22) ◽  
pp. 3247
Author(s):  
Jackie Dugard
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Water Rights ◽  
Water Security ◽  
Interesting Case ◽  
Water Insecurity ◽  
Middle Income ◽  
The World ◽  
Legal Frameworks ◽  
Water Scarce ◽  
The Right

South Africa is an interesting case study on the right to water. It is an upper-middle income country with a history and current reality of extreme racialised inequality, including the water services sphere. It is water scarce, and during 2018, Cape Town was expected to be the first major metropolitan city in the world to run out of water. South Africa has one of the most progressive constitutions in the world, which incorporated socio-economic rights including the right to water as explicitly justiciable long before the international right to water was recognised. However, despite clear water-security and water-equity fault lines on the one hand and conducive legal frameworks on the other hand, there has been relatively little water rights contestation in post-apartheid South Africa. It is this paradox and, in particular, how it played out in the clear case of water insecurity in Cape Town’s “Day Zero” crisis that are the subjects of examination in this article. Aiming to make an original contribution to the scholarship on the “Day Zero” crisis by exploring it from the perspective of interlocutors and those affected by it, this article also hopes to contribute towards a better understanding of the nature and application of water rights more broadly.

scholarly journals Water Security and Judicial and Administrative Confusion in South Africa: The Trustees of the Time Being of the Lucas Scheepers Trust, IT 633/96 and Others v MEC for the Department of Water Affairs, Gauteng and Others Case nr 40514/2013

2017 ◽  
Vol 20 ◽  
pp. 1
Author(s):  
Ed Couzens ◽  
Devarasi Maduramuthu ◽  
Adrian Bellengère
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Water Use ◽  
Water Rights ◽  
Water Security ◽  
Water Law ◽  
Environment Protection ◽  
High Court ◽  
The North ◽  
Relative Scarcity ◽  
National Water

One of the gravest constraints which South Africa faces in its efforts to promote development and to lift much of its population out of poverty is the relative scarcity of its water. Significant changes were made to South Africa’s water law in the 1990s, especially with the promulgation of the National Water Act 36 of 1998. In terms of this Act a Water Tribunal was created which ought to have enhanced water security and to have provided a settled forum to adjudicate disputes and to assist in developing the jurisprudence of water law. Instead the Tribunal appears to have created almost as much confusion as clarity before it was dissolved in much uncertainty over whether it would continue in existence or not. A recent judgment in the Gauteng High Court (The Trustees of the Time Being of the Lucas Scheepers Trust, IT 633/96 and Others v MEC for the Department of Water Affairs, Gauteng and Others) has created uncertainty by departing from the precedent of a relatively recent judgment in the North Gauteng High Court (Escarpment Environment Protection Group and Wonderfontein Community Association v Department of Water Affairs and Xstrata Alloys (Pty) Ltd and The Water Tribunal). In the context of the uncertainty created by the falling into desuetude, at least between 2011 and 2016, of the Water Tribunal, and contradictory indications from National Government, litigants have been forced to seek other fora for remedies. On occasion, courts have been sympathetic and given sensitive judgments – on occasion they have not. Against this background of inconsistent jurisprudence, it is important that there be greater clarity of rights, duties and institutions, and that institutions become settled as soon as possible so that a consistent jurisprudence can begin to emerge in the water rights field. While the situation stabilizes, which it is hoped that it will soon begin to do, it is suggested that both courts and government act with circumspection in considering applications concerning water use rights; and be sensitive of the current uncertain circumstances when making decisions. The difficulties of ensuring water security and administrative fairness in South Africa demand nothing less.

Water Security and Technological Innovation

2020 ◽  
pp. 165-188
Author(s):  
Rhett B. Larson
Keyword(s):  
Water Resources ◽  
Water Supply ◽  
Technological Innovation ◽  
Water Conservation ◽  
Water Rights ◽  
Water Security ◽  
Environmental Costs ◽  
Cloud Seeding ◽  
Smart Appliances

For many, the promise of technological innovation is a source of optimism in the pursuit of water security. Improved technologies allow us to use water more efficiently and conserve our water resources. But some of these technologies face legal obstacles, or else, in the case of smart appliances and meters, cultural opposition. Water augmentation technologies could conceivably increase our water supply, through desalination or cloud seeding. But these technologies have environmental costs and raise complex questions regarding water allocation and equity as wealthy countries and communities augment their water supplies through costly means. Additionally, water represents both our hope and greatest challenge for a future among the stars. This chapter discusses the role of water law in advancing technologies for water conservation, managing technologies for water augmentation, and imagining the future legal regimes associated with water rights on other planets.

scholarly journals Wetland Conservation: Challenges Related to Water Law and Farm Policy

Wetlands ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 41 (5) ◽  
Author(s):  
Sammy L. King ◽  
Murray K. Laubhan ◽  
Paul Tashjian ◽  
John Vradenburg ◽  
Leigh Fredrickson
Keyword(s):  
Water Use ◽  
Water Conservation ◽  
Water Rights ◽  
Water Security ◽  
Economic Incentives ◽  
Surface Flow ◽  
Farm Policy ◽  
Federal Policies ◽  
Ultimate Cause ◽  
The U.S

AbstractWater is essential for wetland function and sustaining migratory networks for wetland wildlife across broad landscapes. Groundwater declines and surface flow reductions that impact aquatic and wetland organisms are common in the western U.S. and increasingly in the eastern U.S. Agriculture is the largest consumptive water use in the U.S. and understanding economic incentives of water-use practices and the legal context of water rights is foundational to identifying meaningful water solutions that benefit all sectors of society. In this paper, we provide a brief overview of water rights in the U.S. and synthesize the literature to provide a broad overview of how federal farm policy influences water-use decisions. We conclude that the ultimate cause of many water-use conflicts is an inefficient farm economy that is driven by several proximate factors, of which outdated water laws and subsidies that encourage increased water use are among the most important. Development of multi-scale water budgets to assess project impacts and by working more intensively at local watershed and aquifer scales may improve conservation efforts. Finally, detailed analyses to understand the impacts of specific federal policies on agricultural water use may enhance water conservation efforts, facilitate long-term food and water security, and provide greater protection for wetland and aquatic resources.

The Relationship between Priority and Value of Irrigation Water Used with Prior Appropriation Water Rights

2020 ◽  
Vol 96 (3) ◽  
pp. 384-398 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gi-Eu Lee ◽  
Kimberly Rollins ◽  
Loretta Singletary
Keyword(s):  
Irrigation Water ◽  
Water Rights ◽  
Value Of Irrigation Water ◽  
The Relationship

Water Governance and Management in Indus Basin - Challenges & Threats

2020 ◽  
Vol 38 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Marium Sara Minhas Bandeali
Keyword(s):  
Water Management ◽  
Civil Society ◽  
Water Resources ◽  
Water Policy ◽  
Water Governance ◽  
Sustainable Use ◽  
Water Security ◽  
Sampling Technique ◽  
The State ◽  
Indus Basin

Water governance and management are important challenges for the River Indus Basin in Pakistan. Water governance refers to social, political and economic factors that influence water management. The water scarcity and water security are a major concern for the state to control its water resources. The study aims to give Sindh water policy by exploring the challenges to Indus Basin in managing water resources and to identify opportunities Indus Basin can look to improve water management. Interviews were conducted from water experts and analysts having 5 years’ experience or more in the water sector of Pakistan through a semi-structured self-developed questionnaire using purposive sampling technique and transcripts were analyzed using thematic content analysis. The findings show that increasing population, climatic change and rising demand of water are major challenges Indus is facing and Indus with time is getting water-scarce therefore need strong institutions, civil society and legislatures to ensure equitable distribution of water and maintain the ecosystem. The study emphasizes that water governance and management are necessary for sustainable use of water. Pakistan, the water stress country needs to address ‘governance’ at a wider scale to solve problems in the Indus Basin for the livelihood of people. The research will benefit the state, water experts, institutions as well as civil society to promote efficient use of water in Indus Basin.

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