First annual Water Law, Policy and Science Conference

Finding Solutions to Multi-jurisdictional Water Conflicts
March 4-5, 2004

First Water Law, Policy and Science Conference Sets the Bar High

By Steve Ress
UNL Water Center

The combination of national, international and local water law experts playing to a packed house made UNL’s first water law, policy and science conference a major success.

"If we continue attracting this level of speakers to address and spur discussion on water topics of regional and national importance, I can easily see this event becoming one of the premier water conferences in the country,” said conference organizer and UNL associate professor of law Sandi Zellmer.

Finding Solutions to Multi-jurisdictional Water Conflicts was the theme of the March 4 and 5 conference at UNL's College of Law on East Campus. The day-and-a-half public conference attracted nearly 270. It was a premier event for UNL’s Water Resources Research Initiative which supports a broad spectrum of interdisciplinary water-related research.

Conference attendees represented attorneys and law professors in many legal disciplines, as well as state and federal regulatory agencies, natural resources districts, academics and students, largely from UNL’s College of Law and School of Natural Resources.

"I was especially pleased with the level of student involvement, which was the highest of any previous Nebraska water conference,” Zellmer said. More than 30 students attended all or parts of the conference.

Speakers and panelists addressed a variety of complex and timely water issues revolving around a theme of how best to reach sustainable water management decisions that satisfy the needs of both people and fish and wildlife. Topics included alternative dispute resolution, water marketing through sales, leases or other transfers, and using the best available science to help resolve legal conflicts. Water conflicts from across the country were discussed and placed into context related to water resources allocations in the Platte and Missouri Rivers.

"A conference goal is to foster ongoing dialogue and research among legal experts, scientists, engineers, economists and other water-related disciplines to better understand the oftentimes competing ecological and human needs for water and to reach sustainable management solutions,” Zellmer said.

Keynote speakers were Sandra Postel, director of the Global Water Policy Project based in Amherst, Mass., who opened the conference addressing "Water for Life: Rethinking Management in an Age of Scarcity," focused on security, agriculture and the value of water.

Joseph Sax, noted water and environmental law author, professor and The Order of the Coif Distinguished Scholar at the University of California-Berkeley Boalt Hall School of Law spoke on the future of western water law and Robert Glennon, Morris K. Udall Professor of Law and Public Policy at the University of Arizona and author of Water Follies: Groundwater Pumping and the Fate of America’s Fresh Waters, spoke to those attending Thursday night’s banquet at the Nebraska State Museum.

Panelists and presenters included Roger Patterson, director, Nebraska Department of Natural Resources; Betsy Rieke, area manager, U.S. Bureau of Reclamation, Carson City, Nev.; John Davidson, University of South Dakota Law School; Jay Stein, chair, committee on water resources, American Bar Association Section on Energy and Natural Resources (2002-2003), Santa Fe, N.M.; and Gerald E. Galloway, former U.S. Section Secretary, International Joint Commission, Washington, D.C. UNL Vice Chancellor for Research Prem Paul opened the conference on March 4 and Governor Mike Johanns reopened the event the following day.

"The conference will continue as an annual venue for leading experts to discuss different aspects of current water issues. While this year's conference focused on legal issues, future conferences will explore water science and policy,” said UNL Water Center director and Water Resources Research Initiative co-leader Kyle Hoagland.

"Based on the high level of presenters and attendance, this initial conference has set the bar very high for subsequent events, which is a challenge we fully expect to meet,” Hoagland said. Next year’s conference is expected to center on water policy issues.

For copies of conference materials, contact Jacki Loomis, UNL School of Natural Resources at (402) 472-7550. An upcoming issue of the Nebraska Law Review will publish conference outcomes.

Conference sponsors were the Water Resources Research Initiative, College of Law, Institute of Agriculture and Natural Resources, School of Natural Resources and Water Center, as well as the Nebraska Water Conference Council, Rocky Mountain Mineral Law Foundation and Nebraska Bar Association-Natural Resources Section.