Five Things to Consider When Developing and Adapting Water Policies and Programs in the West

• Date: 01 June 2014

6-2014 NEWS & ANALYSIS 44 ELR 10485

Five Things to

Consider When

Developing and

Adapting Water

Policies and

Programs in the

West

by Marion Boulicault and

Adam Schempp

Marion Boulicault is a graduate student in the Department

of History and Philosophy of Science at the University of

Cambridge. Adam Schempp is the Director of the Western

Water Program at the Environmental Law Institute.

Summary

Water policies and programs in the western United

States have not always achieved the results originally

envisioned. e surrounding circumstances, from

public opinion and involvement to hydrology and

administrative capacity, signicantly inuence policy

and program eectiveness. is Article identies and

provides examples of these key external characteris-

tics, categorizing them under ve overarching factors:

social and political dynamics; physical landscape; eco-

nomics; law; and administrative capacity. Considering

these factors, and tailoring water policies and pro-

grams accordingly, oers the best chance of achieving

the desired results.

Water policies and programs that are outstanding

in theory do not always live up to their potential,

and even those that work in one location do not

always work elsewhere. Much eort can be spent scouring

the globe for management solutions to water problems, or

in developing completely new ideas. ese are worthwhile

and arguably critical endeavors, since the end result will

only be as good as the strategy being implemented. But the

fate of any policy or program rests as much or more in the

circumstances in which it is applied.

Water policies and programs should be selected, adapted,

and even designed from scratch to t the circumsta nces of

the intended locale. Incentives for implementation range

from nancial, to eciency and process speed, to opportu-

nities that would otherwise be prohibited by law. A policy

or program should be built to capitalize on one or more

of the incentives most inuential in its intended locale.

Perhaps even more important, it should avoid foreseeable

pitfalls such as contradictory laws, inadequate stang, and

non-conducive hydrologic characteristics. If a water policy

or program likely will need the assistance of those outside

government to be eective, the presence of individuals and

groups ready to provide t hat assistance is critical; in addi-

tion, they should be engaged in t he process. If the policy

or program is being adapted from another location, deci-

sionmakers should understand the factors that led to suc-

cess in the original location and determine whether t he

circumstances in the two places are suciently similar to

adequately replicate the prior results.

Much rides on these policy and program decisions.

Failure, especially of choices that showed great promise,

can limit future opportunities. Proponents lose face; the

problem gains an air of invincibility; and opponents of any

subsequent reforms gain ammunition. Decisionmakers at

the state and local levels should give a water policy or pro-

gram ever y chance to succeed by selecting, adapting, and

developing it wisely.

e rst step is identifying the potential inuences on

a water policy or program’s success. While each scenario

is unique, this Article provides a checklist of inuences

prominent in the lengthy history of western water policy

and program development. Framed as ve factors (social

and political dynamics, physical landscape, economics, law,

and administrative capacity), the details of these inuences

and the examples of the ways in which each has determined

the success or failure of programs and policies establish a

foundation for more comprehensive issue-spotting a nd

analysis. From this foundation, decisionmakers should be

able to craft water policies and programs that better utilize

incentives and overcome obstacles, and ultimately that are

more successful. e objective should be more than just

Copyright © 2014 Environmental Law Institute®, Washington, DC. Reprinted with permission from ELR®, http://www.eli.org, 1-800-433-5120.