The general purpose of this study is the examination of the institutional framework for ground water management, with specific consideration given to Virginia as a case study. The following objectives are encompassed within the general goal of institutional evaluation: (1) identification of the physical determinants of institutional structure, (2) description of current management institutions in Virginia, (3) comparative evaluation of the Virginia institutional framework, and (4) development of institutional guidelines of general applicability and specific recommendations for Virginia. The principal physical characteristic of ground water that determines institutional requirements for management is the dependence of the resource on a broad range of natural processes and the resulting propensity toward a variety of externalities. These external effects exist among individual water uses and also involve a variety of land use practices, indicating the need for a management framework with the capability for integration of a broad scope of considerations. The oldest institutional framework for ground water decision-making consists of private rights that define the limits of individual action affecting the resource. Private rights are significant with regard to withdrawal of ground water, use of land that affects the resource, and use of aquifer storage space through artificial recharge operations. Development of rights in these areas has proceeded at varying rates among the states and has reached differing results, but private rights in general have been relatively ineffective in restraining excessive pumping and other activities adversely affecting the resource. The institutional framework for ground water management also encompasses a variety of statutory laws and programs involving all levels of government, Primary responsibilities of the federal government consist of quality protection and data collection. Developing federal planning procedures have a potentially significant impact on ground water management. In Virginia, state law establishes an administrative ground water allocation system for application within specially designated districts. The state also regulates a number of activities that threaten ground water quality and carries out a data collection and management program. The primary authority of the local level of government concerning ground water is land use control. The development of guidelines for improved ground water management institutions involves a variety of issues. One of the most basic consists of the dgree of governmental involvement and the division of responsibilities among the levels of government. Due to the traditional inability of private control measures to constrain ground water externalities and the need for mechanisms to provide for planning and other non-regulatory management functions, direct governmental involvement and control appear inevitable ag burdens placed on the resource increase, With regard to vesting of governmental authority, considerations of managerial capabilities and perspectives indicate that the state level of government should exercise primary authority. Other issues addressed in the general guidelines and the Virginia recommendations include the feasibility of an allocation program applicable solely to ground water, guidelines for determination of "beneficial use," scope of exemptions from controls, criteria for permit issuance, permit duration, and the scope and administrative structure of ground water quality protection programs. / Ph. D.

Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of Wyoming, 2008. / Title from PDF title page (viewed on August 4, 2009). Includes bibliographical references (p. 89-95).

abstract: Indian water rights and Indian water settlements have emerged as a means for resolving long-standing despites and water rights claims. Working with and understanding water rights demands a genuine knowledge of water issues that are specific to each indigenous community as there are cultural aspects and perspectives towards water that are involved. The Gila River Indian Community is an indigenous community in south central Arizona, whose cultural and historic origins span over two millennia. Their foundation as a people was tied to the presence of the Gila and Salt Rivers, from which they freely diverted its waters through hundreds of miles of hand-dug canals, to transform the Sonoran desert into a desert oasis. There is a historical progression of this Community's water rights from when water was abundant to the time it was scarce, leading to an outright denial of a livelihood where water and farming was central to their way of life. A water rights settlement was an option that was pursued because it offered a chance for the Community to see the return of their water. The 2004 Gila River Indian Community Water Rights Settlement has been recognized as the largest Indian water rights settlement in United States history and serves as a model for future water settlements. The success of Indian water settlements in the United States has the potential, under the right political and legal conditions, to be replicated in other areas of the world where water resources are under dispute and water rights have come into conflict between indigenous and non-indigenous users. / Dissertation/Thesis / M.A. Social Justice and Human Rights 2012

Prepared for the U.S. Water Resources Scientific Information Center./ Bibliography: p. 141-220.

No description available.

No abstract available. / Thesis (M.A.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2010.

För att utöva en vattenverksamhet krävs i princip alltid ett tillstånd. Dessa tillstånd har beroende på prövningsmyndighet och gällande lagstiftning haft olika benämningar, bland annat utlåtande, tillståndsbeslut och vattendom. Syftet med studien är att beskriva hur vattendomar arkiveras och är tillgängliga för att kunna hanteras vid fastighetsbildning. Detta då det i dag inte finns någon liknande sammanställning.  Metoderna som tillämpats i studien avser en kvalitativ undersökning som har utförts i form av intervjuer med myndigheter som håller arkiv med tillstånd för vattenverksamheter samt sakkunniga från andra aktörer, en enkät riktad till förrättningslantmätare med erfarenhet av vattendomar och juridisk metod. Den juridiska metoden syftade till att ge en bild av rättsläget och dess förändring avseende vattenverksamhet samt erhålla en djupare förståelse för vilka typer av tillstånd som meddelats historiskt. Avsikten med intervjuundersökningen var att klargöra vilka myndigheter som är arkivmyndigheter i dag samt vad de förvarar i sina arkiv och hur handlingarna är sökbara. Detta kompletterades med en enkät riktad till förrättningslantmätare för att erhålla en bild av hur vattendomar hanteras i fastighetsbildning.  Resultaten av studien visar att vattenrätten har reglerats i ett flertal lagstiftningar genom åren, de första redan under medeltiden och senaste förändringen var när miljöbalken inrättades. Vidare visar resultaten hur komplex situationen är på grund av antalet arkivmyndigheter och historiska förändringar vad gäller tillståndsprövningen och de myndigheter som utfört den. Tillstånd till vattenverksamhet har historiskt sett meddelats genom förrättningar, domstolsdomar eller andra myndighetsbeslut och dessa finns förvarade i olika arkiv beroende på när i tiden tillstånden utfärdades och vilken typ av verksamhet de gäller. Slutsatserna utifrån resultaten är att det i dag inte finns något tydligt tillvägagångssätt för att söka information om vattendomar. Tillgängligheten varierar beroende på var tillståndet är arkiverat samt vilket typ av tillstånd det gäller. Inga tillstånd är per definition otillgängliga, däremot kan det vara väldigt svårt att spåra somliga. / To exert a water enterprise, an official permission almost always is required. Depending on the authority which issued the permit and the legislation under which it was announced, these permits had different names. For instance, verdict, permit order and water rights court ruling. The purpose of the study is to describe how water rights court rulings are archived and how they are available to be handled in connection with property formation.  The methods applied in the study concerns a qualitative research carried out in the form of interviews with authorities keeping archives of water rights as well as experts from other organizations, a survey directed to cadastral surveyors and a legal method. The legal method was to provide a picture of the legal situation and its change related to water enterprise and obtains a deeper understanding of the types of permits issued historically. The purpose of the interview study was to clarify which authorities keep archives, what they keep in their archives and how documents are searchable. This was supplemented with the survey to obtain picture of how water rights are handled in property formation. No such compilation has previously been made.  The results of the study shows that water rights have been regulated in several laws over the years, initially in the Middle Ages and the latest change took place when the Swedish Environmental Code was established. Furthermore, the result indicates how complex the situation is due to the number of archive authorities and historical changes of the examining authorities. Permissions for water enterprise have historically been noticed via cadastral procedures, judgements or other official permissions, and the permissions are stored in various archives depending on when the permits were issued and what type of water enterprise they concern. The conclusions from the results are that today there is no clear approach how to search for documents regarding water rights court rulings. Availability varies depending on where the permits are archived and which type of permit it is. No permit is by definition inaccessible, however, it can be very difficult to locate some.

Doctor Legum - LLD / Water is at the very core of sustainable development, critical for a thriving people, planet and prosperity. Water is regarded as a public good which is fundamental for health and life. Water is so important that it was debated as being a basic human right on many international platforms. Water access has plagued many parts of the world for a long period of time. In recent years, there have been increasingly urgent warnings of a global water crisis, as the human species consistently uses more water than is sustainably available. The international community tried to work towards overcoming these water-related issues by establishing the then Millennium Development Goals (hereafter referred to as MDGs), with MDG7.C focusing on access to safe drinking water. Even though MDG7.C was achieved in part, issues still remained regarding water access and quality. Sustainable Development Goal 6 (hereafter referred to as SDG 6) was then introduced and the scope of SDG6 is much wider than its predecessor, since the water access and scarcity problems are still prevalent today. The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development includes a dedicated goal on water and sanitation that sets out to ensure availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all. SDG6 expands the MDG focus on drinking water to now cover the entire water cycle, including the management of water, wastewater and ecosystem resources, with water at the very core of sustainable development. The goal has, in essence, extended to include a much broader spectrum of issues that need to be solved which, in essence, unravels even more challenges along the way. As a result, it is imperative to determine whether SDG6 can allow for actual sustainable development in terms of freshwater resources. Thus, this thesis will discuss the advent of the Sustainable Development Goals (hereafter referred to as SDGs), in particular SDG6, as well as analyse how SDG6 impacts on International Environmental Law, with particular emphasis on International Freshwater Law. The main aim of this research is to determine whether the creation and implementation of SDG6 can result in overall freshwater sustainability and whether this can result in the furtherance of sustainable development.

China, the world's most populous country, has been experiencing a severe water crisis. This has manifested itself through water shortages, water pollution and natural water disasters, and has been exacerbated by the rapid social and economic development that has taken place in the last two decades. To deal with these problems, an integrated water resources management programme, within which an effective and enforceable water rights system can play a key role, should emerge as soon as possible under the principle of sustainable development. However, there are many problems under the water rights system in the current Chinese water law, involving the property right of water resources, the human right to water, and the environmental right to water. ... this dissertation recommends a well structured water rights system under which the economic, social and environmental values of water resources co-exist equitably in harmony.

Thesis (M.Dev.) -- University of Limpopo, 2011 / The legacy of apartheid has left the Democratic South African government with many challenges. Sixteen years of governance have not been enough for the state to close the gap between the rich and the poor. Instead, the gap is widening day by day. The Black Economic Empowerment (BEE), the Broad Based Black Economic Empowerment (BBBEE) and other government intervention strategies have not done enough to uplift the standard of living of the majority of people in the country. The poor, living in rural areas, remain the most hard-hit and recipients of the bitter fruits of the past. Little or no development has been taking place in their communities. Regardless of the many efforts by the current government, water supply and sanitation in rural areas are a nightmare. The study was conducted in two rural villages in Bushbuckridge Local Municipality (BLM), namely, Clare B and Islington. In some parts of the villages residents have never fetched water in their streets less than one kilometre for close to a year. The results show that villagers are negatively affected by the lack of water in their communities. The economic power of these communities is very low, most of them are living below the poverty line. The results suggest, as elsewhere, that the BLM should install water pipes that will transfer water from the Injaka Dam to all rural areas in the municipality, as the two villages under study are not the only ones experiencing water shortages in the area.