Further down the road to sustainable environmental flows: funding, management activities and governance for six western US states

Abstract

This article examines the voluntary approach to environmental flow management in six western states of the United States. These states use the legal system for water allocation known as prior appropriation which allows market transfers of water rights or leases to beneficial uses, here for instream flows. Funding sources are required to provide for market transfers to e-flows (environmental flows), and the present study indicates the inadequacy of support. This article also explores management activities by states and non-governmental organizations as well as considers the meaning of governance for instream flows.

Keywords:

• instream flow
• environmental flow
• prior appropriation
• funding
• sustainable management
• public good

Notes

1. See Charney (2005), for more detail on western state instream flow programmes.

2. New Mexico has allowed transfers to instream flow since 1998. New Mexico does not have a state list of beneficial uses; designation of beneficial use is at the discretion of the State Engineer.

3. For example in Colorado, “beneficial use” does not limit ISF appropriations to just preserving coldwater fisheries. In fact, there have been a few ISF rights decreed for aesthetics, including Deadhorse Creek and Hanging Lake. The problem is how to quantify flow needs: there are no standard, court-approved methodologies for aesthetics as those for quantifying fishery needs.