By means of a two-jurisdictional model, this paper analyses the optimal division of environmental policymaking functions among the different government levels, identifying the most appropriate level of decentralization in each case. The paper focuses on water resources policies, with an...

IWP Staff Papers 2011 is the first volume of an annual series showcasing innovative research papers from the staff and associates of the Institute of Water Policy (IWP) at the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy, National University of Singapore (NUS). This volume contains six research papers...

The 1964 Columbia River Treaty between the United States and Canada is currently under review. Under the treaty, the river is jointly operated by the two countries for hydropower and is the largest producer of hydropower in the western hemisphere. In considering the next phase of international...

This paper examines the challenges confronting the nation in managing and using water in an increasingly destabilized climate, and argues that reforming the institutional and regulatory systems governing water is essential to meet these challenges. Vigorous governmental action will be needed,...

This paper examines the increasing importance of groundwater, the inadequacy of many states' laws and management policies, the federal government's legal authority to regulate or otherwise influence groundwater management and use, and the various ways the federal government influences and can...

This paper examines the growing importance of groundwater resources that cross state lines, and the body of federal law that can apply to interstate groundwater - a body of law developed almost entirely with respect to interstate surface water resources. It then examines past federal actions...

Water policy experts contend that the United States is heading toward a water scarcity crisis in the coming years. Global climate change is likely to make water scarcity much worse in the long run. This article argues that demands of current and projected water management challenges can best be...

The water prices that implement the optimal water policy are derived. These prices contain the supply cost components and two shadow price terms: one reflecting the in situ value of natural water and the other representing the scarcity of recycled water. The former accounts for the scarcity,...

The current Water Abstraction License (WAL) regime in Italy is no longer flexible enough to cope with the challenges posed by human-induced climate and global environmental changes. The cornerstones of the current regime were laid down in the 1930s and have remained essentially unchanged ever...

Water is critical not only to economic progress and sustainable development but most importantly, to human survival. Yet, the way water is valued suggests an inexhaustible supply, when the opposite is true. This paper examines if water rights in the Philippines are underpriced and looks at how...