Tag: regulation
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Requiring water users to pay for ecological damage
FEATURE: A conversation with environmental lawyer Karrigan Börk Water diversions can harm aquatic ecosystems, riparian habitat, and beaches fed by river sediment. But the people who use water don’t bear the cost of this ecological damage. “The public pays for it,” says Karrigan Börk, a University of California, Davis law professor who has a PhD…
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Climate Change’s ‘Physical Risks’ Are Catching Up With Banks
A container ship navigates through the Miraflores locks of the Panama Canal on Nov. 3. Drought has led to restrictions on ships transiting the waterway. Photographer: Bloomberg The financial industry is waking up to the potential losses from extreme events and long-term changes in weather patterns. As the world veers further off course from its goal of limiting…
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In a first, California cracks down on farms guzzling groundwater
Photo by Justin Sullivan / Getty Images Regulators just imposed unprecedented fees on water usage in the state’s agricultural heartland. In much of the United States, groundwater extraction is unregulated and unlimited. There are few rules governing who can pump water from underground aquifers or how much they can take. This lack of regulation has…
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EPA limits six ‘forever chemicals’ in drinking water — but there are 15,000
‘Forever chemicals’ are linked to cancer, birth defects and other serious health problems. Photograph: Smith Collection/Gado/Getty Images Rules celebrated for reducing exposures, but experts say it’s not enough and will lead to ‘an endless game of Whac-A-Mole’ Strong new limits for some PFAS compounds in drinking water set by the US Environmental Protection Agency this week are being…
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Five Guiding Principles for Effective Voluntary Agreements
A Case Study on VAs for Water and Habitat in California’s Bay-Delta Watershed California has increasingly emphasized efforts to develop voluntary agreements (VAs) with water users as a means of achieving regulatory goals. VAs are negotiated agreements that establish pathways for regulated entities to meet regulatory requirements through alternative means. In theory, a VA can…
