Colorado Environmental Law Journal

Over the past 200 years, the large majority of Colorado‘s rivers have been altered to make way for development, agriculture, or transportation, or to deliver water to users more efficiently. Rivers have been buried by mining debris or concrete, channelized, levied, wholly diverted, riparian vegetation lost by grazing or land use practices, and thousands of miles of streams have become incised, disconnected from their floodplains. Numerous scientific studies over the past twenty years have documented why degraded rivers are problematic and why healthy functioning river systems connected to their floodplains provide numerous critical services beyond water delivery, including increased Continue reading →

Abstract This Article analyzes the Supreme Court’s new per se physical taking rule in Cedar Point Nursery v. Hassid as a potential threat to the public’s right to use dry sand beaches protected by state customary use statutes. The Court’s recent decision pronounced a per se rule that any degree of physical access to private property authorized by the government constitutes a taking requiring just compensation. While Cedar Point expanded the application of the Fifth Amendment’s Takings Clause, common law property principles protect state customary Continue reading →

Abstract This Article explores the legal tension posed by state-issued injunctions under federal environmental laws on national security facilities. It argues that the Constitution’s assignment of military control to the federal government is at odds with states’ broad enforcement authority when applied to facilities that are vital for national security. This uncertain enforcement regime negatively impacts both effective environmental controls and national security. The Article proposes to resolve the issue through an Executive Branch-designated list of national security facilities that would fall solely under federal Continue reading →

Introduction The great oceans of our planet evoke a variety of emotions in visitors, from fear of what lurks beneath the unknown depths, to awe and wonder about the expansive world beneath the waves. Despite this appreciation or fear, oceans are often overlooked for their wide-reaching benefits. The Amazon is often referred to as the lungs of the planet, yet oceans produce over half of the oxygen we breathe and absorb carbon from the atmosphere that may otherwise contribute to climate change.[2] Seafood from our Continue reading →

Introduction Nonprofit organizations in the United States play an instrumental role in societal progress, serving individuals and families, speaking with and educating policymakers, and providing community services. 501(c)(3) nonprofit organizations must operate as nonpartisan actors due to prohibitions passed by Congress to qualify for tax exemption.[2] Even with this restriction, nonprofit organizations, specifically climate focused 501(c)(3) organizations, are in an advantageous position to engage voters and potential voters to strengthen the democratic process. Climate organizations—tax-exempt organizations with missions to stop and reverse the climate crisis Continue reading →

Introduction The photo of an endless line of hikers stretching into the horizon on Mt. Everest has been talked about around the world.[2] However, human impacts have reached the summit of this mountain in far more terrifying ways than having to wait in line to reach the top ever could. Recently, researchers found microplastics, tiny plastic pieces less than five millimeters thick, in the snow and stream water samples gathered from Mt. Everest.[3] The highest microplastics discovered came from a sample pulled from 8,440 meters Continue reading →

Abstract This Article examines the resilience of New Mexico’s internal water management programs considering the interstate Colorado River obligations within the Law of the River. New Mexico’s annual apportionment of the Colorado River has been reduced in recent years, as aridification in the West continues. Much of the water delivered to New Mexico annually serves the San Juan Chama Project, which provides significant water for Albuquerque, Santa Fe, and Los Alamos. Given the strong likelihood of continued reductions in the near future, the state must Continue reading →