7919 - Laserfiche WebLink

Home Browse Search

exist, thus it is increasingly possible to negotiate the specific amount, quality, and timing of those flows. Negotiation will be an increasingly attractive means to resolve disputes because of this framework for considering instream flow issues. Opportunities for negotiations generally occur at three different times: First, the bulk of Federal agency negotiations occur in the day-to-day process of developing operating plans for projects; in the States the majority of the work involves negotiations over applications for instream flow water rights, the setting of base (or minimum) flows, or placing conditions on State-awarded water rights. Second, these same negotiations can be conducted to avoid litigation arising from these issues. Third, negotiations may arise to resolve these issues while they are being litigated. In essence, these negotiations could be viewed as a hierarchy, e.g., there may be three negotiations under increasingly formal and pressure-filled circumstances. The purpose of this handbook is to encourage adequate preparation for all these negotiations, with emphasis on the conduct of negotiations arising in the face of litigation. Negotiation of instream flows, for many persons involved in water resources analysis and management, is a new and disturbing approach to dispute resolution, an approach long thought to be the sole province of politicians, administrators, lawyers, and the courts. Physical scientists and biological field personnel express discomfort with conflict and confrontation, which are a far cry from the calm consideration of observable facts. The point to remember, however, is that the decision may be made in the courts, if the opportunity to negotiate is missed, producing unpredictable results that may be completely out of line with the factual approach and philosophy of those in the fish and wildlife scientific community. 2