Interbasin Issues Related to Groundwater Management

This paper evaluates several options for settling disputes over sharing water and concludes in favor of well-conceived state compacts. More than other methods, such compacts offer continual planning procedures for each state to negotiate changes to fit circumstances. Without cooperation, uncoordinated withdrawals may deplete or contaminate water. Informal agreements, private and interstate litigation, state and federal legislation, as evaluated in this paper, offer fewer advantages and less flexibility than interstate compacts. The complexities of interstate water problems need such practical, feasible solutions.