100 Iowa L. Rev. 361 (2014)

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Abstract

In 2008, President George W. Bush signed into law the Great Lakes–St. Lawrence River Basin Water Resources Compact (“Great Lakes Compact” or “Compact”). The Compact is a legally binding instrument between all the Great Lakes states that manages all water diversions out of the Great Lakes. The Compact sets a general prohibition on diverting water out of the Great Lakes and delineates a few exceptions to that ban. Under the Compact, a community in a “straddling county” is eligible for a diversion out of the Great Lakes if it demonstrates, among other things, that it does not have a “reasonable water supply alternative” and receives approval from all members of the Great Lakes Council. To date, the Great Lakes Council has not defined “reasonable water supply alternative,” leaving it up to the Compact member states to develop their own definitions. The Great Lakes Council’s failure to define “reasonable water supply alternative” leaves the Council’s decisions to approve or deny a community in a straddling county’s diversion application vulnerable to legal challenges. This Note suggests that the Great Lakes Council should define “reasonable water supply alternative” with a focus on the alternative’s effectiveness in terms of public health and environmental effects as opposed to the alternative’s costs because this formulation will help avoid litigation and effectuate the purpose of the Compact.