The Red River Compact: State Sovereignty and Water Interdependence
By: Katryn Hurtado, Associate Interstate compacts regarding water allocation could face increasing scrutiny since the Supreme Court issued its decision in Tarrant Regional Water District v. Hermann this June.[1] Tarrant resolved a longstanding dispute between Texas and Oklahoma over cross-border rights to the Red River and its tributaries under the Red River Compact of 1980.[2] Drought and rapid population growth in the Dallas-Forth Worth area has led to increased water scarcity, and has caused Texas to intensify its efforts to…