Mineral Rights Research Articles

On the connotation, challenge and significance of China's “energy independence” strategy

Abstract The world's energy is in the “third major transformation period” from fossil energy to new energy, and all countries in the world have formulated energy development strategies. Through advanced deployment, the United States is about to achieve “energy independence” relying on “unconventional oil and gas revolution”. China's energy development is faced with four challenges: (1) The population base and economic development scale determine the “totally huge amount” of energy consumption; (2) the “coal rich but oil and gas insufficient” resource structure determines the “unclean” energy consuming structure; (3) the increasing dependence on imported oil and gas determines the “unsafe” energy supply; and (4) the unconventional oil and gas endowment makes it impossible to achieve energy independence by copying the American model. From the perspective of the world energy trend and the unique situation of China's energy, we put forward a “three-step” strategy for China to achieve “energy independence”: From 2020 to 2035, “energy supply security” will be addressed by “cleaning coal, stabilizing oil and gas production and vigorously developing new alternative energy”; from 2035 to 2050, the vision of “production independence” will be realized by relying on “domestic production and overseas oil and gas mining rights”; from 2050 to 2100, “intelligent energy and new energy” will help China realize “energy independence”. The two important signs of China's “energy independence” are that domestic production accounts for more than 90% of the domestic consumption and clean energy production accounts for more than 70%, and energy security realizes “independence and self-control” and “long-term security”. The strategic significance of “energy independence” is to ensure national energy security, drive the development of relevant major industries, achieve energy management reform, and implement the environmental protection goal of zero carbon emissions. The “energy independence” of China is a strategic mission, it might be fulfilled in the future with the growth of the state's power, even when the domestic energy production does not catch up with the domestic consumption. Perhaps the world's new technological revolution will exceed expectations, and China's “energy independence” dream will eventually come true.

The Politics of Free, Prior and Informed Consent: Indigenous Rights and Resource Governance in Ecuador and Yukon, Canada

What are the institutional arrangements required to implement a genuine process of free, prior and informed consent (fpic)? This article provides a comparative perspective on the politics of consent in the context of relations between Indigenous peoples, states and extractive industries in Canada and Latin America. The case of Ecuador is presented as an emblematic example of a hybrid regime in which Indigenous communities have the right to free, prior and informed consultation, not consent, concerning planned measures affecting them, such as mineral, oil and gas exploitation. In the case of Yukon, Canada, the settlement of a comprehensive land claim with sub-surface mineral rights has provided the institutional basis for the implementation of a genuine fpic process, one that includes participatory decision-making power over natural resource development projects. The article concludes with a discussion on the necessary conditions for moving governments from a consultation to a consent regime.

Unpaved Roads to Oklahoma: Researching the Story of My Family’s Mineral Rights

This article chronicles the author’s research into her family’s mineral rights, located in eastern Oklahoma. Tracing ownership back to the Muscogee (Creek) Nation, she explores the circumstances and legal framework that led to her ancestors’ purchase of Creek property in 1910 and 1911. Collectively, the federal government’s allotment laws; various U.S. Supreme Court decisions; and even the author’s great-grandfather, who was a “boomer” journalist, created conditions that encouraged the loss of Creek land and sovereignty. Now exploitable with modern technology, and subject to Oklahoma’s oil and gas regulations, these familial mineral interests serve as just one example of the enduring legacy of the allotment era—a truly dark period of U.S. history.

Assessing the environmental impact of 3D public law restrictions

The needs of modern societies require, on the one hand, the most efficient exploitation of land by individual stakeholders and, on the other hand, have set up a variety of restrictions and regulations for the public benefit. Such restrictions are steadily growing in number and apply in various areas. Given the technological development in the construction sector, complex proprietary relations emerge in overlapping private and public rights. Cadastres constitute the core of land administration systems, gradually evolving to development tools that provide multi-purpose land related information. Within this context, incorporation of Public Law Restrictions (PLRs) to cadastral systems is considered a step towards the development of integrated land administration systems. Internationally, PLRs are usually registered in separate registries, under different types and formats, depending on the competent body/authority. These PLRs include, among others, restrictions regarding environment and nature protection, water protection, spatial and land use planning zones, cultural heritage, public infrastructure corridors and zones, public easements/servitudes and mining rights. Until today 3D registration and visualisation of such PLRs is mostly discussed at research level, mainly due to the variety of fields related to each PLR, the need of quantifying qualitative components or “translating” physical attributes to legal restrictions and 3D volumes, as well as to the variety of responsible authorities and types of regulations. This paper focuses on identifying PLRs that pertain either explicit or implicit 3D characteristics, emphasising on the PLRs related to the development of the Trans Adriatic Pipeline (TAP) project. This paper aims to identify the nature of 3D PLRs, based on the legal requirements regarding environmental components’ analysis and mapping defined in Environmental Impact Assessment (ESIA) studies, and to investigate the possibility of compiling 3D environmental models from recorded ESIA data. Economic implications of 3D PLR approach is also considered, at qualitative level, in terms of impact on land value when 3D restrictions are imposed, and regarding the cost-effectiveness of drafting ESIA studies showing 3D PLRs.

Benhaus - a landmark decision, one less hoop for contract miners but a clarion call for an overhaul of the South African mining regime

SYNOPSIS The mining industry has evolved, such that the means of production that were once in the hands of major players or power houses have become equally accessible to smaller entrants, i.e. junior mining companies and contract miners. Contract mining involves contractual relationships between mine owners or mineral right holders and third parties to conduct mining activities on behalf of the right holders. The current mining income tax legislation has been a considerable obstacle to contract miners. Under its terms, they have been viewed as mining on behalf of third-party mineral rights holders. As such, expenditure incurred in relation to contract mining activities was often disallowed by the South African Revenue Service (SARS). However, the recent judgement of the Supreme Court of Appeal, Benhaus Mining (Pty) Ltd v CSARS 2020 (3) SA 325 (SCA) (Benhaus), rightfully or wrongfully, appears to provide clarity regarding the fate of contract miners' involvement in the mining value chain. The taxpayer, a contract miner, was held to be conducting mining operations within the meaning of S15(a) read with si of the Income Tax Act 58 of 1962 (the Income Tax Act). This paper looks at how contract mining has traversed the mining tax landscape, the implications of the Benhaus judgment, and stresses the necessity for clear policy reform to the mining tax regime and equally to legislation framed to give effect to these policies. Keywords: Contract mining, owner mining, tax, DMRE, mining regime reforms.

The Federal Coal Leasing Program as an Actionable Subsidy Under International Trade Law

The World Trade Organization (WTO) is often criticized for standing in the way of responses to climate change. Restrictions on domestic renewable energy subsidies under the Agreement on Subsidies and Countervailing Measures (SCM Agreement) have drawn particular disfavor. But critics overlook the role that the SCM Agreement can play in similarly disciplining domestic fossil fuel subsidies. This Note demonstrates that potential role by focusing on one prominent fossil fuel subsidy in the United States: The Bureau of Land Management’s (BLM) coal leasing program on federal lands. The program is an actionable subsidy under the SCM Agreement because it provides coal mining rights to private companies at artificially low prices. In response, WTO member countries should challenge the BLM’s program, either by initiating a dispute at the WTO or by imposing countervailing duties on U.S. imports. WTO-authorized retaliation could shift the political calculus that keeps the current program in place, meaningfully reducing U.S. emissions.

Preliminary Study on the Management System of Mineral Resources in Peru

Peru is located in the western part of South America, with Ecuador and Colombia to the north, Brazil and Bolivia to the east, Chile to the south and the Pacific Ocean to the west. The Andean metallogenic belt throughout the country, has excellent ore-forming conditions and rich mineral resources. It is one of the 12th largest mineral producing countries in the world, and its total mineral resources ranks seventh in the world. Mining occupies an important position in Peru’s economy. The main minerals are copper, silver, zinc, tin, gold, iron, tungsten, tantalum, lead. The reserves of copper, silver, zinc and tin are among the top in the world. In recent years, global mineral prices continued to run low, Peru’s mining enterprises capital chain tight and operational difficulties, in order to get rid of the mining industry downturn, the Peruvian government has issued a series of tax policies and preferential measures, provide opportunities for foreign enterprises to enter Peru’s mining market. The author collected and collated relevant data through field trips, the main research is based on Peru's mining management department, mining management system, classification and application of mining rights, land and mining taxes and fees, and a preliminary analysis of the country's mining market. Before entering the mining market in Peru, suggested companies should take advantage of our strengths, select own familiar ways of cooperation, comprehensive investigate cooperative partners, and pay attention to avoid risks.

Appalachia North by Matthew Ferrence

Reviewed by: Appalachia North by Matthew Ferrence Emily Masters (bio) Matthew Ferrence. Appalachia North. Morgantown, W.Va.: West Virginia University Press, 2019. 274 pages. Softcover. $26.99. Matthew Ferrence. Appalachia North. Morgantown, W.Va.: West Virginia University Press, 2019. 274 pages. Softcover. $26.99. Water is the current carrying Matthew Ferrence along the map of his life in his memoir Appalachia North. From the water in our streams to the water in our ponds to the water in the blood running through our veins, he traces his life through the moments of transition and movement visible in water. When he moves away from his home in southern Pennsylvania, what he misses most is the water constantly shaping the landscape. As a child, he spent his time playing in the streams at the bottom of his parent's farm, and as an adult, he recognizes how politicized his known landscapes are by corporate resource ownership and lack of respect for the environment, especially when it comes to damaging water sources. He explores shifting landscapes, questions ownership, and asks what it means when the maps we have of our bodily landscapes are shaken to the core. In a world where Appalachia is a place of fluctuating borders, Ferrence extends his definition of Appalachia all the way up through the eroded ranges of Canada, what he calls "Canappalachia." While this may irk some readers, especially those with a narrow view of what defines Appalachia, it is powerful to hear the perspective of someone who is from the often-overlooked northern Appalachia. He argues for a [End Page 123] continuation of the definition based on landscape—on the connection drawn by lines of the long-standing, long-eroded Appalachian mountain range, and he questions powers that be who define maps for and profit from some of the nation's poorest areas and people. The environmental bent of Appalachia North is a powerful one. From the beginning, Ferrence emphasizes how from an early age he has been conscious of industrial destruction of the environment. From water pollution to issues of returning a mountain to contour to destruction of private property for mineral rights, he is outspoken about his desire for the landscape he has known since childhood to remain stable. He's disappointed, however, when he returns to his family's farm to find gas wells marked with wooden stakes across the property. In a moment of empowerment, he uproots one and hurls it across the field, one small act of rebellion speaking volumes. As I read Ferrence's memoir, I found myself drawn to his constant need to redefine: our bodies, our identities, our maps. He writes of tension in self-identification growing up in a place technically within the Appalachian Regional Commission defined territory of the region in Pennsylvania, but both inside and outside of what he sees as the typical Appalachian experience. He doesn't discover his Appalachian-ness until attending college in West Virginia. As someone who had never thought of myself as Appalachian until college, his questioning of and redefining identity rings true. While it is clear Ferrence is winding together tributaries of defining what Appalachia means to him and what a brain cancer diagnosis does to his sense of self, the latter thread is often lost, turning more into a trickle than a stream, and resurfacing when it is least expected and sometimes nearly forgotten. I expected more emphasis on what seems like such a pillar of how Ferrence defines his relationship to the world [End Page 124] around him. More focus on the emotional side of his story would have been welcomed in a memoir sometimes bogged down in fact and research above emotional plight. The academic tone Ferrence takes on is most evident in his eighth chapter "Reading Like an Appalachian." He takes it upon himself to review books set in and near his hometown, tearing apart what he feels like does not do his place justice. The chapter feels misplaced, like it would sit more at home in a magazine or journal than in his memoir. That said, the entirety of his memoir is well-researched, and Ferrence makes sure to support every claim he makes...

A comparison of pricing models for mineral rights: Copper mine in China

Purchasing mineral rights to allow a corporation to extract minerals is a large investment and potentially very profitable. Generally, the assessment and valuation process is conducted by an official organization at the nation's governmental level. From a corporation perspective it is thus crucial to calculate an accurate value of the right to exploit a mineral product or what we call “mineral right”. In this work we compare three valuation methods and we compare their results in case of pricing a copper mine in China. We explain and apply the official valuation method based on a simple Discounted Cash Flow (DCF). We present what we believe is a more accurate valuation based on the term structure of future mineral prices: the so called modified Discounted Cash Flow (mDCF) method. Finally, we contrast with a method based on real options which considers the mineral right as a swaption. We implement two real options models: the classical Black model and a more modern Miltersen and Schwartz model. We highlight and discuss differences and commonalities between the three valuation methods. Finally, we make a recommendation for future financial reporting based what we learn from the three methods.

Role of Science and Scientists in Policy making

Many of the problems facing governments have a scientific dimension to them. Policy makers often do not give sufficient weight to considering the views of scientists on these matters. Over the past decade or so, Sri Lanka has encountered a number of controversial issues of high public concern such as, the connection between usage of agricultural chemicals and chronic kidney disease of unknown origin, the influence of a local industry on the quality of water in Rathupaswala and the occurrence of Dicyandiamide in imported milk powder. In each of these cases, insufficient attention was paid to the scientific evidence available as well as the evidence that could have been generated by scientific inquiry, pertaining to these issues. Policy making of course, cannot be based only on consideration of scientific evidence, if not for any other reason but for the fact that the scientific evidence to support a particular viewpoint on a controversial issue is rarely unequivocal. Even in the case where there is very strong evidence to support a particular viewpoint, the policy makers will consider many other factors such as public opinion, political ideology and the perceived priority of immediate versus long term effects of any particular action. However, any policy which totally ignores the “irreducible and stubborn facts” generated by scientific inquiry, has a poor chance of producing overall benefit to the community in the long run. This raises the question of what scientists can do to influence policy making. Should scientists get involved in politics? The cultures of science and politics are different from each other, and do not mix. In politics the pursuit of power is paramount, while science is driven by the search for truth. Scientists who move directly into politics quickly lose the respect of their peers as scientists. On the other hand, direct advocacy by individual scientists have been rarely successful in influencing policy and have been susceptible to accusations of partiality by those holding contrary views. In this context, the professional associations and other scientific bodies, play an important role in pro-actively providing the public and policy makers of scientific information that will be accepted as being credible and unbiased, on controversial issues of high public concern. A notable and isolated example of such activity was the issuance of two reports on the Eppawala phosphate deposit, one by the National Academy of Sciences of Sri Lanka in 1998, and the other by the National Science Foundation in 1999, both of which weighed heavily on the decision by the courts in the year 2000, not to permit the signing of an agreement granting mining rights to a foreign company. Such pro-active efforts will also go a long way to change the perception of scientists as persons living in ivory towers unconcerned with society, while at the same time preserving the essential dignity of the scientific enterprise.

Geothermal sources and utilization practice in six countries along the southern part of the Pannonian basin

Data on thermal water sources with outflow temperature of 30 °C and above were analyzed from the N-ern parts of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Serbia and Croatia, S-ern parts of Hungary, W-ern parts of Romania, and NE-ern parts of Slovenia, altogether from an area of 99,347 km2. The overview identified 771 geothermal sources; only 7 were thermal springs. The average well depth is about 1.2 km. About 13% of wells are younger than 10 years, additional 17% below 30 years; while 26% are older than 50 years. Average thermal water outflow temperature is 54 °C being the highest, 170 °C, in Croatia. Most thermal water is produced from basin fill sediments—Lower and Upper Pannonian (Mio-Pliocene) loose sandstones which are tapped by 86% of wells. The rest appertains to basement rocks—fissured, fractured and karstified Paleozoic, Mesozoic and Middle Miocene metamorphic, carbonate and siliciclastic rocks. In total, 72% sources hold water rights, 6% mining rights, 2% geothermal rights and 1% has no rights. The permits allow much higher water abstraction as currently listed. Usage for bathing and balneology encompasses 24% of all active sources (155), some of these also with heating (23). 104 objects (16%) are used for heating, also district heating (13) and individual space heating (3). An additional 10% (70) are used in agriculture, mainly greenhouse heating. There are 41 reinjection wells (5%). It is primarily in Hungary that drinking water (17%), industrial usage (5%) and monitoring wells (2%) are also common.

A Game Analysis of Iron Ore Right Investment between Steel Enterprises and the Government Based on Static Incomplete Information

Against the background of increasing demand for iron ore resources in Chinese steel enterprises and based on game tools, this paper builds a game equilibrium between steel enterprises and the government under the condition of non-competitive mining rights transfer. It is discussed two equalization strategies, and finds that trading opportunities for Linear Strategy are greater than opportunities for the one-price equilibrium strategy between steel enterprises and the governments in Bayesian Nash equilibrium. At the same time, investment efficiency of linear strategy steel enterprises will be better investment efficiency than one-price equilibrium strategy.

Relationship between the development of energy and mineral resources and ecological conservation redline

From a philosophical point of view, this study discusses the dialectical relationship between the development of energy and mineral resources and the ecological conservation redline. We propose that the ecological conservation redline and the development of energy and mineral resources should be guided by ecological civilization construction, that is, the energy and mineral resources should be rationally developed under the condition that the ecological environment is protected. This study analyzes the influence of the development of energy and mineral resources on the ecological environment. The handling of mining rights within the ecological conservation redline based on the law and the reduction of the influence of the development of energy mineral resources on the ecological environment by science and technology are presented. The environmental assessment system and technical standards for energy and mineral development are suggested to implement policies and measures for the disposal of mining rights within the redline and facilitate technological innovations of ecological conservation for energy and mineral development. Hence, a coordinated development between the ecological conservation redline and the development of energy and mineral resources can be promoted.

LADM-Based Model for Natural Resource Administration in China

China’s rapid urbanization and industrialization have continually placed massive pressure on the country’s natural resources. The fragmented departmental administration of natural resources also intensifies the problem of sustainable use. Accordingly, China’s central government has launched natural resource administration reform from decentralization to unification. This study systematically analyzes the reform requirements from legal, organizational, and technical aspects. The right structure of China’s natural resource assets for fulfilling such requirements is examined in this work through a review of relevant legal text, and such a right structure is converted into a draft national technical standard of China’s natural resource administration on the basis of the land administration domain model (LADM). Results show that China’s natural resource administration covers lands, buildings, structures, forests, grasslands, waters, beaches, sea areas, minerals, and other fields. The types of private rights over natural resources include ownerships, land-contracted management rights (cultivated land, forest land, grassland, and water area), rights to use construction land (state-owned and collective-owned), rights to use agricultural land, rights to use homestead land, breeding rights on water areas and beaches, rights to use sea areas, rights to use uninhabited islands, and mining rights. The types of public rights over natural resources include comprehensive land use, urban and rural, sea use, and territory space planning. Furthermore, various types of these property rights can be converted into corresponding classes in LADM on the basis of the analysis of the property subject, object, and rights.

Fossil energy subsidies in China's modern coal chemical industry

The issue of whether there is a fossil energy subsidy in China's modern coal chemical (MCC) sector remains controversial, although domestic coal prices have been liberalized since 2013. To identify potential fossil energy subsidies in the MCC industry, an inventory approach is used in subsidy measurement. Three representative forms of coal consumption subsidization are identified and measured in this paper: feed coal supply at a preferential price, prior access to coal mining rights, and privilege in coalmine M&A (mergers and acquisitions) cases. Using China's coal-to-liquids (CTL) industry as a case study, we find that the current subsidy helps save 50% of the coal consumption cost of a typical plant, and the total amount of subsidy in the CTL industry will reach 16.4 billion Yuan in 2022. However, according to the results of efficiency, wastefulness and effectiveness tests, 47.03% of the current subsidy in the industry is excessive, leading to overinvestment and energy waste. To compensate for the deficiency of the subsidizing mechanism, we suggest replacing subsidizing channels that rely on mining rights concessions or M&A cases with channels using long-term coal supply contracts that couple contract prices and oil prices.

Study on the Legal System in the Mining Industry in Reunification of Germany

This research aims to provide systematic legal direction for the future unification of South and North Koreas' mining industry by analyzing the methods, processes, and related legal issues in Germany's unification process. Germany chose the extended application of West German mining law in the process of the unification, and agreed to reorganize the new law after the unification. First, under the German Unification Treaty, the German government revoked and nationalized the mining rights of East Germany. Next, the government moderated the regulations regarding business and property rights in East Germany, and legislated the act of privatization and reorganization of public assets (Treuhandgesetz) to establish Treuhand for intensive restructuring and privatization. Considering the circumstances of mining integration in Germany, Korea needs to prepare for the systematic organization of the legislative system to prevent issues regarding the ownership of resources, concession, and property rights for future cooperation and integration of mining.

The Right to be Granted Access over the Property of Others in Order to Enter Prospecting or Mining Areas: Revisiting Joubert v Maranda Mining Company (PTY) LTD [2009] 4 ALL SA 127 (SCA)

A new mineral law regime was introduced when the Mineral and Petroleum Resources Development Act 28 of 2002 (MPRDA) commenced. Common law mineral rights were abolished and replaced by statutorily created rights to minerals. Prospecting rights and mining rights granted in terms of the MPRDA entitle their holders, amongst other things, to enter the designated prospecting or mining area in order to commence with and conduct prospecting or mining activities. This contribution focusses on the question whether the entitlement to "enter" the land to which a specific prospecting or mining right relates automatically includes the ancillary right to be granted access over the property of others in order to enter the designated prospecting or mining area. It is important to determine the source or origin of the right to access in the new regime and to differentiate between "access" and "entry". It would not be just or justifiable summarily to accept that legal principles that developed under a completely different regime apply unchanged in a new regime.

Exploring the Innovative Evolution of Hydraulic Fracturing

Fueled by a culture of innovation, hydraulic fracturing has transformed the energy landscape from inside North America out. But achieving that paradigm shift took years of improving subsurface understanding, technology development, and fine-tuning the completions practice through trial and error. Authors from Liberty Oilfield Services set out to document this evolution in SPE 194345 as they took a deep dive into fracturing history. Their paper traces the advancements in fracturing study and deployment from its earliest days to the present. Fracturing first took place in 1947 and has grown exponentially in uptake over the past 2 decades. The result has been the shale revolution, which has catapulted the US to at or near the top of the world in both crude oil and natural gas production. Between 2000—just after fracturing pioneer Mitchell Energy began commercial shale production—and 2018, yearly US dry gas production went to 83 Bcf/D from 53 Bcf/D while US crude output climbed to just under 11 million B/D from 5.8 million B/D, according to data from the US Energy Information Administration. Once largely dependent on imports, the country has become a net gas exporter and oil exports are reaching new heights. During that same period, increased fracturing intensity and a better knowledge of the subsurface complexities associated with the completions practice resulted in North American pressure pumping horsepower rising tenfold, yearly frac stage count growing twentyfold, and proppant mass pumped jumping fortyfold. Since the turn of the millennium, “the difference has really become that we bring the frac down to the hydrocarbon molecule in the rock,” said Leen Weijers, vice president of engineering at Liberty Oilfield Services, at the recent SPE Hydraulic Fracturing Technology Conference in The Woodlands, Texas. “We do that with multistage horizontal wells and a focus on complexity, creating a plumbing system that is two miles long and maybe half-a-mile-wide and maybe 500 ft in height.” Background: Mineral Rights, Fracture Study Weijers et al. first noted the importance of private mineral ownership in spurring unconventional development in the US. Mineral owners can develop, borrow against, or sell their land, meaning they have a direct stake in the high-risk, high-reward mineral development game. As the industry became more aware of the gas and oil recovery potential from shale, small independents began scooping up acreage, benefitting from their familiarity with the communities in which they operated or planned to operate. A major step forward in understanding the subsurface impact of hydraulic fracturing, Weijers et al. said, came with the realization by Warpinski et al. (1991) that fractures are complex, with dozens of parallel fractures growing simultaneously during a job in a narrow, 20–40 ft-wide zone. This dispelled the previous belief that simple bi-wing fractures extended from the wellbore, stimulating further study of fracture growth.

Competition for Land: The Water-Energy-Food Nexus and Coal Mining in Mpumalanga Province, South Africa

The Mpumalanga Province is a key source of South Africa’s coal supply with over 60% of the province’s surface area either being subject to mining rights or prospecting applications. Mpumalanga also possesses almost half of the country’s high potential arable land. While South Africa is currently largely self-sufficient in terms of cereal grains, what this assessment of Mpumalanga highlights is that food security is increasingly being threatened by coal mining interests that serve the nation’s energy needs. Water availability and quality for mining, agriculture and energy production in this province are also becoming increasingly strained. The water quality deterioration generally results from either acid mine drainage or contaminated runoff from mines and agricultural lands. This assessment of Mpumalanga highlights the interconnectedness of energy, food and water security, with their resultant trade-offs. The water-energy-food (WEF) nexus provides a focussed lens through which to evaluate resource security in a holistic manner. Only once regulators, NGOs, industry and the public view the resource security challenges in Mpumalanga in an integrated manner can planning and policies that lead to sustainable development be advanced, and objectives such as the Sustainable Development Goals be achieved. There is, therefore, a need for WEF nexus science and data to influence integrated public policy within this province.

Private Ordering as the Foundation for Frontier Law

Private ordering’s relationship to public law can be characterized as one of a complement, substitute, competitor, or foundation. This study of a transition from private to public ordering examines judicial techniques of the Supreme Court of Colorado that reduced transition costs. Initially, judicial faithfulness to local decisionmaking invoked custom, but this diminished over time. Simultaneously, the Court was puzzlingly deferential to unreliable land office decisions. The cases here suggest that recognition of custom and rewarding formal claimants each played a role in minimizing legal transition costs, with mineral rights custom proving to be the foundation for the nascent legal system.