Grzegorz Blicharz, Commons – Jointly-used Goods: Comparative Aspects of the Use of Water Resources. Bielsko-Biała: Od.Nowa, 2017, 195 Pages

“Commons – Jointly-used Goods: Comparative Aspects of the Use of Water Resources” further develops the theory of governing the dwindling resources, based on Professor Elinor Ostrom’s economic theory of Commons, and expands on it on legal science. The monograph highlights the increased effectiveness of bottom-up norms in preventing the complete depletion of the endangered resources while simultaneously satisfying the needs of the local community, if the public authorities decide to respect them. The legal and functional characteristics of those norms aren’t uniform in different legal traditions, which is shown by examples from various legal systems provided by the author. The author also acknowledges that the issue of property and restricting it in the interests of other people was often mentioned in Roman law, especially in arguments between Roman jurists about water easements. The review describes basic theses and their argumentation contained in the monograph and evaluates its substance, form, and the universal character of the referenced problem.

“Commons – Jointly-used Goods: Comparative Aspects of the Use of Water Resources” further develops the theory of governing the dwindling resources, based on Professor Elinor Ostrom’s economic theory of Commons, and expands on it on legal science. The monograph highlights the increased effectiveness of bottom-up norms in preventing the complete depletion of the endangered resources while simultaneously satisfying the needs of the local community, if the public authorities decide to respect them. The legal and functional characteristics of those norms aren’t uniform in different legal traditions, which is shown by examples from various legal systems provided by the author. The author also acknowledges that the issue of property and restricting it in the interests of other people was often mentioned in Roman law, especially in arguments between Roman jurists about water easements. The review describes basic theses and their argumentation contained in the monograph and evaluates its substance, form, and the universal character of the referenced problem.