About the NRLC

Founded in 1982, the Natural Resources Law Center is dedicated to informing and influencing natural resources law and policy. The Center fosters practical and effective solutions to resource problems through its extensive research program, outreach activities, and educational programs for law students and the general public. Over its nearly 30-year history, the Center has developed a reputation as a trusted voice on the key natural resource issues of the day.

Programs

Western Water Policy Program (WWPP). The center is best known for its ground-breaking work on management and conservation of western water resources.  To consolidate and build upon this work, the NRLC recently established the WWPP to provide the intellectual framework for water law and policy reforms that are likely necessary as a result of western population growth, drought and climate change.

Projects

Oil & Gas Best Management Practices (BMP project).  The Natural Resources Law Center, with the support of its sponsors and grant funding, has developed a free-access website of best management practices (BMPs) for oil and gas development in the Intermountain West.  The focus of this website is a searchable database that provides information on both mandatory and voluntary practices currently in use and/or recommended for responsible oil and gas development resource management in Colorado, Montana, New Mexico, Utah, and Wyoming.

Red Lodge Clearinghouse (RLCH project). To improve the formulation and implementation of public policies, the NRLC provides governments, conservation organizations, business groups, community members, and other decision-makers in the West with timely, practical, problem-solving research.  Moreover, the Center presents information to help national policy-makers understand western trends, challenges, and innovations and to foster national policies that reflect western realities. 

As part of this effort, the Center was selected by the Liz Claiborne and Art Ortenberg Foundation to manage the RLCH website.  Through case studies, funding information, handbooks, news stories, and summaries of laws, the Red Lodge Clearinghouse supports, connects and informs the partners of collaborative initiatives and others addressing natural resource challenges in their community.