Professor Shelley Saxer, "Is It a Resource or Is It Property? How About Both?" -- Jotwell

Professor Shelley Ross Saxer's review, "Is It a Resource or Is It Property? How About Both?" is published in Jotwell. Professor Saxer reviews Sarah J. Fox's article, "Soil Governance and Private Property," 2024 Utah L. Rev. 1 (2024), which she identifies as making a significant contribution to property, land use, and environmental law.

Excerpt from "Is It a Resource or Is It Property? How About Both?"

In her important new article, Soil Governance and Private Property, Professor Sarah Fox’s creative writing style captures the importance of soil by referencing the romantic aspects of trees and their connection to people, other trees, and a multitude of living beings including animals, birds, insects, worms, bacteria, and other microorganisms. Professor Fox suggests that local governments approach land-use planning with a goal of balancing soil health and private property ownership in a way that reflects the myriad of interconnections involved in managing and promoting soil health as a common resource.

Her selection of the story of trees to explain the connections between private property uses and environmental impacts on soil is brilliant, compelling, and makes a significant contribution to property, land use, and environmental law. Soil is an important natural resource that has received very little attention in legal scholarship. Legal frameworks have failed to address soil health at all levels of government, perhaps because “we take it for granted” or because it is not as exciting as other natural resources. In her article, Professor Fox identifies avenues of inquiry worthy of intellectual exploration with the goal of shifting the law to recognize soil as a common resource and protect soil health in the face of impacts such as erosion, biodiversity loss, and declining agricultural productivity.

Professor Saxer's complete review may be found at Jotwell