FindLaw
> Library
> Property-- Real > Water Rights and Pollution > Appropriation of Water Rights > Nature and extent of rights acquired
Library Search
-
Water Rights Law -- Prior Appropriation ( January 1999 )
The scarcity of water in the Rocky Mountain and southwestern states has led to the development of a system of water allocation very different from that which exists in regions graced with more abundant rainfall. Rights to water are established by actual use of the water, and maintained by continued use and need. Water rights are treated similarly to rights to real property, can be conveyed, mortgaged, and encumbered in the same manner, all independently of the land on which the water originates, or on which it is used. The following is a summary of the legal framework governing water rights in the arid areas of the country. -
City of Thornton v. Bijou Irrigation Co.: The Thornton Northern Project Decision ( July 1999 )
In 1985, the City of Thornton, a major Denver suburb, began to look for a Thornton-only water project . -
Water Transfers ( July 1999 )
With increasing population and development of the West, less unappropriated water is reliably available. Consequently, new water demands are frequently satisfied by the acquisition and transfer of already-established water rights. Transferring old rights to new uses usually is done by changing the acquired water right or by using water produced by the old right as substitute supply in an augmentation plan or exchange. -
When you've had Your Fill: A Review of the One-Fill Rule ( July 1999 )
The "one-fill rule" for water storage rights has evolved, but may still have implications for the initial adjudication of storage appropriations, as well as for how those rights are made absolute and for changes of such rights.
Ads by FindLaw