Upper Division States Alternative for Post-2026 Operations of Lake Powell and Lake Mead

Colorado Department of Natural Resources (DNR) | March 5th, 2024

Upper San Gabriel Valley Municipal Water District v. City of Alhambra et al

Superior Court of California, County of Los Angeles | June 21st, 2012

Background note from An Evaluation of California’s Adjudicated Groundwater Basins by Langridge et al, (UC Davis) 2016 The Main San Gabriel Basin is one of the larges

Background note from An Evaluation of California’s Adjudicated Groundwater Basins by Langridge et al, (UC Davis) 2016 The Main San Gabriel Basin is one of the largest groundwater basins in southern California, providing residents of the greater San Gabriel Valley with about 240,000 AF per year. It is geographically situated in the south-easterly portion of Los Angeles County and bounded on the north by the San Gabriel Mountains, on the northwest by Raymond Basin, on the southeast by Puente Basin, and on the south by the Central Basin. The adjudication of the basin was deemed necessary by water producers to streamline administration, reduce overdraft, and adhere to the Long Beach Judgment and Puente Narrows Agreements, and the adjudication was relatively amenable. One of the most significant concerns in the basin is water quality, with four areas of the valley containing Superfund sites. The 1973 Judgment included water quality as one of the Watermaster’s responsibilities, and since the mid-1980s the Watermaster has coordinated with regulatory agencies to have groundwater remediation facilities constructed, permitted and operated to protect and enhance the groundwater supplies. The 1992 Judgment amendment explicitly required coordination with EPA for a federal cleanup of the Superfund sites.

Utilization of Waters of the Colorado and Tijuana Rivers and of the Rio Grande: Treaty Between the United States of America and Mexico

U.S. Government Publishing Office (GPO) | November 14th, 1945

Water Allocation in California - Legal Rights and Reform Needs

Golden Gate University (GSU) | March 31st, 1982

FOREWARD: Water supply, allocation, use and conservation are constantly debated in California, often appearing as highly charged political issues in candidates' races and

FOREWARD: Water supply, allocation, use and conservation are constantly debated in California, often appearing as highly charged political issues in candidates' races and on election ballots. This year is no exception, with major ballot propositions already scheduled for the June primary election and being circulated to qualify for the November general election. Accordingly this Research Paper on legal aspects of water allocation is being published for the valuable background it affords readers wishing to learn more about the subject. The author draws on his legal expertise, as well as his experience as Staff Director of the Governor's Commission to Review California Water Rights Law. The paper emphasizes the crucial role of water rights in California water management, and it points to the need for and present lack of a political consensus on water law reform. The author concludes by suggesting forces that could bring about interest-group realignments and other developments favorable to achieving the needed consensus on water law and management reform that so far has eluded Californians. Stanley Scott Assistant Director Institute of Governmental Studies March 1982

Water Allocation, Use, and Regulation in California

California Department of Water Resources (DWR) | October 30th, 2014

In California, water use and supplies are controlled and managed under an intricate system of common law principles, constitutional provisions, State and federal statutes

In California, water use and supplies are controlled and managed under an intricate system of common law principles, constitutional provisions, State and federal statutes, court decisions, and contracts or agreements. All of these components constitute the institutional framework for the protection of public interests and their balance with private claims in California’s water allocation and management.

Water Right Compliance and Enforcement in the Delta

California State Water Resources Control Board (SWRCB) | April 5th, 2012

The report focuses on the State Water Board’s responsibility to enforce water rights and to prevent unauthorized diversions of water in the state of California. Purs

The report focuses on the State Water Board’s responsibility to enforce water rights and to prevent unauthorized diversions of water in the state of California. Pursuant to the Water Code, the State Water Board is responsible for enforcing the terms and conditions of water right permits, licenses, and registrations, as well as investigating diversions of water. As addressed in the Strategic Workplan for Activities in the San Francisco Bay / Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta Estuary, the State Water Board is directed to investigate illegal diversions and violations of permit and license conditions and take action when violations are occurring in the Bay-Delta Watershed. The report discusses how the State Water Board began an investigation of illegal diversions of water, focusing on the Delta. For instance, the State Water Board has investigated two islands in the Delta to establish whether the landowners possessed any water rights. Most did, though some individuals were subject to more review, the majority of which concerned validating riparian claims for severed parcels. The report notes that the State Water Board has also investigated diverters within an area of the southern Delta and resolved all cases resulting from that investigation. The report also discusses how the State Water Board has begun an investigation of water diverters, statewide, who have failed to file required reports, which include the annual reports for permit and license holders, and the supplemental statements. Finally, the report suggests a new approach of looking at districts in the Delta who serve water to individuals, in addition to looking at compliance issues related to individual diverters.

Water Right Exactions

Social Science Research Network (SSRN) | May 15th, 2023

Water Rights Decision 1641 (D-1641)

California State Water Resources Control Board (SWRCB) | December 29th, 1999

This decision is part of the SWRCB’s implementation of the 1995 Bay-Delta Plan. Many of the objectives in the 1995 Bay-Delta Plan are best implemented by making changes

This decision is part of the SWRCB’s implementation of the 1995 Bay-Delta Plan. Many of the objectives in the 1995 Bay-Delta Plan are best implemented by making changes in the flow of water or in the operation of facilities that move water. Accordingly, this decision amends certain water rights by assigning responsibilities to the persons or entities holding those rights to help meet the objectives.

We Don't Do Groundwater: A Morsel of California Legal History

Berkeley Law Scholarship Repository | January 1st, 2002

It must seem surprising to people elsewhere that California, unlike other western states, continues to treat surface water and groundwater under separate and distinct leg

It must seem surprising to people elsewhere that California, unlike other western states, continues to treat surface water and groundwater under separate and distinct legal regimes, even though everyone today acknowledges that water comprises a continuum through which the water moves wherever gravity takes it.  Moreover, whatever "mystery" there once was about the movement of water underground, and that induced lawmakers and treatise writers to eschew efforts to regulate groundwater, is no longer a hindrance to modern management, as most states have acknowledged. What, then, explains California's failure to bring its water law into line with contemporary knowledge, and with scientific reality? The answer (actually there are two answers) is not very mysterious.

When is Groundwater Recharge a Beneficial Use of Surface Water?

University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley) | August 1st, 2018

Any diversion and use of surface water in California requires a water right. Today, to receive a new water right permit, an entity that wants to appropriate surface water

Any diversion and use of surface water in California requires a water right. Today, to receive a new water right permit, an entity that wants to appropriate surface water must file an application with the Board. The Board may only approve an application if it determines that the proposed use of the water is for a reasonable and beneficial purpose. Currently, there is uncertainty about whether—and, if so, under what circumstances—the Board will consider groundwater recharge to be a beneficial use of water. California law makes clear that the act of recharging groundwater, alone, is not a beneficial use of water. Instead, the specific purpose of the recharge is key.