Mealey's Water Rights
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October 11, 2023
Multiplaintiff, Interstate Or Notable Water Rights Cases
New developments in the following multiplaintiff, interstate or notable water rights cases are marked in boldface type.
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October 11, 2023
Judge Confirms: Abatti Claim To Colorado River Water Barred By Res Judicata
SAN DIEGO — A California federal judge has affirmed his tentative ruling dismissing as barred by res judicata a lawsuit by farmer and landowner Michael A. Abatti and 25 other plaintiffs against the Imperial Irrigation District (IID) in which the plaintiffs asserted a federal right to water from the Colorado River.
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October 10, 2023
Mining Company Sues California Water Board For ‘Re-Noticing’ 1993 Water Permit
LOS ANGELES — A mining company has filed a petition for a writ of mandate against the California State Water Resources Control Board (SWRCB) for re-noticing the company’s 1993 application for a permit to appropriate water from the Santa Clara River.
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October 10, 2023
California Appeals Court Restores County’s OK Of Desalination Plant
SAN JOSE, Calif. — A California appeals court has vacated a lower court ruling that reversed a county’s approval of a private desalination plant.
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October 10, 2023
2 Alaskan Tribes Appeal Water Permit Approvals For Planned Gold Mine
ANCHORAGE, Alaska — Two Native American tribes have filed a notice of appeal to the state Supreme Court of a state district court’s finding that the state’s approval of 12 water permits for a proposed gold mine was not unconstitutional or arbitrary.
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October 10, 2023
Texas, Idaho Will Challenge ‘Conforming’ WOTUS Rule In Texas Federal Case
GALVESTON, Texas — A Texas federal judge has stricken a motion by Texas and Idaho for summary judgment in their lawsuit challenging the Biden administration’s waters of the United States (WOTUS) rule so they can file an amended complaint challenging the administration’s new rule that conforms to the U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling in Michael Sackett, et al. v. Environmental Protection Agency, et al.
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October 06, 2023
Oklahoma High Court: Water Board, Court Didn’t Err In OK Of Stream Water Permit
OKLAHOMA CITY — The Oklahoma Supreme Court has ruled that a lower court did not err in affirming the granting of a stream water permit for Oklahoma City by the state’s water resources board.
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October 06, 2023
Supreme Court Won’t Review U.S. Discretion To Divert Water For Fish Migration
WASHINGTON, D.C. — The U.S. Supreme Court has denied a petition to rule that the federal government has no discretion to divert water from the Twitchell Dam for the benefit of steelhead fish trying to migrate upstream.
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October 06, 2023
Magistrate Judge Enjoins Klamath Water District From Making Water Diversions
MEDFORD, Ore. — An Oregon federal magistrate judge has permanently enjoined a Klamath Basin water district from making diversions that are not authorized by the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation under terms of a 1943 contract.
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October 02, 2023
Judge Moots Cross-Motions In Gila River Subflow Case Until Related Appeal Decided
TUCSON, Ariz. — An Arizona federal judge held that cross-motions for summary judgment involving alleged unlawful pumping of Gila River subflow are moot and stayed them until after the Ninth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals issues a ruling in a related appeal.
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October 02, 2023
Oregon Water Department Won’t Respond To Water District’s High Court Petition
WASHINGTON, D.C. — The Oregon Water Resources Department (OWRD) has waived its right to respond to a petition for a writ of certiorari in which the Klamath Irrigation District seeks review of an appeals court’s application of the doctrine of prior exclusion jurisdiction in an ongoing water adjudication under the McCarren Amendment.
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October 02, 2023
Magistrate Judge Recommends Summary Judgment Against Klamath Tribes’ ESA Case
MEDFORD, Ore. — An Oregon federal magistrate judge has recommended that a judge grant summary judgment in favor of the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation and against the Klamath Tribes, finding that the agency has “equal obligations” to three species of fish in the Upper Klamath Lake and in the Klamath River under the Endangered Species Act (ESA) and did not prioritize river salmon over suckers in the lake.
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September 27, 2023
California Water Board: Bottler Lacks Water Rights, Must Stop Local Diversions
SACRAMENTO, Calif. — The California State Water Resources Control Board (SWRCB) has adopted an order requiring bottled water producer Blue Triton Brand Inc. to immediately stop unauthorized diversions of spring water in the San Bernardino National Forest for lack of water rights.
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September 25, 2023
Tennessee Drops Appeal Of 8-Year-Old Challenge Of 2015 WOTUS Rule
CINCINNATI — Tennessee has told the Sixth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals that it no longer wishes to pursue its appeal challenging the 2015 Clean Water Rule, citing the rule’s repeal, the promulgation of a new waters of the United States (WOTUS) rule and injunctions against the current rule in 27 states, including Tennessee.
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September 18, 2023
Government Urges High Court To Uphold ‘Bedrock Principle’ Of Chevron Deference
WASHINGTON, D.C. — The U.S. secretary of Commerce, two National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) officials and the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) (collectively, the government) urge the U.S. Supreme Court in a Sept. 15 brief to not overrule the doctrine of Chevron deference in a challenge to fishery regulations that were upheld by the District of Columbia Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals, writing that doing so could “cause disruption” to complex federal regulatory schemes.
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September 12, 2023
Multiplaintiff, Interstate Or Notable Water Rights Cases
New developments in the following multiplaintiff, interstate or notable water rights cases are marked in boldface type.
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September 12, 2023
Napa Vineyards, Vintner Sue County Over New Restrictions On Wells
SAN FRANCISCO — Three Napa Valley vineyards and a vintner have sued Napa county and its planning director, saying new well permitting violates their property and water rights.
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September 12, 2023
Plaintiffs Want Utah To Modify Upstream Diversions To Avoid Drying Great Salt Lake
SALT LAKE CITY — Environmentalists, a physicians’ group and a wildlife conservancy have filed a complaint asking a Utah court to order the state to consider modifying upstream surface water diversions to restore the Great Salt Lake to levels that will continue to support brine shrimp fishing, tourism, recreation, mineral extraction and skiing and avoid the exposure of airborne toxic sediments.
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September 12, 2023
Oregon District Asks High Court To Rule On Jurisdiction In Water Adjudication
WASHINGTON, D.C. — The Klamath Irrigation District has asked the U.S. Supreme Court to weigh in on whether the federal government can avoid the doctrine of prior exclusive jurisdiction in an ongoing water adjudication under the McCarren Amendment by asserting defenses based on federal law and removing cases to federal courts.
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September 12, 2023
Judge Tentatively Dismisses Michael Abatti Water Case On Res Judicata
SAN DIEGO — A California federal judge has taken under submission arguments on his tentative dismissal of a lawsuit by Michael A. Abatti against the Imperial Irrigation District (IDD) as barred by res judicata.
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September 11, 2023
Arizona Federal Judge: Farmers Violated River Decree With 4 Wells
TUCSON, Ariz. — An Arizona federal judge has ruled that three farmers are pumping water from the Gila River in violation of a 1935 water decree and granted summary judgment in favor of two Native American tribes.
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September 11, 2023
Federal Magistrate: Oregon Properly Denied Stays Of Klamath Lake Regulation
MEDFORD, Ore. — An Oregon federal magistrate judge has affirmed orders by the Oregon Water Resources Department (OWRD) denying stays in five related cases involving tribal water rights in the Upper Klamath Lake pending appeals.
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September 11, 2023
Water Contract Validation Appeal Denied By California Court For Lack Of Judgment
FRESNO, Calif. — A California appeals court has dismissed an appeal involving water contracts between a water district and the United States for lack of appellate jurisdiction because the trial court never entered a judgment in the underlying case.
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September 11, 2023
Water Contract Lacked Essential Details, California Appeals Court Rules
FRESNO, Calif. — A California appeals court has affirmed dismissal of a water contract validation action filed by a water district, agreeing that the attached contract lacked essential details, including what the district’s water project loan repayment obligation is.
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September 08, 2023
California Judge Mandates That Ordinance Favoring Ag Users Over City Be Vacated
LOS ANGELES — A California state court has issued a judgment and mandate ordering a groundwater management agency to rescind an ordinance that violates enabling state law by being more restrictive against a city as compared to agricultural water users.