OCR Text |
Show OREGON 631 This section does not apply to nor affect the rights of cities and towns under which water is used for reasonable and usual municipal purposes. This statute goes on to confirm the right of all cities and towns to acquire rights for all reasonable and useful municipal pur- poses, including future municipal purposes as may be reasonably an- ticipated by reason of growth of population or to secure sufficient water supply in cases of emergency.120 Water rights may be canceled by the owner by merely certifying under oath to the State engineer that the water right has been aban- doned by him and that he desires that it be canceled.121 The State engineer, upon his own determination or upon evidence submitted by third parties, may determine that a particular water right has been abandoned. In this event, the State engineer may initiate proceedings for the cancellation of the right by giving notice by registered mail to the legal owner of the lands to which the water right is appurtenant and to the occupant of such land. The notice must inform the legal owner or occupant that he has a period of 60-days from the date of the mailing of the notice in which to protest the proposed cancellation of the water right.122 If no protest is filed within the 60-day period, the State engineer may enter an order canceling the water right. If a protest is filed within that time, the State engineer fixes a time and place for hear- ing on the protest. The State engineer gives written notice of the hearing at least 10 days prior to the hearing to the person protesting the cancellation of the water right and to any other person who, in the opinion of the State engineer, is an interested party to the pro- ceeding. After the hearing, the State engineer enters a notice either canceling the water right, canceling or modifying it in part, or de- claring that the water right is not canceled or modified. Such order is subject to appeal by any party to the proceedings.123 The State engineer must certify his actions to the clerk of the county in which the water right is located. In the event a water right was modified, the portion of the water right not canceled is reaf- firmed by a new water right certificate issued by the State engineer.124 Oregon has recognized the loss of a water right pursuant to the doctrine of adverse use where all of the elements necessary to estab- lish an open, notorious, adverse use were continued throughout the prescriptive period.125 3.5 Storage Waters, Artificial Lakes, and Ponds In order to acquire a water right for the storage and use of water, a person must file an application with the State engineer and perfect his right in accordance with the procedure set forth in the water code. See section 3.1.b. However, in addition to this primary permit, any person proposing to apply water from the project to beneficial use is required to file for a secondary permit. The application for :"» Sec. 540.610. *»Sec. 540.621. ^ Sec. 540.631. *»Id. «* Sec. 540.650. *** Norwood v. Eastern Oregon Land Co., 122 Or. 106, 227 Pac. 1111 (1924). |