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Show 28 SURFACE WATERS whereas municipal and industrial water users are required to pay full reimbursement for that part of the cost of the storage facility which is allocated to industrial and municipal water use; and the typical reclamation project generates hydroelectric power which is sold to amortize the costs of the project which are not reimbursed through sales of water under the delivery contracts. There are many special water districts and municipalities who deliver water to users (ordinarily for household and business use, but sometimes for industrial and agricultural use also) within their service areas, on a public utility type basis, and the water users ac- quire the "right" to this type of service by executing delivery con- tracts or appropriate application forms similar to other utility services. Water rights may also be acquired by condemnation by public enti- ties which have the power of eminent domain. In many instances private individuals or companies are authorized by statute to acquire private property rights of others by condemnation in order to facili- tate water use. Most commonly such rights are easements for ditches, canals, dams, and similar works and facilities. Private individuals are not authorized to condemn water rights, but merely easements or rights-of-way so that they can exercise water rights which they have otherwise acquired. b. Riparian Jurisdictions (1) TRADITIONAL RIPARIAN RIGHTS Eiparian rights arise by virtue of ownership of real property underlying or bordering natural watercourses. The nature and limit of such rights are discussed in section 3.2 of this chapter. But the act of acquiring ownership of riparian land is all that is necessary in order to acquire riparian water rights. There need be no mention of riparian rights in the conveyance or instrument transferring title, because riparian rights are automatically transferred with title to the property as part of the property itself; although all or part of the riparian rights may be expressly reserved and severed from the land by the grantor. In the latter event the grantee obtains title to the land without acquiring the riparian water rights. (2) PERMIT SYSTEMS A great many water use rights in riparian jurisdictions are not ri- parian water rights at all, but are permit rights administered by a State agency. These permit systems have some similarity to appro- priation systems, but there are also major differences. Perhaps the single most significant distinction is that eastern permits are often for fixed terms, subject to imposition of conditions and limitations, and are frequently revocable; whereas rights acquired under western administrative systems are usually valid in perpetuity and are en- titled to constitutional protection. There is little uniformity in eastern permit systems with respect to the waters administered or the exemptions from the application of the permit statutes. Permits usually are administered by a central |
