What's Happening to Our Water?

Understanding the WRIA 1 Water Rights Adjudication

⚠️ IMPORTANT UPDATE ⚠️

New Water-Rights Deadline: June 1, 2027

Court Extends Deadline After Motions Filed by POWWRA and Whatcom County

While this provides additional time, property owners should still prepare carefully. Filing with the state without legal support could make you sign away your rights. Join POWWRA to defend your well through coordinated legal action before the deadline.

What Is a Water Adjudication?

A water rights adjudication is a court process where the state attempts to identify and rank every water right in a watershed. In theory, this brings order to competing claims. In practice for WRIA 1, it threatens to subordinate your existing well to claims you've never had to defend against before.

Washington State's Department of Ecology filed this adjudication in Whatcom County Superior Court in July 2024, covering the entire Nooksack River Basin (WRIA 1). This affects thousands of property owners with domestic wells, farm irrigation, livestock water, and small businesses.

Adjudication Timeline: How We Got Here

Click a point on the chart to see event details.

Legal Foundation: Key Treaties, Acts & Cases

Our legal argument is grounded in over 150 years of federal law, Supreme Court precedent, and Washington State water code. These are the foundational authorities we rely on:

1855

Point Elliott Treaty

Article 6 - Individual allotments "in severalty" to Indian families, not tribal government ownership

1887

Dawes Act

General Allotment Act - Authorized individual Indian allotments under state jurisdiction

1906

Burke Act & Goudy v. Meath

Allottees under state law; 203 U.S. 146 - State law governs water rights on allotted lands

1908

Winters v. United States

207 U.S. 564 - Reserved rights for specific reservation lands at time of creation, not later claims

1953

Public Law 280

Extended Washington State civil and criminal jurisdiction over Indian lands

1963

Arizona v. California

Ongoing

Received a Summons?

Deadline: filing

Property owners are receiving summons notices. Don't file alone! Contact POWWRA for coordinated legal defense and guidance before the filing deadline.

Contact POWWRA

Action Required

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What Does the Summons Mean?

If you received a summons, you are a party to this lawsuit. The summons requires you to:

File a claim for any water rights you use or own (well, spring, stream diversion, etc.)
Meet strict deadlines set by the court
Participate in the adjudication process or risk losing your water rights by default

Key point: Filing a claim is mandatory to preserve your rights, but how you file matters. POWWRA believes property owners should file protective claims without waiving jurisdictional defenses.

What Should You Do?

1. Verify if you're affected

Check if your property is in WRIA 1 (Nooksack Basin)

2. Gather documentation

Well logs, driller reports, historical use records, property deeds

3. Understand claim options

File claims that reserve your right to challenge jurisdiction

4. Join organized defense

Connect with POWWRA to coordinate legal strategy