WATER ALLOCATION

1
WATER ALLOCATION

• Allocation of the Right to Make Beneficial Use of
  Public Water
• By
• Marvin S. Cohen
• .

2
FIRST-COME-FIRST-SERVED(Use It or Lose It)

• The Westprior appropriation doctrine beneficial
  use of scarce water resources.
• Arizona, doctrine applies only to surface waters.
• Property right in the beneficial use of the
  water.
• The right can be lost by non-use.
• Water right can be severed and transferred from
  appurtenant land.
• Must have approval of Director of ADWR.

3
INTERSTATE ALLOCATION

• Interstate stream allocation among states
• Compact,
• Congress or
• U.S. Supreme Courtequitable apportionment.
• Prior Appropriation Doctrine need not apply.
• Early 1900s Colorado River States worried that
  California would appropriate all of that Rivers
  water.
• Compact permanently divided the Rivers water by
  agreement between the Upper Basin and Lower
  Basin.
• Lower Basin water then permanently apportioned
  among the Lower Basin States by Congress without
  regard to who first put the water to beneficial
  use.

4
GROUNDWATERThe Regulated Riparian Approach

• Landowner can make reasonable use of the
  groundwater extracted from his land.
• But State can regulate the withdrawal and use of
  that water.
• In AMAs, groundwater withdrawals and use tightly
  regulated (except for exempt wells.)
• For AWS, first-come-first-served.
• In non-AMAs loose regulation.
• Interbasin transfers highly restricted.

5
COMMAND CONTROL

• Allocation of Colorado River water.
• Secretary of the Interior can decide who will
  receive Colorado River water and how much water
  each will receive.
• CAP waterThe Director of ADWR recommendsthe
  Secretary allocates.
• Transfers of CAP allocations must be approved by
  U.S. and CAWCD.
• CAWCD consults with ADWR on the water policy
  implications of each requested transfer.
• CAP allocations not lost for non-use.

6
CAGRDMODIFIED FIRST- COME-FIRST-SERVED

• CAGRD membershipopen to developers water
  providers in CAWCDs three counties that can show
  a 100-year physical supply of groundwater.
• Groundwater physical supply locked up on a
  first-come-first-served basis
• A plan of operation every ten years .
• If plan of operation not approved, no new member
  lands or member service areas.
• If this happens, those who got in first get
  access to the replenishment water
• CAGRD is responsible for finding the
  replenishment water.

7
MARKET ALLOCATION

• Water farms
• TucsonAvra Valley 1970s.
• PhoenixMcMullen Valley.
• ScottsdalePlanet Ranch.
• MesaPinal County farmland.
• Indian CAP water leases.
• CAGRD potential acquisition of additional water
  under new plan of operation.
• Storage credits, extinguishment credits.
• Type 2 rights.

8
FUTURE ALLOCATIONS

• Excess CAP aqueduct capacitycommand or market?
• 90,000 af of NIA CAP to be allocated by
  commandDirector of ADWR.
• Water transfersregulated market?
• Colorado River water.
• Present Perfected Rights.
• On River Indian water.
• On River agricultural contracts.
• Indian CAP leases.
• CAP non-Indian allocations transferable but not
  marketable.
• Other surface water.
• Groundwater.
• Effluent.
• If new rural water districts are formed as result
  of SWAG
• How will the districts acquire water?
• How will a districts water supplies be allocated
  among members?

9
HOW WOULD I DO IT?

• Markets are generally the most efficient way to
  allocate scarce resources.
• In the U.S we have built successful market
  economy by
• regulating for health, safety and public policy
  and
• allowing the market to function within those
  constraints.
• We need such a market system for water use
  allocation.