If you have been following this blog or the Water Resource Inventory Area (“WRIA”) 1 Adjudication, you have learned that the Washington Department of Ecology (“Ecology”) has issued its Summons to all potential water right claimants in the Nooksack Basin and WRIA 1.  Included in the packet, along with Ecology’s Summons, are Claim Forms that must be filled out and filed with Ecology and the Court by May 1, 2026.  You can download a copy of the Claim Forms at the following link: Department of Ecology – Committees, Boards, and Workgroups, or by contacting one of the Water Law attorneys in our office.

The Summons and Claim Form packet was sent via certified mail to all landowners within WRIA 1 who are either within an area of a previously recorded water right or are outside of a public water system service area, such as a city.  This includes landowners that source their water from permit-exempt wells.

Due to the fact that these packets are being sent via certified mail, an adult’s signature will be required upon delivery.  If you happen to miss the certified mailing, your packet should be held at your local post office for approximately three (3) weeks, after which time you will need to retrieve your packet from Ecology’s local Bellingham field office.

The Claim Forms themselves provide detailed instructions as to how they should be completed. Our attorneys can also assist you in preparing these forms.

Completing the Claim Forms is the Only Way to Protect Your Right to Appropriate Water.

Participating in the WRIA 1 water rights adjudication—by first submitting completed Claim Forms to Ecology—is crucial if you want to protect the water rights attached to your property.  This applies equally to water rights associated with withdrawal from a surface water body or from a groundwater well.

Furthermore, it is important to remember that while certain groundwater wells may be deemed exempt from the formal Ecology water right permitting process, claim forms describing the groundwater’s use must still be submitted to Ecology prior to the May 1, 2026, deadline in order to secure the property’s right to appropriate water from the well.

What Happens After Submitting Your Claim Forms?

Once each claimant has submitted a claim form for each of their water rights and/or exempt well with Ecology, claimants will have an additional three (3) years to file evidence supporting their claim(s).  Sometime after that there will be a report of findings issued by Ecology regarding each claim, and then, later, the Court will hold a hearing of the report of findings and/or that the claim is contested.  Then, later still, the Court will issue a decree of appropriation confirming the extent of the validity and legality of the claimed water right, and the water right’s priority date.  This entire process may take years if not decades.

Pre-Groundwater and Surface Water Code Claims.

If you or your predecessors of your water diversion and/or property ownership have been using a groundwater well since before 1945, or a surface water diversion prior to 1917, you may have a claim to a water right but do not have anything on record with the State of Washington.  Pending legislation (SB 5212) will allow a re-opening of an opportunity to file a claim for those pre-code water withdrawals.  If you have such a claim; you will still need to complete and file a claim form as part of the adjudication.  Please contact one of our water law attorneys for assistance in determining whether your water diversion might fall into this category of water rights.

What if I Do Not Use Water From a Groundwater Well or Surface Waterbody and Was Served with a Summons and Claim Forms?

If you are certain that you have no claim to a water right and do not divert water directly from a groundwater well or surface waterbody, then you have two options: (i) you can simply not file a claim form, knowing that after May 1, 2026, you will be barred from asserting any claim to a water right; or (ii) if you would like to be out of this Adjudication prior to May 1, 2026, Ecology is preparing forms for requesting voluntary dismissal.  When these forms are available, we will link them in a blog post on this website, or you can track the Ecology WRIA 1 Adjudication website at the following link: Nooksack – Washington State Department of Ecology.

If you have questions regarding how to complete your Claim Forms, if you think you may have received the Summons and Claim Forms in error, or if you believe you should have received a packet from Ecology but did not, please contact Sara Frase from our Water Law Practice Group via email at sfrase@csdlaw.com or via telephone at (360) 671-1796.