Public Meeting Concerning the Development of a Groundwater Management Plan for Parowan Valley

The Utah Division of Water Rights will be holding a public meeting to discuss the development of a groundwater management plan for Parowan Valley. The information below comes from the public meeting notice.

What: Public Meeting

Who: Parowan Valley Water Users

When: January 11, 2022, 5:30 - 7:30 p.m.

Where: County Commission Chambers, 68 South 100 East, Parowan, UT 84761

Purpose: The purpose of the meeting is to discuss the development of a groundwater management plan for Parowan Valley.  Personnel from the Division of Water Rights will be available to take all questions and comments provided by the general public and interested parties.

If you are unable to attend the meeting, but would like to provide input, please send your written comments to:
Division of Water Rights
646 North Main St
P.O. Box 506
Cedar City, UT 84721-0506 

Agenda for January 11, 2022 Public Meeting
1. Welcome/Introduction
2. Groundwater Management Plan Discussion
3. Public Questions/Comments

In accordance with the Americans with Disability Act, individuals needing special accommodations should notify Marianne Burbidge at (801) 538-7370 at least three (3) days prior to the meeting. 

Information from the meeting will be posted on the Utah Division of Water Rights website at http://waterrights.utah.gov as a resource for those who are unable to attend the meeting or require additional information.

Utah Watershed Councils

Representative Tim Hawkes’s House Bill 166, the Watershed Council Act, was passed in the 2020 legislative session. The purpose of the Act, which was largely drafted by Smith Hartvigsen attorney Peter Gessel in his previous role at the Utah Department of Agriculture and Food with input from Nathan Bracken and others, is to “develop diverse and balanced stakeholder forums for discussion of water policy and resource issues at watershed and state levels.” The Utah Division of Water Resources was tasked with implementing the Act, though its efforts were delayed by a year due to the pandemic. This past spring, the Division awarded a contract to The Langdon Group, headed by experienced facilitator Dan Adams, with assistance from Nathan Bracken and Peter Gessel as policy counsel, to implement the Act.

The Division’s implementation plan calls for the creation of a statewide Utah Watersheds Council, with council members appointed to represent state agencies, counties, cities, special districts, and others from a variety of interests such as agriculture, conservation, and industrial water use. Many of these representatives have already been identified, and the remainder should be selected as directed by statute within the next two weeks. On November 15, 2021, the Division will hosted a kickoff meeting at the Department of Natural Resources to officially organize the Utah Watersheds Council. This was the first major step to implement the Act, though hundreds of hours have already been spent by Dan Adams and others to reach out to water stakeholders across the state and lay the groundwork for this event. We expect that it will take several meetings for the Utah Watersheds Council to be fully organized and adopt policies and priorities for its work, as the Act was written broadly to allow the council to organize and operate as it sees fit. One of the primary responsibilities of the Utah Watersheds Council is to facilitate the organization of local basin-level watershed councils across the state. The Langdon Group has been tasked with organizing some of these basin-level councils, which Dan hopes to start doing in the next few months.

In addition to facilitating and supporting the basin-level councils, the Utah Watersheds Council is designed to help improve communication and understanding between the many state-level entities and interests that far too often are unaware of each other’s activities and responsibilities. By convening these state-level representatives, the hope is that the Utah Watersheds Council will facilitate communication, coordination, and collaboration, particularly between the Departments of Natural Resources, Environmental Quality, and Agriculture and Food, as well as federal agencies (though the federal agencies are not members of the council). As the basin-level councils are created, with each such council appointing a representative to the Utah Watersheds Council, there will be additional opportunities for local stakeholders to identify their unique needs and priorities and communicate those to the state council. The Utah Watersheds Council can use that information in fulfilling its obligation to provide advice to the governor and legislature on water issues.

As the watershed councils are subject to Utah’s public meeting requirements, all state and local watershed council meetings are open to the public. Scheduled meetings and their agendas will be available on the Utah Public Notice website.

Utah Water Resources Plan - Virtual Open House

On October 20, 2021 at 7:00 pm, the Utah Division of Water Resources will be hosting a virtual open house regarding the draft State of Utah Water Resources Plan. During the open house, a short presentation about the Plan will be given, which will be followed by a question-and-answer session. Written questions will be accepted throughout the virtual open house through the "Question and Answer" feature of Google Meet.

To join the virtual open house in Google Meet, click here.

To watch the virtual open house on YouTube live video stream, click here.

To view the current draft of the Plan, click here. 

Personnel Changes at Utah Division of Water Rights

Assistant State Engineer Blake Bingham will be taking a leave of absence from the Division of Water Rights for military service. Accordingly, the Division will be making some personnel changes.

Jared Manning will take the position of Assistant State Engineer for Applications and Records.

Ross Hansen will take the position of Assistant State Engineer for Field Services.

Eric Jones will take the position of Regional Engineer for the Utah Lake / Jordan River Regional Office.

Gary Brimley will take the position of Regional Engineer for the Weber River / Western Regional Office.

These personnel changes will take effect next week.

New Director of the Utah Division of Water Resources

Candice Hasenyager has been appointed the new Director of the Utah Division of Water Resources. She replaces Todd Adams who has accepted a Deputy Director position with the Utah Department of Natural Resources. 

Director Hasenyager said the following: “Access to water is at the core of prosperity for our state. I am looking forward to serving the public and building on the great work already in place. As we head into the future, we will need to work together to implement balanced solutions like reducing our water use, growing water-wise and increasing our water supplies.”

For more information, click here.

The Utah Division of Water Rights has set a public meeting to discuss the general adjudication of water rights in the Lake Creek area in the Provo River Division of the Utah Lake/Jordan River Drainage (Area 55, Book 12). The boundaries of the Lake Creek area are shown in the map below. The following information is from the public meeting notice:

What: Public Meeting

Who: Water Users within the Lake Creek area

When: July 29, 2021, 6:00 to 7:00 pm

Where: Wasatch County Senior Center, 465 East 1200 South, Heber City

Purpose: In accordance with Chapter 73-4, Utah Code Annotated, and the Third Judicial District Court (Civil No. 365729851), the State Engineer is authorized and ordered to conduct a general determination of the rights to the use of all water, both surface and underground, within the drainage area of the Lake Creek Subdivision, Provo River Division, of the Utah Lake and Jordan River drainage in Wasatch County. Efforts are currently underway and over the next few months, representatives of the Division of Water Rights will be working in the Lake Creek area to survey existing water rights and investigate water user's claims. In light of this work, the public is invited to a public meeting. Representatives from the Division of Water Rights will be available during this time to discuss the adjudication process, review water rights within the area, and answer questions. If individuals cannot attend, but have questions regarding the adjudication process or water rights within the Lake Creek area, please contact the Division of Water Rights at 801-538-5282.
Agenda:
1.  Introduction (Michael Drake, P.E. - Assistant State Engineer)
2.  Adjudication Process Presentation

3.  Public Comments and Questions

A live stream broadcast of the public meeting will also be available online at this link.

Update on Water Right Adjudications

Across the state, water right adjudications continue to move forward. As noted by the Utah Division of Water Rights, “[t]he water rights adjudication process helps to bring order and certainty to the water rights record throughout the state by defining existing rights, quantifying unknown rights, and removing unused and abandoned rights from the record through judicial decree.” This article provides updates on some of these water right adjudication proceedings.

In February 2021, the Division initiated a new adjudication in Daniels Creek, Area 55-11. The next areas to be adjudicated are:

·       Lake Creek, Area 55-12 (anticipated to begin in 2021)

·       Jordanelle, Area 55-13 (anticipated to begin in 2022)

·       Francis-Woodland, Area 55-14 (anticipated to begin in 2022)

·       Upper Provo, Area 55-15 (anticipated to begin in 2023)

 

In March 2021, the Division has issued the List of Unclaimed Rights for Midway, Area 55-10.

 

The Division has published Proposed Determinations in several areas:

·       Red Butte Creek, Area 57-3 (November 2020)

·       West Murray, Area 57-19 (December 2020)

·       Mill Creek, Area 57-15 (May 2021).

 

The Division anticipates publishing more Proposed Determinations in 2021. The next Proposed Determinations to be published are:

·       Liberty Park, Area 57-11

·       Parleys Creek, Area 57-14

·       Holladay, Area 57-16

·       West Big Cottonwood Creek, Area 57-17

·       Moab North, Area 05-02

·       Moab South, Area 05-05.

 

The Special Master and Third District Court continue to hear objections to Proposed Determinations in numerous adjudication areas, including three areas that pre-date the Special Master’s appointment:

·       Hobble Creek, Area 51-4

·       Goshen Valley, Area 53-1

·       Emigration Creek, Area 57-1.

It is critical that water right owners understand and participate in the adjudication process in their respective areas. Failure to do so could result in water rights being reduced or even disallowed in the adjudication proceedings.

Utah Dam Safety Inspections Using Drones

The Utah Division of Water Rights has recently announced that its dam safety section has acquired a drone and licensed two Division employees as drone pilots so that the Division can integrate drone technology into their program to inspect, evaluate, and monitor dams in the state. The implementation of drone technology will improve dam oversight and also increase staff efficiency while onsite at dam inspections.

For more information regarding the dam safety section's implementation of drone technology, click here.

Proposed Determination for Mill Creek Area

As part of its general adjudication of water rights, the Utah Division of Water Rights has issued its Proposed Determination for the Mill Creek Area (Area 55, Book 15). The Proposed Determination was published on May 19, 2021. Pursuant to Utah law, any water user who disagrees with the Proposed Determination is required to file an objection within 90 days (i.e., by August 17, 2021). Failure to file an objection results in the water user being able to mount a challenge in the future. Accordingly, if you have water rights in the Mill Creek Area, you should definitely review the Proposed Determination to ensure that your water rights are correctly included therein.

To view the Mill Creek Area Proposed Determination, click here.

Utah Well Drilling Report for 2020

The Utah Division of Water Rights recently released its 2020 well drilling report. The report notes that despite the pandemic, water well drilling increased by 25% in 2020. A total of 573 new water wells were drilled in 2020. Based on first quarter numbers, the Division expects to see an even bigger increase in 2021. Many well drillers are booked out for weeks or months (which has been confirmed to me by clients who have been attempting to get new wells drilled).

To read the full report, click here.