A farmer in California's Central Valley holds an appropriative water right established in 1952. A neighboring farmer established an appropriative right in 1971. During a drought, the state curtails water deliveries. Which of the following correctly describes how California's prior appropriation doctrine allocates the curtailment burden between these two rights holders?
Correct Answer
B) The 1971 right holder is curtailed first and completely before any restriction is imposed on the 1952 right holder, and either right can be lost if not exercised through beneficial use
California's prior appropriation doctrine operates on a 'first in time, first in right' priority system codified in the California Water Code. The 1952 appropriator holds a senior right and is the last to be curtailed during a shortage; the 1971 junior appropriator bears the curtailment burden first and must cease diversion entirely before the senior right is restricted. Additionally, appropriative rights in California are subject to a beneficial use requirement — rights not exercised can be lost through forfeiture or abandonment, reflecting the 'use it or lose it' principle embedded in Water Code §1241.
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Related Topics & Key Terms
Key Terms:
Related Concepts
Deed restrictions are limitations placed in a deed that control how a property may be used by the current and future owners. They are a form of private land use control that runs with the land.
An easement is a legal right to use another person's land for a specific purpose without owning it. It is a nonpossessory interest in real property that typically runs with the land.
An easement by necessity is created by court order when a property is landlocked and has no access to a public road. It arises from the necessity of accessing the property, not from long-term use.
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