Let's Talk About Adjudication- August 2024

On June 26, the Whatcom County Superior Court held a hearing and issued preliminary orders to begin the WRIA 1 adjudication process.  The Court asked Ecology to file its proposed summons with the Court Claim Form by August 30 and will soon set a date for a hearing to approve those documents. Ecology cannot serve the summons until the Court directs it to do so. Once it is sent, water users will have at least one year to complete their forms. 

The Court entered an order about pre-commencement (before service) motions and established a 12-member steering committee. The steering committee will represent a diverse range of interests such as tribal, agricultural, municipal, and individual small water users, and will make recommendations to the Court about procedures and case management. Interested people should submit letters of interest to the Court for consideration of appointment. 

For more information about the preliminary orders, visit the Whatcom County Superior Court website:  Water Adjudication Case Documents and Docket.  

Here’s a simple description of the process. 

1. The Department of Ecology filed a petition on May 1, 2024.  

2. The summons (with the court claim form) will be reviewed by the Superior Court. Ecology will submit the proposed summons by August. 30, 2024. The Court will hold a hearing to review the summons and court claim form. 

• If the Superior Court rejects the summons, the Department of Ecology revises and resubmits it.  
• If the Superior Court approves the summons, a date is set for Ecology to mail it to all potential claimants.  

It's important to note that Ecology cannot serve the summons before the Court’s approval.  Delays can occur due to legal proceedings, hearings, and disputes.  It will take several weeks for the printing and mailing of the summons to occur after the Court approves the service of summons. 

Whatcom County Superior Court website 

The Whatcom County Superior Court clerk's office has compiled a list of resources and important dates to help interested people navigate the WRIA 1 adjudication. Some of their resources are not available on the Ecology website.  We encourage you to visit their website often.    

Claimants defined 

While we are working with the court to coordinate and finalize court documents, we are frequently asked about the types of questions that will be on the claim form.  For example: Who is the “claimant” for water use on my property? 

The claimant can be anyone who claims the right to use water in WRIA 1. Claimants can be individuals, groups of people, or businesses that source water from a well, river, or lake. All claimants need to fill out a court claim form, and provide the claimant's name, address, phone number, and email.  

Here are some common scenarios for filling out the court claim form as a claimant. Please note that this is not legal advice and may not cover all situations.  

Question:  I want to deepen my well.  Will that affect the seniority of my water right in the adjudication. 

Corrected response from the July issue:  Updating or even replacing your permit-exempt well will not affect seniority.  A priority date relates to the earliest date of continuous legal use of water, even if the permit-exempt well was replaced over time.  To deepen your well, you should work with a licensed well driller to achieve the desired results.  If you decide to replace your permit-exempt well, make sure to first get approval from Whatcom County for the new well sites.  For wells associated with water rights, replacement wells can be drilled, but they need to be in very specific locations (which is water right specific) or they need to go through a water right change/transfer process. Contact the Water Resources Program with Ecology if you plan to replace a well associated with a water right document.  

Question:  When can I file my Court Claim Form with the Whatcom County Superior Court using its e-file system?

Response:  We appreciate that many water users are eager to submit forms as soon as possible. However, the court has not yet approved the claim form, and the clerk’s office is currently not accepting adjudication filings. After you receive the summons and the court-approved claim form, e-filing will be available. In the meantime, you can register for an e-file account at eFileWashington. 

Question:  I received a postcard about the adjudication and understand that the summons and claim form will also be mailed to the same address.  However, this property was sold, and I am no longer the property owner.  What should I do? 

Response:  The law requires us to notify everyone who owns land outside of a special purpose district or that might be covered under a recorded water right document.  We use the addresses of taxpaying owners from the Whatcom County Assessor property search, but this information changes as property is bought and sold. So that we can update our list, please contact Ecology and we will mark the change in ownership in our records. Updating addresses takes time, so if for some reason you still receive a mailing about property you no longer own, simply disregard the notice.