Let's Talk About Adjudication - April 2026
In this issue
Whatcom County Superior Court news
If you live in Skagit County, the adjudication may affect you
How to get a new court claim form and technical assistance
Technical assistance at your local library
Technical assistance in other languages
A few questions answered
Whatcom County Superior Court news
The court claim form deadline was extended to June 1, 2027.
Many of you will be receiving a postcard about Whatcom County Superior Court docket notices. The court is now posting all hearings, orders, deadlines, and motions to an official online docket rather than mailing notifications. For more information about the new deadline and to view the docket, visit the court's website.
The next Water Resources Inventory Area (WRIA) 1 adjudication hearing is scheduled for April 13 at 9:00 am and can be watched via livestream. There’s also a traveling court session followed by court claim form assistance coming up in Lynden, most likely in May.
If you live in northern Skagit County, the adjudication may affect you
You may have heard about a water rights adjudication in Whatcom County and wondered how it affects your water use in Skagit County. If your property relies on a private well, or if you draw water directly from a stream, river, or lake, it may affect you and you’ll want to file a court claim form. The WRIA 1 adjudication area includes limited areas of Skagit County. There are no plans for other areas of Skagit County to be adjudicated.
WRIA 1 adjudication Skagit County area (shown in green)
 WRIA 1 adjudication Skagit County coastal area (shown in green)
 The adjudication affects all of WRIA 1. A WRIA is an administrative boundary created under Washington law to address the diverse water needs of the state which include tribal, coastal, mountain, agricultural, municipal, and environmental. While WRIA 1 (often called the Nooksack area) is mostly in Whatcom County, it also includes over 600 properties in Skagit County, whether or not they are directly connected to the Nooksack River system.
In March 2025, Ecology sent summons via certified mail to more than 30,000 property owners in Whatcom and Skagit counties. About 200 Skagit County property owners could not be reached. On March 17, 2026, Ecology started publishing a list of those names in the legal notice section of the Skagit Valley Herald and Cascadia Daily News.
If you received a summons by mail or see your name published in the Skagit Valley Herald or the Cascadia Daily, that's your official notice that we’ve identified you as a landowner in WRIA 1 who is within the area of a recorded water right or outside a public water system service area. If you live in the adjudication area and use water directly from surface or groundwater in WRIA 1, you need to file a court claim form by June 1, 2027, even for small uses like single homes on wells.
Some roads in Skagit County cross the boundary between WRIA 1 and WRIA 3. To find out whether your property is located in WRIA 1, please use the Watershed look-up tool. If you have any questions or are unsure about your property's location, reach out to us.
Keep in mind that if your water comes from a public water system like the Blanchard Edison Water Association, or you use water from outside of WRIA 1, you're all set. No action is needed.
How to get a new court claim form and technical assistance
Since summons packets went out more than one year ago, it's completely understandable if yours has been misplaced. You don't need the original packet to file. While the cover sheet is helpful because it contains your unique six-digit adjudication identification number, you can always pick up a new packet at the Bellingham Field Office, get a fillable or downloadable form, or complete the form online using Whatcom County Superior Court’s Guide and File system.
Filling out the adjudication court claim form may seem complex, but we’re committed to making the process as easy as possible for you. Free help is available. Staff will answer questions and walk you through it step-by-step. Here’s how to reach us:
- Schedule an in-person session at our Bellingham Field Office
- Book a virtual appointment using Teams
- Call us at 360-255-4406 and leave a message
- Send an email to WRadjudications@ecy.wa.gov
Do you have concerns about whether you should file? Meeting with us or contacting us with questions doesn't commit you to anything. You can still decide not to file after getting the information you need. We just want to make sure you can make an informed decision.
If you're thinking about waiting until closer to the June 2027 deadline to file, please don't wait to seek help with your court claim form. You’ll want time to get your questions answered and track down any information you might need. If everyone waits until the final weeks before the deadline, we won't be able to assist everyone as thoroughly as we'd like. Reach out early, even if you plan to file closer to the deadline.
Technical assistance at your local library
Get free court claim form assistance at your local Whatcom County library branch. Registration required.
During your appointment, you’ll meet for 30 minutes with a technical assistance specialist from either Ecology or Whatcom County Public Works who can answer questions about your court claim form. If your situation involves complex water usage, such is for multiple properties, please schedule a separate, free appointment with Ecology at a different time.
- April 9 – Bellingham Public Library, Fairhaven Branch 1:30-5:30 p.m. Sign up on Calendly or call 360-778-6314.
- April 11 – Deming Library - 10 a.m. - 2 p.m. Call the Deming Library to make an appointment.
- April 16 – Blaine Library - 12:30 p.m. - 5:30 p.m. Sign up on Calendly or call 360-778-6314.
- April 22 Ferndale Library 9:30 a.m.-2:30 p.m. Sign up on Calendly or call 360-778-6314.
In the coming months, we'll be offering free court claim form technical assistance around Skagit County. If you have ideas about good locations in your community where we could set up, we'd love to hear them. Reach out and let us know.
Technical assistance in other languages
Do you or someone you know need court claim form assistance in a language other than English? The court claim form must be completed in English, but free translation and interpretation services are available to help you understand the process and complete your form.
We are currently offering technical assistance in Spanish. Reach out to us to set up a date and time.
A few questions answered
Question: How’s the adjudication going – is it on schedule?
Response: Yes. The adjudication was filed two years ago and is proceeding as expected with regular court hearings and procedural rulings. Summons packets went out to more than 30,000 water users in March 2025, and thousands of your neighbors have already filed their court claim forms. The process is on track – be sure you’re on track, too! If you haven't filed your court claim form yet, now is a great time to start.
Question: Does the WRIA 1 adjudication affect Canadian water users?
Response: The WRIA 1 adjudication is a legal process that requires reporting water use within the WRIA 1 boundary. Anyone who owns land in WRIA 1, wherever they live, needs to self-report their surface or groundwater use to the Whatcom County Superior Court. This process only applies to land and water use in WRIA 1. It does not affect Canadian land or points of diversion or withdrawal that occur in Canada. Some private property in WRIA 1 is owned by people who live in other countries, including Canada. Those owners are also required to participate in the adjudication, just like they are required to pay property taxes and abide by other laws in Washington.
Across Washington, and in other parts of the United States, groundwater or surface water may flow between the United States and neighboring countries or states. This does not limit a state’s legal ability to manage the waters located within the state under the law.
Question: I have an abandoned well. Do I need to report it on my court claim form?
Response: The court claim form asks you to describe historic and current water use, and not future or potential use. If you have a well you do not use anymore, you do not need to report it on a court claim form. If you later decide you want to use that water again, your right to that use will be considered new. This means it will have a lower priority than the rights of those who filed before the court’s adjudication deadline. After the adjudication, newer uses may need to be curtailed in times of water shortages or drought. This is the current law, and the adjudication does not change it.
If you’re certain that you will never use that well again, then there’s no reason to file a court claim form for that use. Keep in mind that landowners of abandoned wells are required to work with a licensed well driller to safely and legally decommission (close) them. Please see our website regarding abandoned wells for more information.
Resources
Contact Ecology with your questions
Information and tools
Language access
If you have difficulty understanding English or have a disability, free language assistance or other aids and services are available upon request. Please call 360-407-6872.
Si necesita ayuda para entender esta información, ofrecemos servicios gratuitos de traducción e interpretación, así como Braille y ASL para personas con discapacidades. Para solicitar estos servicios, llame al 360-255-4406.
Если вам нужна помощь в понимании этой информации, мы предоставляем бесплатные услуги письменного и устного перевода, а также информацию шрифтом Брайля и на американском языке жестов (American Sign Language, ASL) для людей с инвалидностью. Чтобы запросить эти услуги, позвоните по телефону 360-255-4406.
ਜੇਕਰ ਤੁਹਾਨੂੰ ਇਸ ਜਾਣਕਾਰੀ ਨੂੰ ਸਮਝਣ ਵਿੱਚ ਮਦਦ ਦੀ ਲੋੜ ਹੈ, ਅਸੀਂ ਮੁਫ਼ਤ ਅਨੁਵਾਦ ਅਤੇ ਵਿਆਖਿਆ ਸੇਵਾਵਾਂ ਪ੍ਰਦਾਨ ਕਰਦੇ ਹਾਂ, ਅਤੇ ਨਾਲ ਹੀ ਅਸਮਰਥ ਲੋਕਾਂ ਲਈ ਬ੍ਰੇਲ ਅਤੇ ਅਮਰੀਕੀ ਸੰਕੇਤ ਭਾਸ਼ਾ (American Sign Language, ASL) ਵੀ ਉਪਲਬਧ ਹਨ। ਇਹਨਾਂ ਸੇਵਾਵਾਂ ਦੀ ਬੇਨਤੀ ਕਰਨ ਲਈ, 360-255-4406 'ਤੇ ਕਾਲ ਕਰੋ।
Adjudication is a legal process in Whatcom County Superior Court between the Washington Department of Ecology and all local water users in Water Resources Area (WRIA) 1. This process requires water users to self-report their water use in a form online or on paper. The court will make a decision that lists water uses in priority (old to new), including where and how much water is legal on each parcel of land. It does not involve criminal proceedings or penalties. It does not change the current law on water use.
For more information, please visit our Nooksack Adjudication website.
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