Opinion
3-73-CV-00125-MMD-WGC
04-12-2022
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, et al., Plaintiffs, v. WALKER RIVER IRRIGATION DISTRICT, et al., Defendants.
ORDER MODIFYING WALKER RIVER DECREE TO CONFORM WITH NEVADA STATE ENGINEER INSTREAM FLOW WATER RIGHTS PERMIT NO. 90690
The Walker River Decree is hereby amended in Accordance with Nevada State Engineer instream flow water rights Permit No. 90690.
NOW, THEREFORE, IT IS HEREBY ORDERED, ADJUDGED AND DECREED that the following water rights under the Walker River Decree, entered herein on April 15, 1936, as modified April 24, 1940, are hereby amended to reflect changes in the manner of use and place of use from irrigation use to instream flow for wildlife purposes in the Walker River and Walker Lake. This modification does not make any changes to the listed owner of the water rights claims, or any portions thereof, as set forth in the Walker River Decree, even though the ownership of the water rights claims has changed since the entry of this Decree.
Claim 154, Tamagni, Anton and Son, Successors to Pacific Livestock Company, portion changed to instream flows for wildlife purposes, The entirety of water right Claim 154 shall be administered by the Water Master at the point of non-diversion as set forth in Permit No. 90690 when in priority, as shown in the second column (year of priority) and third column (amount at point of non-diversion) of the table below. Thereafter, the Water Master shall administer and protect from diversion by others at and downstream of the point of non-diversion the consumptive use portion, being 3.10 acre-feet per acre, which has been converted to flow measured in cubic feet per second as shown in the fourth column (amount of consumptive use). At the Wabuska Gage, said changed water right shall be administered in the Walker River and Weber Reservoir through the Walker River Paiute Tribe reservation pursuant to the Lower Walker River Conveyance Protocols, all as more fully set forth in Nevada State Engineer Ruling No. 6271, the 2018 Ninth Circuit Decision, and the terms of Permit No. 90690. The non-consumptive use portion of the water rights shall be administered by the Water Master in her or his discretion pursuant to the Walker River Decree and the 1953 Rules and Regulations for the Distribution of Water on the Walker River Stream System, including to avoid conflict with and injury to existing water rights at and downstream of the point of nondiversion and to mitigate hydrologic system losses, from the point of non-diversion to the point or points where the non-consumptive use portion historically returned to the Walker River upstream of the Wabuska Gage.
Stream
Year of Relative Priority
Amount at Point of Non- Diversion (in c.f.s. )
Amount of Consumptive Use (in c.f.s.)
No. of Acres Formerly Irrigated
Description of Place of Use
Walker River
1864
0.458
0.242
38
Walker River from the Point of Non- Diversion, through USGS Wabuska Gage, then through Weber Reservoir into and including Walker Lake.
1865
0.183
0.096
15
1870
0.697
0.370
58
1875
1.430
0.759
119
1880
1.921
1.021
160
1885
1.220
0.651
102
1890
0.854
0.453
71
1895
0.568
0.300
47
1900
1.100
0.587
92
1905
1.467
0.778
122
IT IS SO ORDERED.