GENERAL DESCRIPTION OF ADJUDICATIONS PROGRAM

 

A general stream adjudication is a judicial proceeding in which the nature, extent, and relative priority of water rights is determined.  As required by statute, ADWR provides technical and administrative support to the adjudication court and Special Master, “...in all aspects of the general adjudication with respect to which the director possesses hydrological or other expertise.”  A.R.S. § 45-256(A).  The Statewide Planning and Resources Division provides technical support for the adjudication through the investigations of claims for water rights and preparation of technical reports.  Legal Services Division represents ADWR before the adjudication court and the Special Master, and assists with the preparation of technical reports and provides information as requested.

There are two general stream adjudications in the state, the Gila River System and Source (Gila Adjudication) and the Little Colorado River System and Source (LCR Adjudication).  The exterior boundaries of these two adjudications include more than half the state, where most of the Indian reservations and federal land are located.  There are nearly 30,000 parties in the Gila Adjudication and nearly 5,000 parties in the LCR Adjudication.  A party is a person or entity that has filed one or more claims to water rights in the adjudication (Statement of Claimant or SOC).  On behalf of federal non-Indian lands alone, the United States has filed over 15,000 claims.

ADWR is the technical arm of the Superior Court in cases involving adjudication of water rights within the Gila and Little Colorado River systems and other matters. The Court asked for an assessment of ADWR's resources currently devoted to adjudications tasks, along with an estimate of additional resources that may be needed in the future.

To view the assessment reports submitted to the Court:
    - Click here for the Maricopa County Superior Court report
    - Click here for the Apache County Superior Court report

Gila River and Little Colorado River General Stream Adjudications

 

HYDROGRAPHIC SURVEY REPORTS

By statute, ADWR is required to prepare and publish comprehensive Hydrographic Survey Reports (HSRs) for each of the ten watersheds within the two adjudications.  HSRs can be multivolume publications that involve intensive data collection and field inspection efforts by ADWR, including detailed information regarding land ownership, hydrology, and the factual basis for each SOC, and ADWR’s recommendations regarding the water rights attributes for each individual water right claim or use investigated.

For each HSR, ADWR prepares a preliminary and a final draft.  Generally, at least two to three years are required to prepare the preliminary HSR, with another year or more to review comments and prepare a final HSR.  ADWR must provide notice of the filing of the preliminary HSR to each party and water user within the affected watershed, and notice of the final HSR to each party throughout the affected adjudication area.  ADWR also prepares and publishes to supplements to final HSRs as necessary to update information, and provides additional notice to the parties.  In January 2005, ADWR published the Supplemental Contested Case HSR for Phelps Dodge’s claims to Show Low Lake.

 

OTHER REPORTS

ADWR also prepares and publishes technical reports on specific issues or factual matters within the adjudications, such as Indian water rights settlements, the Globe Equity 59 Decree, de minimis water uses, inventory of uses within the Santa Cruz River watershed, the determination of subflow, comments on procedural issues, and status reports. 

 

DATABASES

ADWR maintains and updates SOC information, including names and addresses of the parties to the adjudications, the location and nature of claims, property records and payment of filing fees that are forwarded to either the Maricopa County Court (Gila Adjudication) or the Apache County Court (LCR Adjudication).  The information is updated as new SOCs are filed, and as existing SOCs are amended or assigned due to changes in property ownership or other changes. You can access copies of SOCs filed in the adjudications by clicking here. In order to view these imaged copies you will need the SOC file numbers from ADWR by calling 1-866-246-1414. To access blank SOC forms (including amendments and assignments of SOCs), click here.

 

NEW USE SUMMONS

Adjudication summons were served upon all persons listed in the property tax assessments in each watershed and on all persons in the watershed who had, at any time, any kind of water rights filing on record with ADWR.  Nearly 100,000 SOCs have been filed in the adjudications in response to the original and new use summons.  Through the end of calendar year 2004, over 85,000 SOCs have been filed in the Gila Adjudication, and over 14,000 SOCs have been filed in the LCR Adjudication. 

Additionally, ADWR conducts an annual search of its records to determine whether new water uses have been initiated within the adjudication areas and serves new use summons by certified mail to those potential claimants.  In the fall of 2008 ADWR served new use summons to potential claimants. They were served to new applicants who filed notices of intent to drill and/or applications for surface water rights between January 1, 2007 and December 31, 2007.  In the fall of 2009 ADWR will serve new use summons to potential claimants who filed new applications between 1-1-2008 and 12-31-2008.

Statement of Claimant Forms

Frequently Asked Questions Regarding New Use Summonses and Statements of Claimant

 

CENTRAL INFORMATION REPOSITORY

ADWR maintains a Central Information Repository for data, reports and other information related to the adjudications, which contains thousands of documents.  This information is available to the public and to the parties.

 

DISCLOSED DOCUMENTS

Disclosed Documents Input Forms

"In accessing linked documents through any of the following disclosure index spreadsheets, if you encounter a pop-up / dialog box when trying to return to the spreadsheet, click the 'Open' box, and you will return to the spreadsheet."

In Re Hopi Tribe Priority Contested Case

• Catalyst Paper (Snowflake), Inc. Disclosure Statement Index 
• Catalyst Paper (Snowfake) Inc.'s First Supplemental Disclosure Statement
• Hopi Tribe Initial Disclosure Index  
• Hopi Tribe's First Supplemental Index of Disclosed Documents Input Form. 

• Navajo Nation Disclosure Index 
• Navajo Nation Supplemental Disclosure Index 
• SRP Initial Disclosure Index 
• USDOJ Initial Disclosure Index

• USDOJ First Supplemental Disclosure Index 

In Re Fort Huachuca Contested Case

In Re San Pedro Riparian National Conservation Area Contested Case

In Re State Trust Lands Contested Case

 

In Re Powers Garden Administrative Site Contested Case

 

ARIZONA WATER SETTLEMENTS

• Zuni Settlement - Technical Assessment
  

  • Zuni Well Catalog
    


• SAWRSA Documents - Technical Assessment

 

PRELIMINARY HYDROGRAPHIC SURVEY REPORT FOR THE HOPI INDIAN RESERVATION

The Arizona Department of Water Resources (ADWR) released the Preliminary Hydrographic Survey Report for the Hopi Indian Reservation (Hopi Preliminary Report) for inspection and comment.

The Hopi Preliminary Report was prepared by ADWR as part of the Little Colorado River General Stream Adjudication (LCR Adjudication), which is pending before the Apache County Superior Court.

The purpose of the Hopi Preliminary Report is to provide the Hopi, the United States and interested parties with the opportunity to inspect the information that ADWR gathered, and to file comments with ADWR. In accordance with A.R.S. § 45-256(H), the ADWR Director gives notice that the comment period on the Hopi Preliminary Report shall extend until March 31, 2009. The Hopi Tribe requested an extension of three months to the comment period. The request was accepted and a new deadline for filing comments is June 30, 2009.

Preliminary Hopi HSR

ADWR News Release
01_Cover
02_Table of Contents
03_Chapters
04_Tables
05_Figures (29 MB)
06_References
07_Appendices A through F (142 MB)
07a_Appendix A-3 *
08_Appendix G-1 (219 MB)
09_Appendix G-2 (10 MB)
10_Appendix G-3 (337 MB)
11_Appendix G-4

* This folder contains database and "shapefiles" which require ESRI GIS software to view. The files illustrate Hopi-claimed water sources - wells, springs and impoundments.

Where indicated, some files are extremely large. Downloading without broadband Internet service is not recommended.

The documents also are available for viewing at a number of sites around northeastern Arizona. For a complete list, consult the News Release linked above.

 

Comments Received on Preliminary Hopi HSR

City of Flagstaff

Various LCR Claimants

Hopi Tribe

Navajo Nation

Peabody

SRP

United States