State Department of Ecology v. Grimes
Washington Supreme Court
852 P.2d 1044 (Wash. 1993)
Relevant factsFree
In adjudicating competing water rights in a lake, a court-appointed referee determined the Grimeses' (plaintiffs) irrigation, recreation, and domestic water entitlement using standard water-duty calculations plus a 25% increase for transportation loss from Clarence Grimes's admittedly inefficient irrigation system, awarding 1.5 cubic feet per second flow and 920 acre-feet of storage, despite no direct testimony establishing the Grimeses' actual historical water use.
IssueFree
Whether it is proper to determine water rights under the prior appropriation doctrine by analyzing reasonable use as determined by water duty and waste.
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