Water Rights
Water Rights in Nevada
Water Rights in Nevada
What are Water Rights in Nevada?
Water Rights, Are Owned Rights To Put Water To Beneficial Use, The State Owns And Controls The Water.
Surface Water Rights - You must own surface water rights to allow your cows to drink from any stream or pond in Nevada. You can not contain or divert any surface water in Nevada unless you own water rights. Snow pack and precipitation are the primary recharge.
Ground Water Rights - Ground water rights are all the large irrigation wells used to produce our food. Municipalities, industries of all kinds, including energy production, mining, and ethanol own water rights and pump massive amounts of water from our aquifers.
Nevada's water law is based on statutes enacted in 1903 and 1905 and are founded on the principal of Prior Appropriation. Unlike some other states, Nevada has a statewide system for the administration of both ground water and surface water. Appropriation water rights are based on the concept of applying water to Beneficial Use and "First in Time, First in Right." Appropriation water rights can be lost through non-use and they may be sold or transferred apart from the land.
Due in large part to the relative scarcity of water in Nevada and numerous competing uses, Nevada has had a thriving market for water transfers for a number of years.
For additional information and inquiries about water rights in Nevada, please contact Priceless Realty, Inc. and they will be happy to answer any question and assist you.
For more literature about water rights in Nevada, please refer to http://water.nv.gov/waterrights/
