PRESTON — The Idaho Department of Water Resources is sending out approximately 1,600 notices to property owners in late March, providing notification of the need to file water right claims for the Bear River Basin Adjudication.

This will be the first of two mailings to begin taking water rights claims for the Bear River Basin Adjudication in IDWR’s administrative basin 13. Notices will be sent initially to property owners who live to the north or west of the Bear River, which includes areas west of Preston, Franklin and Grace.

The deadline for filing water rights applications for these particular property owners in basin 13 is on Oct. 25. The mailing of commencement notices this week represents the third mailing to property owners so far in the Bear River Adjudication. Last year, IDWR sent commencement notices to water users in basin 11.

On June 15, 2021, Idaho Water Adjudications Judge Eric Wildman signed a commencement order directing IDWR to proceed with the Bear River Basin Adjudication. An adjudication is a court proceeding that inventories and catalogs water rights. IDWR estimates that approximately 13,000 water rights claims will be filed in the Bear River Adjudication.

A notice of claim is required for all water uses. However, owners of small domestic and/or stock water rights may choose to file a claim now or wait until later in the process. IDWR recommends filing now rather than deferring until later; water users should contact IDWR adjudication staff if they have questions about the advantages of filing now. Water users who receive all of their water from a city, an irrigation district, water utility district or a company are not required to file a claim for that water. A water delivery organization typically files for the water right used by all its customers.

Following the water rights filings, IDWR staff will catalog and confirm all water rights as part of the adjudication process. IDWR will eventually file a director’s report detailing IDWR’s recommendations to district court regarding the elements of each water right. Ultimately, the court will issue a decree confirming the elements of each water right. IDWR officials in the Preston field office will assist water users in processing their respective water rights claims. Water users can wait until they receive a notice to file their water rights claims or they can do so online at any time. For more information on filing online, go to https://idwr.idaho.gov/waterrights/adjudication/brba/.

For more information, contact Christopher Holmes, IDWR water rights supervisor in Preston, 208- 701-7200, or email prestoninfo@idwr.idaho.gov.