The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1893-09-03
MUNICIPAL WATER RIGHTS.
BoUNTIFUL CITY. AUG. 81.

BoUNTIFUL CITY, Aug. 81, 1898.
To the Editor OF THE HERALD
Bountifut city was incorporated for the
purpose of improving the various water
channels running into the city and to
more securely hold the peoples rights
from entertainments of spectators who
were threatening to establish reservoirs
and take all surplus water thus secured.
Now, Mr.. Editor, what would like to
have answered through the columns OF
your valuable paper, is how the various
incorporated cities outside of Salt Lake
city handle the water for the people,
and whether it is necessary for the city
to own the water as an incorporation, or
do they merely control the water for the
people. the people still owning the water
individually.
If you could explain these questions
and others bearing on this subject, you
would confer favor on many in this
part as there are other places contem-
plating Incorporating for similar pur-
SUBSCRIBER.
Water rights, whether OF corporations
or individuals, are only to the reasonable
use of water for any useful purpose and
are vested and accrued by priority OF ap-
preparation, divertion and use. A
secondary right to the use of water may
be acquired by the appropriation OF a
natural source of supply or part thereof
at time when its use is not required by
the prior appropriators, or when the
water of natural source OF supply ex-
ceeds its average flow for seven years, in
which case a secondary right to the use
of the excess may be acquired by its ap-
preparation, divertion and use. Such
vested rights may not be infringed by in
divIduals or corporations.
But cities OF the first, second or third
class, organized and incorporated under
the Act of March 8, 1888, are authorized
and empowered:
To control the water and water courses
leading to the city and to regulate and
control the water courses and mill privi-
leges within the city; provided, that the
control shall not be exercised to the in
jury of any rights already acquired by
actual owners; and to levy and to collect
taxes upon all taxable real and personal
property, not to exceed per cent. per
aunum for the purpose of furnishing the
city or the Inhabitants thereof with water
for irrigating and olher purposes, and to
regulate and control the same for the use
and benefit of the Inhabitants thereof,
and may assess, collect and enforce the
payment of the taxes in any manner pro-
vided 1or by ordinance.
To construct, purchase and maintain
canals, bitches and reservoirs; and to
purchase springs, streams, or sources of
water supply, for the purpose of provid-
ing water for irrigation, domestic or
other purposes; and if necessary to Sc
cure said sources of water supply, may
purchase the land upon which said water
has been appropriated or applied.
In the case first mentioned in the law
the city regulates and controls the
water for the benefit of the citizens
and actual owners OF Its use without
case the city as corporation, acquires by
purchase the right to the use OF water for
the benefit of the city, and that right is
vested in the municipality the same as il
it were an individual or private corpo-
ration that had acquired that right. In
one case the city regulates and controls,
in the other it owns and distributes, ac-
cording to ordinances made and provided,
The purpose of comforting these powers
upon city councils is not to deprive any
person of water rights lawfully acquired
but rather to protect them in their rights
and at the same time provide for the gem
eral welfare OF the Inhabitants. Good
citizens will comply with the rules and
regulations established for these pur-
poses, and just city council will be care
full not to encroach upon any citizen s
rights. We think our correspondents
questions have been fully answered.