The Caldwell tribune. [volume] (Caldwell, Idaho Territory [Idaho]) 1883-1928, 1913-02-28
Supreme Court Decision in
Case Of Nampa and Meri-
dian District.
CITY OF NAMPA WINS
Municiplies Have Power to Direct
Manner in Which Water il to be
DECENTRALIZATION Far-reachine
in EHect-Underground System
Possesses Many Advantages.

According to the decision of the
Supreme court, rendered in the case
of the Nampa & Meridian Irrigation
District and the City of Nampa. irri.
CATION companies may be compelled
to pipe irrigation water delivered in
municiplies.
The case grew out of an action Of
the city of Nampa in destroying open
irrigation bitches while grading the
streets. The city then ordered the
irrigation company to put in an un.
foreground system to convey the wa.
ter. A suit being brought to compel
the installation of such a system re.
suited in a victory for the city in the
district court. The case being appeal.
ed to the supreme court was again
won by Nampa. In its decision the
supreme court says:
The municipality still has the right
to regulate the use of its streets and
to prescribe the manner and method
to be pursued by an irrigation dis
trict in conducting water over or un-
der the streets in order to deliver it to
canal or larltea BIN BIN BIN BIN bm BIN
canal oralateral nearest to the land to
be irrigated. If the city authorities
deem it necessary to have the water
conducted through underground pipes
instead of being delivered in open
bitches, it was clearly within the pow.
er and authority of the city to take
such action and prohibit the use Of
the streets in different manner. o.
course, the city could not compel the
irrigation district to build a pipe line
but it could prohibit it carrying waite,
through an open ditch.
"The water consumer on the othe,
hand who had acquired right to thu
use OF water from this system ma,
have his writ of mandate to compe
the delivery of water to him at thu
most available points on the line oil
the main or lateral nearest him. If the
city can prescribe the method in which
water may be delivered through it.
streets and the water user, on the
other hand, has acquired a constitu-
tional right to have water delivered
to him from the canal or lateral oil
the district system, then it would seem
that the irrigation district is left only
the one alternative, namely, to con-
struct pipe line and deliver water to
the consumers through such line"
Other cities in the state have in
stalled the underground or pipe sys-
tenn for irrigation within the bound
aries of the municipalities with great
success. The city of Caldwell is ex-
ceedingly fortunate in that the ply
steal conformation is such tahat the
system could be inaugurated with lit
tie trouble. From College Heights
there is gradual slope that would
give quite a pressure when the water
reached the heart of the city.
For several years there has been
more or less talk of the advisability
of the city installing such a system,
buying the irrigation water, BY the
acre foot, and distributing the same
through the water department. Those
advocating such plan claimed that in
a few years considerable saving would
result.
The decision of the supreme court
will undoubtedly prove Of great in
tcrest.