Opinion ID: 1164485
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 6

Heading: Asserted impairment as a matter of law.

Text: Under the conditions of Finding No. 12, there will be a decline in the water-level of Berry's artesian wells of less than 0.16 feet. Finding No. 15 states that this decline will have a negligible effect on the chemical quality of the water pumped from Berry's wells. Berry contends this negligible effect shows there will be a worsening in the quality of the water and that any worsening, however slight, constitutes an impairment. He relies on Heine v. Reynolds, supra. This decision held that the issue under § 75-11-7, supra, is whether there is impairment and not whether there is substantial impairment. If the application, however conditioned, would result in an impairment, the application should be denied. Whether there is an impairment depends upon the 7acts of each case. Heine v. Reynolds, supra; Mathers v. Texaco, Inc., 77 N.M. 239, 421 P.2d 771 (1966). We do not decide whether there is an impairment if there is a worsening (Berry's term) in the quality of water. Berry asserts there was a worsening. The State Engineer's finding, not challenged as being unsupported by substantial evidence, is that lowering of the level of water in Berry's wells would have a negligible effect on the chemical quality of the water. A negligible effect is an effect of such little consequence that it should be disregarded. See Webster's Third New International Dictionary, negligible. The quality of the water has not worsened (deteriorated) as a result of the lowering of the water level, if the result of such lowering is of such little consequence that it should be disregarded. The finding of negligible effect does not require a determination, as a matter of law, that the chemical quality of the water in Berry's artesian wells was impaired by a lowering of the water level in those wells by less than 0.16 feet. The District Court affirmed the State Engineer's decision. We affirm the District Court's affirmance. It is so ordered. NOBLE, C.J., and COMPTON, J., concur.