Arizona § 45-251 - Definitions

§ 45-251. Definitions

In this article, unless the context otherwise requires:

1. "Domestic use" means a single appropriative water right serving a residence, or multiple residences up to a maximum of three residential connections, for household purposes with associated irrigation of lawns, gardens or landscape in an amount of not more than one-half acre per residence. Domestic use does not include the use of water delivered to a residence or multiple residences by a city, town, private water company, irrigation provider or special taxing district established pursuant to title 48.

2. "General adjudication" means an action for the judicial determination or establishment of the extent and priority of the rights of all persons to use water in any river system and source.

3. "Person" means an individual, a partnership, a corporation, a municipal corporation, the state of Arizona or any political subdivision, the United States of America, an Indian tribe or a community or any other legal entity, public or private.

4. "Potential claimant" means all persons claiming water rights or on whose behalf claims to water rights are asserted.

5. "Prior decree" means any judgment or decree that is entered by a court of competent jurisdiction and that applies to the water right claim or use that is subject to adjudication.

6. "Prior filing" means a notice of appropriation recorded with the county recorder or the recorder's predecessor, an application to appropriate filed pursuant to section 45-152, a statement of claim filed pursuant to article 7 of this chapter or a claim of water right filed pursuant to article 10 of this chapter, any or all of which reasonably relate to the water right claim or use that is subject to adjudication.

7. "River system and source" means all water appropriable under section 45-141 and all water subject to claims based on federal law.

8. "Small water use claim" means any claim for a stockpond, stock watering use or water well that is identified in a statement of claimant filed in the adjudication pursuant to section 45-254 and the claim is for any of the following specific conditions:

(a) A stockpond having a capacity of not more than fifteen acre feet that is used solely for watering livestock or wildlife and that contains water that is appropriable under section 45-141, subsection A.

(b) Any well that is equipped so that it has a maximum pumping capacity of not more than thirty-five gallons per minute.

(c) A stock watering use by livestock and wildlife where the place of stock watering use is either directly from a naturally occurring body of water, such as an undeveloped spring, cienega, seep, bog, lake, depression, sink or stream, or from a developed facility that is not a stockpond or reservoir and that is served by a diversion of water that is appropriable under section 45-141, subsection A, including a drinker, trough, pipeline, spring box or other developed facility.

9. "Stockpond" means an on-channel or off-channel impoundment of any size that stores water that is appropriable under section 45-141, subsection A and that is for the sole purpose of watering livestock and wildlife.

10. "Stock watering use" means the consumption of water by livestock and wildlife, either:

(a) Directly from a naturally occurring body of water, such as an undeveloped spring, cienega, seep, bog, lake, depression, sink or stream.

(b) From small facilities, other than a stockpond, that are served by a diversion of water that is appropriable under section 45-141, subsection A.