Utah Division of Water Rights publishes 28 unclaimed water rights for Eastland Subdivision; 90-day objections open

Chase McDonald, assistant state engineer for adjudication at the Utah Division of Water Rights, told a public meeting that the division published a list of unclaimed water rights for the Eastland Subdivision and that affected parties have procedures and deadlines if they believe a right listed is theirs.

The list, published two weeks before the meeting, includes 28 water-right entries drawn from the division's records. McDonald said the division's records show 134 water rights for the area and that 359 landowners were notified during the initial summons and notice period. "We published the list of unclaimed rights," McDonald said, describing the next steps and how to file objections with the district court and the state engineer's office.

Why it matters: the list of unclaimed rights is part of a court-supervised adjudication under Utah law (Utah Code Title 73, Chapter 4). If the district court decrees the published list as part of the adjudication, diligence-based (prestatutory or otherwise grandfathered) claims identified only by diligence would be barred from later claiming the same rights. McDonald explained that the decree would not prevent new appropriations where permitted; it would only bar later claims based on diligence for the listed, unclaimed rights.

What the division said it did and will do: McDonald outlined a multi-step adjudication process. The division has completed the summons and initial notice phase and published the list of unclaimed rights. It will perform a second, final summons — published once a week for five weeks in local newspapers in October and November — after re-searching records to locate any owners missed in the first notice. The division is concurrently evaluating claims that have been filed, doing field reviews and preparing the state engineer's recommendations. McDonald said the office hopes to complete claim evaluations and file a proposed determination with the court by February 2026; that filing will trigger a separate 90-day objection period for the proposed determination.

How to contest a listing: McDonald said anyone who believes a water right on the unclaimed list belongs to them must file a written objection with the district court and attach a claim; they must also file the claim with the state engineer's office. He emphasized the role of the attorney general's office in court filings and encouraged people with procedural questions to contact the Division or the attorney general's representative present at the meeting. "If you have questions on that, we do want to help you. Feel free to contact our office," McDonald said.

Records, access and errors: McDonald cautioned that the division's ownership records are not title records and can be out of date; the county recorder is the official office of record for title. He said the division includes an alphabetical index in the list that identifies owners of record, the water-right number, and page references. The division posted the list online at waterrights.utah.gov (adjudication status → Southeastern Colorado River → Eastland Subdivision) and will provide printed copies from its Price or Salt Lake City offices for a nominal fee. McDonald said staff would remain after the meeting to help attendees look up specific property records.

Public questions: Attendees asked whether the timing related to unrelated issues such as potash development or Lake Powell water levels. McDonald replied that the Eastland adjudication traces to petitions originally filed in the 1950s and is part of an ongoing statewide program to quantify rights, saying, "It is not in response to Lake Powell." He explained adjudication is intended to quantify historic (prestatutory) water uses, produce accurate water budgets and protect groundwater resources.

Next steps and timeline: The division will (1) publish the final summons in local paper(s) weekly for five weeks in October–November, (2) continue field evaluations and issue state engineer recommendations, and (3) file a proposed determination with the court (target February 2026), which will open a separate 90-day objection period. After objections to the proposed determination are resolved, the division will ask the court to decree the determined rights. McDonald reiterated that if people need help locating the list or understanding how to file objections, they should contact the Division (waterrights.utah.gov) or speak with regional staff such as Cash Stallings and team lead Skyler at the end of the meeting.

There were no formal votes or ordinance actions recorded at this meeting.