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Homes and Land in Sunny Sequim, Washington

Homes and Land in Sunny Sequim, Washington

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Sequim Irrigation Districts: How to Find Out if a Property Has Irrigation Rights

by Chuck Marunde / Tuesday, 09 July 2019 / Published in Water Issues
Irrigation Rights

Sequim irrigation districts are represented by geographic areas of privately owned associations (aka companies or entities) of property owners who share the cost and maintenance of a local irrigation network for their neighborhood. There are seven in the Sequim area, including the Cline Irrigation District, the Dungeness Irrigation Group, Clallam Ditch Company, Dungeness Irrigation District, Sequim Prairie Tri-Irrigation Association, Agnew Irrigation District, and Highland Irrigation District. Here is a map you can use to identify which district your property would be in. Of course, just because your property is within a Sequim irrigation district does not mean you have water rights. A small percentage of property owners have water rights, and they don’t add properties. It exists or it does not. [Note: I edited the first sentence slightly (10-5-21) from, “Sequim irrigation districts are privately owned associations of property owners . . .” The difference is negligible, but someone was quite angry because he thought I was misrepresenting irrigation districts by claiming districts are privately owned. Grammatically, “privately owned” is the adjective modifying “associations,” not districts, but he didn’t understand the grammar. Let’s hope this clarification helps him sleep better and not cause anyone else to have a heart attack.]

Sequim Irrigation Map

Sequim Irrigation Districts

You can see on this map the boundaries of the Sequim irrigation districts as well as the location of the open ditches and the buried pipe. The question comes up often, “How do I confirm that I have the right to use the irrigation water in my district?” The answer is found by calling the district secretary and asking her to look up the records on your property. The secretary will have a file showing that your property does or does not have the right to use the Sequim irrigation water.

If the property you want to buy is already connected to a Sequim irrigation district and has been using the water, that’s a pretty big clue that your property has the rights, and if the prior owner is current on the dues to the district (now paid through the Clallam County Tax Assessor’s office and shown on the public website), you know you have the water rights.

Some buyers also ask for written proof in the form of an irrigation easement, but such written easements were not created over a century ago when the irrigation ditches were engineered throughout the valley. Title reports on a property do not include mention of irrigation water rights, because there are not written documents recorded in the Auditor’s office to attach to the title report. Title insurance does not address nor insure water rights.

Here’s an updated and better more detailed Sequim Irrigation District Map:

Sequim Irrigation Districts

And here’s the direct link to this site: Sequim Irrigation District Map. After opening the link, scroll down to page 3 for this map.

This does not mean you don’t have a legal easement. Sequim irrigation ditches that have been in place for a century are legal rights owned by the district, and property owners who have been legally using the water have a legal right to continue as long as they keep their dues current. Water rights can be given up if they are not used and not paid for after a certain number of years.

So here are the steps. First, talk to the Sequim irrigation district secretary to find out if this property has current water rights. Second check the Clallam County Assessor’s Site to see if the dues are current. You’ll see if the district dues are paid, like this:

Sequim Irrigation

And third, you can talk to the prior property owner and the neighbors to learn how they have been using the water and what rights their properties have. If you are looking for the contact information for a Sequim irrigation district, you’re not likely to find it easily. Districts do not typically keep a nice website or any Internet presence. Some do, most do not. There’s no website at the county or state level that keeps all this contact information, primarily because the secretary and her phone number changes periodically. The best thing to do is get it from the owner of the property you want to buy, or do a Google search and see if you can get lucky and find a phone number. Districts are informal organizations manned by retired volunteers who answer the phone if they are home.

Water rights are one of the most complicated areas of the law. There are multi-volume treatises written just on water rights, and a massive body of Irrigation RightsFederal, State, and local laws, not to mention all the administrative regulations, court decisions and admin rulings on water issues. If you would like to learn more about water rights, here you can read the Washington State law on Irrigation Systems, and also I’m including an excellent pamphlet put together in the State of Washington that should be helpful. Just click on this image and you can download the pdf.

Now you know a little more about Sequim irrigation districts. Of course, you can Google an irrigation district to track down their website or phone number. Each district has a file on all properties within their district.

Possibly Related Posts:

  • How do I Research Bluff Stability Online?
  • Private Well Testing
  • Sequim Community Water Systems
  • Sequim Water Management Rule
  • California Coastal Commission v. Washington Shoreline Management

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Tagged under: Dungeness Water Management Rule, Sequim Irrigation

About Chuck Marunde

After practicing real estate law for 20 years in Washington, Chuck opened iRealty Virtual Brokers covering the Sequim and the beautiful Olympic Peninsula. Chuck is the author of numerous magazine and Internet articles with a primary focus on real estate. He is also the author of over a dozen books, mostly about Sequim real estate. Chuck is a photographer, videographer, and Registered FAA Drone Pilot. Chuck has combined his love for real estate and technology to create a growing Internet presence in his market, and enjoys building his websites and blogs, including SequimBlog.com and Sequim4Sale.com and LuxuryWaterViewHomes.com. Chuck has degrees in Economics, Law, and Education.

3 Comments to “ Sequim Irrigation Districts: How to Find Out if a Property Has Irrigation Rights”

  1. Judy says :Reply
    August 21, 2019 at 5:31 pm

    I have an irrigation ditch and have had a few strikes and an trying to recover and I wondered if there is a ditch maintenance company since I can’t do it myself.

    Answer: Each irrigation district has their own ditch walker who is responsible for maintenance. If you have to hire a company to help, you can hire Brother’s Plumbing or Integrity Pumps.

  2. Patti J Mower says :Reply
    April 28, 2021 at 5:45 pm

    Is the Irrigation Water okay to use for Private Marijuana farming in a home, on a larger than one room basis? One or two or three hoses connected to a supplying water source? Not for outside use as we can see. This is a question directed for a neighborhood situation. Not on our property, next to it.

  3. Chuck Marunde says :Reply
    May 23, 2021 at 8:30 am

    The use of irrigation water is governed by the irrigation district rules as well as state and county regulations regarding the use and navigation of ditches, streams, ponds, and drainage. To my knowledge there isn’t any prohibition on what your talking about, but there are layers of laws and regulations and entire bodies of law that have their own court precedents, too, so it’s a complicated answer, but at first blush, I am not aware of any prohitibition.

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Chuck E. Marunde, J.D.

Sequim Buyer's Agent
(Atty Ret.)
Founder and Broker of
Sequim & Port Angeles Real Estate dba iRealty Virtual Brokers
125 Olympic Ranch Ln,
Sequim, WA 98382
(360) 775-5424
ChuckMarunde@gmail.com

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It's rare, but once in awhile life provides the perfect collaborator for an important endeavor such as buying your new home. For me that person was Chuck Marunde. His two decade background as a Real Estate Attorney, his prolific career as an author of articles and books on Real Estate and his forthright and moral character made choosing Chuck a no-brainer. Chuck is dedicated, thorough, incredible at the negotiating table, knowledgeable about all local laws & regs but, most importantly, Chuck loves what he does. And what he does is find his client the perfect property. Chuck isn't about making the sale, he's about making the sale that is OPTIMUM for his CLIENT and this makes Chuck a rare bird indeed. I love my new home in Sequim and I am indebted to Chuck for making it happen. Kevin E.

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I’ve had the pleasure of working with Chuck over the past three years in selling my parent's estate. It was a tough time to sell during the housing recession, but Chuck always kept things on the positive side. With his real estate law background, he offers sound, practical advice. He helps you along with the process using discussions and reason, rather than opinions and speculations. If Chuck doesn’t know the answers, he will get them for you. In several instances, Chuck took the initiative to meet with county officials to get up-to-date facts about zoning and regulations. I was always impressed with his company’s tech savvy communi-cations and internet presence: weekly email updates, blogs, videos, links, Linked-in networking, etc. He is truly pioneering the future of buying & selling real estate. Brian M.

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"Andy Romano is a successful motion picture character actor with over 40 years in 'the Biz.' Mr. Romano has a home in beautiful Santa Barbara, California, but he chooses to live most of the time in Sequim, Washington on the Olympic Peninsula in the great Pacific Northwest. Why? In his own words, 'Because it's even more beautiful and surrounded by more beauty in this incredibly peaceful and quiet place. With respect to real estate agents or brokers, well my friend Chuck Marunde, owner of Sequim and Port Angeles Real Estate, is hands down the best there" Andy R.

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We do our homework for the task at hand and we look for and expect to enlist partners that do the same. It was our good fortune to select Chuck Marunde of Sequim and Port Angeles Real Estate to represent us as a buyer's broker in our search for a home in the Sequim/Port Angeles area. Chuck's site is all encompassing and super fast compared to many others, he knows the market at every conceivable level and his guidance through the process of selecting and purchasing a home is priceless - above and beyond that of anyone with whom we have ever worked. Add to all this his 20 year background in real estate law and you have discovered a superb asset in the adventure of purchasing a home. Greg and Marilyn

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