WESTERN WATER NEWS
California Indian Tribe Reclaims Tule River Land29
Idaho Water Users Tracking Latest Draft WOTUS Rule Through Public Comment30
REGULATORY DEVELOPMENTS
U.S. EPA and the Army Corps of Engineers Announce Proposed Rule for Defining “Waters of The United States” for Clean Water Act’s “Reach”32
EPA Grants Texas Primacy over Class VI Underground Injection Control Program, Bolstering Federalist Approach to the Protection of Underground Water Resources34
U.S. Bureau of Reclamation Adopts Updated Long-Term Operations Plan for the Central Valley Project and State Water Project35
Colorado Water Conservation Board Approves Use of Shoshone Rights as Part of Instream Flow Program37
Washington Department of Ecology Proposes New Interpretive Policies on Water Rights Changes and Consumptive Use39
PENALTIES & SANCTIONS
Recent Investigations, Settlements, Penalties, and Sanctions41
JUDICIAL DEVELOPMENTS
Federal:
Ninth Circuit Affirms Clean Water Act Citizen Suits Must Be Forward-Looking—Environmental Group’s Claims Mooted Based on Discharger’s Subsequent Receipt of NPDES Permit44
Coastal Environmental Rights Foundation v. Naples Restaurant Group, LLC, Unpub., Case No. 23-55469 (9th Cir. Nov. 5, 2025).
State:
California Court of Appeal Addresses the Tulare Lake Subbasin in Two Separate Decisions46
Kings County Farm Bureau v. State Water Resources Control Board, ___Cal.App.5th___, Case No. F088720 (5th Dist. Oct. 29, 2025); State Water Resources Control Board v. The Superior Court of Kings County, ___Cal.App.5th___, Case No. F088909 (5th Dist. Nov. 24, 2025).
California Court of Appeal Finds the Delta Reform Act Does Not Require DWR to Submit a Certification of Consistency before Engaging in Preconstruction Geotechnical Work48
Tulare Lake Basin Water Storage District v. Department of Water Resources, 115 Cal.App.5th 342 (2025).
