McComb v. Farmers Reservoir & Irrigation Co.

Under the doctrine of prior appropriation and application to beneficial use of water for irrigation, three types of property arise. The first is the property right in the flow or use of water, known as the usufructuary, or water right, which is the right to divert water from a natural stream by artificial means and apply it to beneficial use. It is real property and is appurtenant to the land upon which the water is applied to beneficial use. The second is the property right in the physical works by which the water is diverted, stored, and delivered to the land on which it is beneficially…