Quick Summary: The Law of the Ditch

• The Dominant Estate: If a historic irrigation ditch crosses your land, the ditch owner holds an easement. They have the legal right to access your property, often with heavy machinery, to operate and maintain the waterway.
• The Maintenance Burden: If you do not own the water rights, you are not responsible for cleaning the ditch, but you are legally prohibited from blocking, altering, or damaging it.
• Shared Lateral Agreements: If you do own water rights on a shared lateral ditch, you are typically required by a ditch company or a neighborhood agreement to share the physical labor or the financial cost of annual spring maintenance.
• The Relocation Rule: You cannot simply pipe, move, or build a bridge over an irrigation ditch for your own convenience without written permission from the ditch owner or a formal court order.

1. Understanding the Ditch Easement

In real estate terms, the land a ditch crosses is called the "servient estate," and the ditch itself is the "dominant estate."

• Unwritten Rights: Because Colorado was built on agriculture, many ditch rights were established over a century ago. A ditch owner does not necessarily need a written, recorded deed to prove they have an easement. If the ditch has been there historically, their right of access is legally presumed.
• The Right of Way: The easement is not just the water channel itself. It includes the ditch banks and a reasonable amount of land on either side to allow for equipment access. In flat areas, this might be 20 feet. In difficult terrain, the easement could be significantly wider.
• Maintenance Access: The ditch company has the right to do whatever is reasonably necessary to maintain the flow of water. This includes driving trucks along the banks, operating heavy draglines to remove silt, cutting down trees that block the path, and burning weeds in the ditch bed.

2. When You Do Not Own the Water

If a lateral ditch crosses your horse pasture but you do not hold any shares in the ditch company, your role is strictly hands-off.

• No Maintenance Required: You are not financially or physically responsible for cleaning the ditch or repairing the headgates. The ditch company or the downstream water users carry that burden.
• The "Do Not Touch" Rule: You cannot take water out of the ditch for your horses. You cannot plant trees on the ditch bank. You cannot let your livestock trample the earthen walls and cause a blowout.
• Granting Access: You cannot lock the ditch rider out of your property. If you put a padlock on your perimeter gate, you must provide a key or the combination to the ditch company so they can perform their daily inspections.

3. When You Do Share the Water

If you purchased a property with deeded agricultural water rights, you are now an active participant in the local water delivery system.

• The Ditch Company Fees: Most major canals are managed by a mutual ditch company. As a shareholder, you will pay annual assessment fees. These fees pay for the professional ditch rider who manages the main headgates and hires the heavy equipment crews for major repairs.
• Shared Laterals: The main canal delivers water to a smaller lateral ditch that might serve you and three of your neighbors. The ditch company is usually not responsible for the laterals. You and your neighbors are.
• Spring Cleaning: Every spring, before the water is turned on, the users of a shared lateral must work together to clear the winter debris, burn the weeds, and shovel out the silt. If you share a ditch, you must share the labor or the cost of hiring a contractor to do it.

4. The Danger of Altering a Ditch

Many new landowners want to move a ditch to build a riding arena, or they want to pipe it underground so their horses do not trip in it.

• The Accommodation Doctrine: Under Colorado law, you cannot unilaterally alter a ditch just because it is on your land.
• Seeking Permission: You must approach the ditch company or the downstream users with your engineering plans. If they agree that your proposed pipe or relocation will not impede their water flow or increase their future maintenance costs, they might grant you a crossing agreement.
• The Court Option: If the ditch owner refuses, your only recourse is to seek a declaratory judgment from a water court, proving that your alterations are reasonable and will not damage the ditch owner's vested rights. Proceeding without permission will result in a court order forcing you to tear up your improvements and restore the ditch at your own expense.

We Help You Navigate Ditch Laws

We do not just look at the grass, we look at how it gets watered.

When Mark Eibner and Belinda Seville help you evaluate a Colorado horse property, we pull the records to identify the specific ditch companies operating on the land. We help you understand the extent of the easements, your maintenance obligations, and whether the existing water rights are sufficient to support your equestrian goals.

Contact Us Today to find a property with clear, manageable water infrastructure.

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Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) About Ditch Rights