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<br /> <br />W ATE R RIGHTS <br /> <br />1. Doctrine <br /> <br />As in many of the humid eastern states, there are two substan- <br />tially separate bodies of the common law relating to water rights <br />in Iowa -- the law pertaining to water flowing in a defined channel <br />(natural watercourses) and the law of percolating ground water, <br />Disputes and problems concerning surface waters (as defined by <br />the court) generally arise between and affect only adjoining land- <br />owners, Generally, the riparian owner along a stream has a <br />right to "reasonable use" of the water of a surface stream which <br />flows past or across his land and to underground water in a <br />defined channel. The landowner may use percolating water as <br />he wishes if his use does not constitute waste which injures <br />another in his use for beneficial purposes, <br /> <br />As stated in a preceding section, the Iowa water rights law <br />purports to make substantially all uses of water in the state <br />subject to administrative regulation whether the source be <br />surface or underground, <br /> <br />2, Natural Watercourses <br /> <br />In Willis v, City of Perry, 92 Iowa 297, 60 N, W, 727 (1894), <br />the Iowa Court enunciated the broad principles of Iowa water rights <br />under the common law, A riparian owner (one whose land <br />abuts the stream) may use as much of the water in a natural <br />watercourse as is needed for "natural" uses (use for domestic <br />purposes, including household uses, such as cleansing and wash- <br />ing, and supplying an ordinary number of horses or stock with <br />water) even to using the entire flow, All other uses of water are <br />"artificial" and are always subordinate to natural uses, Water <br />may be used for "artificial" purposes provided such use does <br />not unreasonably affect the rights of other riparian proprietors, <br />Use of water for irrigation and the distribution and sale of water <br />by a municipality are "artificial" uses under Iowa decisions, <br />In determining whether a particular use is reasonable, the Iowa <br />Court had enumerated several criteria: what the use is for; its <br />extent, duration, necessity, and its application; the nature and <br />size of the stream, and the several uses to which it is put; the <br />extent of the injury to one proprietor, and of benefit to the <br /> <br />18 <br />