Zanker

The Town of La Grange (the town) appeals from a judgment partially against it in litigation concerning the scope of the town’s right to receive treated water for domestic use and other needs of the town. Respondents Turlock Irrigation District and Modesto Irrigation District (together, the districts) own water rights subject to the town’s claim of water rights, and the districts own the delivery and treatment infrastructure through which the town’s water is supplied. On the primary issues raised in this appeal, the trial court found that the districts must continue to provide water to the town, but the reasonable cost of treating the water to make it suitable for domestic use may be passed through to the consumer. We affirm the judgment.

Facts and Procedural History

Starting in 1871, the La Grange Ditch and Hydraulic Mining Company provided water for the town through an artificial channel, the La Grange ditch, which it had constructed primarily to deliver water to its dredge. The La Grange ditch began at Indian Bar on the Tuolumne River, several miles upstream from the town. While the Tuolumne River passed through the town, the town apparently never obtained water from…