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Permits and budget · Find out what is allowed · legal-3

Confirm water rights and abstraction rules

Owning land does not always mean you may take the water on or under it. Before you rely on a well, spring, stream or even rainwater, find out what the law allows and which permits you need.

How

  1. Identify the water authority for the parcel: a state water resources department in the US, the Environment Agency in England (with separate bodies for Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland), or the state water agency elsewhere.
  2. US example (Oregon): water is a public resource and most uses need a state permit under the prior appropriation system (oldest right gets water first in a shortage). Domestic groundwater use up to 15,000 gallons per day is exempt from a permit, but the well must meet state construction standards, and roof rainwater collection is exempt.
  3. England example: taking more than 20 cubic metres (20,000 litres) a day from a surface or underground source usually needs an abstraction licence from the Environment Agency.
  4. Other US states and other countries use different systems (for example riparian rights tied to land beside a water body), and some restrict rainwater collection. Example (US, Colorado): a household may collect roof rainwater without a permit in up to two barrels totalling 110 gallons, for outdoor use on the same property only; more needs a permit tied to certain well permits. Ask your authority directly.
  5. Ask whether an existing well or spring on the parcel has a registered right or licence, and whether it transfers with the land.
  6. Ask what permits are needed to drill a new well or borehole and whether the driller must be licensed.
  7. Compare the legal limit with your estimated household and garden demand from the water module.

Do these first

Sources

  1. Water abstraction licence (England and Wales). GOV.UK, accessed 2026-11
  2. Abstract water (England): apply for this licence. GOV.UK, accessed 2026-11
  3. Water rights in Oregon (Aquabook). Oregon Water Resources Department, accessed 2026-11
  4. Water law 101, part 2: other water rights. University of Nebraska-Lincoln, CropWatch, accessed 2026-11
  5. Rainwater, Storm Water and Graywater. Colorado Division of Water Resources, accessed 2026-11

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