Legal Question in Real Estate Law in Texas
Can one owner of three owners of a pond drain the water?
My neighbor and I live on the edge of a stock pond, and the rest of the pond belongs to another land owner who owns most of the pond. he has sold the land to a developer, who is going to drain the pond. Can he drain the pond? and can he take away our water rights? We have lived on this pond for 23 years.
2 Answers from Attorneys
Re: Can one owner of three owners of a pond drain the water?
The question will probably turn on who owns the water source which supplies the pond. It appears from your post that the ground under the pond belongs to several different people, and it is not clear from your post whether or not the new owner controls the surface water. That may now be in common ownership by prescriptive use or adverse possession even though the underlying ground is in individual ownership.
The services of a real estate lawyer will probably be required to research the various titles to the affected lands and whether or not the surface waters and the supply waters have ever been identified for ownership, adjudicated or claimed.
If there are any endangered or threatened species living in the are of the pond the EPA could be interested as draining the pond could affect them.
Re: Can one owner of three owners of a pond drain the water?
The question will probably turn on who owns the water source which supplies the pond. It appears from your post that the ground under the pond belongs to several different people, and it is not clear from your post whether or not the new owner controls the surface water. That may now be in common ownership by prescriptive use or adverse possession even though the underlying ground is in individual ownership.
The services of a real estate lawyer will probably be required to research the various titles to the affected lands and whether or not the surface waters and the supply waters have ever been identified for ownership, adjudicated or claimed.
If there are any endangered or threatened species living in the area of the pond the EPA could be interested as draining the pond could affect them.
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