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Oregon Revised Statutes

Or. Rev. Stat. § 536.310 (2026)

Purposes and policies to be considered in formulating state water resources program

✓ current as of May 2026
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      536.310 Purposes and policies to be considered in formulating state water resources program. In formulating the water resources program under ORS 536.300 (2), the Water Resources Commission shall take into consideration the purposes and declarations enumerated in ORS 536.220 and also the following additional declarations of policy:

      (1) Existing rights, established duties of water, and relative priorities concerning the use of the waters of this state and the laws governing the same are to be protected and preserved subject to the principle that all of the waters within this state belong to the public for use by the people for beneficial purposes without waste;

      (2) It is in the public interest that integration and coordination of uses of water and augmentation of existing supplies for all beneficial purposes be achieved for the maximum economic development thereof for the benefit of the state as a whole;

      (3) That adequate and safe supplies be preserved and protected for human consumption, while conserving maximum supplies for other beneficial uses;

      (4) Multiple-purpose impoundment structures are to be preferred over single-purpose structures; upstream impoundments are to be preferred over downstream impoundments. The fishery resource of this state is an important economic and recreational asset. In the planning and construction of impoundment structures and milldams and other artificial obstructions, due regard shall be given to means and methods for its protection;

      (5) Competitive exploitation of water resources of this state for single-purpose uses is to be discouraged when other feasible uses are in the general public interest;

      (6) In considering the benefits to be derived from drainage, consideration shall also be given to possible harmful effects upon ground water supplies and protection of wildlife;

      (7) The maintenance of minimum perennial streamflows sufficient to support aquatic life, to minimize pollution and to maintain recreation values shall be fostered and encouraged if existing rights and priorities under existing laws will permit;

      (8) Watershed development policies shall be favored, whenever possible, for the preservation of balanced multiple uses, and project construction and planning with those ends in view shall be encouraged;

      (9) Due regard shall be given in the planning and development of water recreation facilities to safeguard against pollution;

      (10) It is of paramount importance in all cooperative programs that the principle of the sovereignty of this state over all the waters within the state be protected and preserved, and such cooperation by the commission shall be designed so as to reinforce and strengthen state control;

      (11) Local development of watershed conservation, when consistent with sound engineering and economic principles, is to be promoted and encouraged;

      (12) When proposed uses of water are in mutually exclusive conflict or when available supplies of water are insufficient for all who desire to use them, preference shall be given to human consumption purposes over all other uses and for livestock consumption, over any other use, and thereafter other beneficial purposes in such order as may be in the public interest consistent with the principles of chapter 707, Oregon Laws 1955, under the existing circumstances; and

      (13) Notwithstanding any other provision of this section, when available supplies of water are insufficient in the South Umpqua River to provide for both the needs of human consumption pursuant to a municipal water right and the maintenance of previously established minimum streamflows, preference shall be given to the municipal needs if the municipality adopts and enforces an ordinance restricting use of the water so obtained to direct human consumption uses. [1955 c.707 §10(3); 1979 c.170 §1; 1987 c.546 §1]

 

      Note: The Legislative Counsel has not, pursuant to 173.160, undertaken to substitute specific ORS references for the words “chapter 707, Oregon Laws 1955,” in 536.310 and 536.330. Chapter 707, Oregon Laws 1955, enacted into law and amended the ORS sections which may be found by referring to the 1955 Comparative Section Table located in Volume 22 of Oregon Revised Statutes.

Notes of Decisions
Cited in 9 cases (1 in the last 5 years), 1981–2021 · leading case: Diack v. City of Portland, 759 P.2d 1070 (Or. 1988).
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Diack v. City of Portland, 759 P.2d 1070 (Or. 1988). · cites it 10× “835(1) provided: “Subject to subsection (12) of ORS 536.310, it is declared that the highest and best uses of the waters within scenic waterways are recreation, fish and wildlife uses.”
Save Our Rural Oregon v. Energy Facility Siting Council, 121 P.3d 1141 (Or. 2005). “340 or given a preference under ORS 536.310, (2) water is available, (3) the proposed use will not injure other water rights, and (4) the use complies with rules of the Water Resources Commission.”
Waterwatch of Oregon, Inc. v. Water Resources Comm'n, 88 P.3d 327 (Or. Ct. App. 2004). “340 or given a preference under ORS 536.310(12), if water is available, if the proposed use will not injure other water rights and if the proposed use complies with rules of the Water Resources Commission.”
Steamboaters v. Winchester Water Control Dist., 688 P.2d 92 (Or. Ct. App. 1984). “” Paragraph (g) incorporates ORS 536.310, which sets forth 12 additional criteria that WPRB must consider when determining whether a proposed use is acceptable.”
Diack v. City of Portland, 736 P.2d 198 (Or. Ct. App. 1987). · cites it 4× “No water diversion facility shall be constructed or used except by right previously established or as permitted by the Water Resources Commission, upon a finding that such diversion is necessary to uses designated in ORS 536.310(12), and in a manner consistent with the policies…”
Hannigan v. Hinton, 97 P.3d 1256 (Or. Ct. App. 2004). “5 One of the purposes of the state’s water resources program, as declared in ORS 536.310(1), is as follows: “Existing rights, established duties of water, and relative priorities concerning the use of the waters of this state and the laws governing the same are to be protected…”
Hennings v. Water Resources Dep't, 622 P.2d 333 (Or. Ct. App. 1981). “610(1) is solely that the water was put to "beneficial use” regardless of the provisions of the water right. We find, therefore, that the director applied the appropriate statutory test and there was substantial evidence to support his holding that water appropriated under the…”
Water Resources Dept. v. City of Klamath Falls, 682 P.2d 779 (Or. Ct. App. 1984). “220 is clearly to promote an integrated and coordinated state program of water resource development, ORS 536.310 mandates that the board consider the following additional policy: “(11) Local development of watershed conservation, when consistent with sound engineering and…”
WaterWatch of Oregon v. Water Resources Dept., 501 P.3d 507 (Or. 2021). “See also ORS 536.310 (describing several factors considered in formulating a state water resources program).”
— Or. Rev. Stat. § 536.310(1) — 2 cases
Hannigan v. Hinton, 97 P.3d 1256 (Or. Ct. App. 2004). “5 One of the purposes of the state’s water resources program, as declared in ORS 536.310(1), is as follows: “Existing rights, established duties of water, and relative priorities concerning the use of the waters of this state and the laws governing the same are to be protected…”
Hennings v. Water Resources Dep't, 622 P.2d 333 (Or. Ct. App. 1981). “610(1) is solely that the water was put to "beneficial use” regardless of the provisions of the water right. We find, therefore, that the director applied the appropriate statutory test and there was substantial evidence to support his holding that water appropriated under the…”
— Or. Rev. Stat. § 536.310(12) — 3 cases
Diack v. City of Portland, 759 P.2d 1070 (Or. 1988). “835(1) provided: “Subject to subsection (12) of ORS 536.310, it is declared that the highest and best uses of the waters within scenic waterways are recreation, fish and wildlife uses.”
Waterwatch of Oregon, Inc. v. Water Resources Comm'n, 88 P.3d 327 (Or. Ct. App. 2004). “340 or given a preference under ORS 536.310(12), if water is available, if the proposed use will not injure other water rights and if the proposed use complies with rules of the Water Resources Commission.”
Diack v. City of Portland, 736 P.2d 198 (Or. Ct. App. 1987). “No water diversion facility shall be constructed or used except by right previously established or as permitted by the Water Resources Commission, upon a finding that such diversion is necessary to uses designated in ORS 536.310(12), and in a manner consistent with the policies…”
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