Roseburg and City of Weed Settle Water Rights Conflict

Roseburg Forest Products is pleased to announce that the company reached a settlement with the City of Weed, Calif., confirming that Roseburg owns the exclusive right to divert and use 4.07 cfs of Beaughan Springs water. As part of the settlement, the City of Weed acknowledged that it has no ownership interest in that water and agreed to end all claims to the water rights.

A judge entered a stipulated judgment on Aug. 9, 2019, in Siskiyou County Superior Court, approving the settlement terms.

“We are pleased that the two parties reached agreement concerning ownership of the Beaughan Springs water rights,” Roseburg Senior Vice President and General Council Stuart Gray said. “This litigation was never about monetary compensation. Our intent all along was simply to have the court uphold our clearly established ownership rights and eliminate challenges to such.”

The City signed a lease with Roseburg in 2016 giving the City access to 1.5 cfs of Beaughan Springs water for the next 10 to 15 years. That lease remains intact. The City is exploring alternative sources for the small portion of the community’s water that the lease with Roseburg represents.

Roseburg acquired the water rights in 1983 when it purchased the Weed veneer plant and surrounding land from International Paper.

Source: Roseburg Forest Products Co.