G.R. No. L-26403 October 20, 1970
CECILIA DEL VALLE-TIONGSON, ET AL., plaintiffs-appellees, vs. MELECIO FERNANDEZ, defendant-appellant, ENRIQUE MATIBAG, ET AL., intervenors-appellants.

FACTS

Plaintiffs-appellees, the Del Valle family, own irrigated riceland in Candelaria, Quezon, which they claim to have irrigated since Spanish times using water from Noynoyin Creek. They allege acquisition of a prescriptive, exclusive right to all water from Noynoyin Creek passing over the Maralit dam. In 1940, they constructed a concrete dam (Del Valle dam) across the Aguirra Creek at its confluence with Noynoyin Creek, and increased its height in 1952, which severely reduced or stopped water flow into the Aguirra Creek. Defendant-appellant Melecio Fernandez and intervenors-appellants (the Cabay irrigators) own ricelands irrigated by the Aguirra Creek. They hold a 1918 administrative concession (Exhibit “B”) granting them water appropriation rights from the Taguan River. They contend that Noynoyin Creek is part of the Taguan River system, and thus plaintiffs cannot deprive them of its water. In 1955, Fernandez dug a ditch connecting Noynoyin and Aguirra Creeks to draw water, which was later closed under a temporary 50-50 water sharing agreement. The lower court ruled in favor of plaintiffs, declaring their prescriptive right, enjoining Fernandez from diverting water, and allowing plaintiffs to maintain their dam. Defendant and intervenors appealed.

ISSUE

The primary issue is whether plaintiffs-appellees have acquired a prescriptive right to the exclusive use of all water from Noynoyin Creek, to the exclusion of defendant and intervenors who are prior appropriators of Taguan River waters.

RULING

The Supreme Court reversed the lower court’s decision. It held that plaintiffs-appellees did not acquire a prescriptive right to the exclusive use of Noynoyin Creek waters. The Court found that Noynoyin Creek is a natural waterway and a branch of the Taguan River, not an independent creek. The 1918 administrative concession granted prior appropriation rights over Taguan River waters to the defendant and intervenors, which includes the Noynoyin branch. The plaintiffs’ use of the water was not exclusive or adverse but was permissive and by tolerance, as they shared the water with the Cabay irrigators through an old canal system. The Del Valle dam constituted an unauthorized obstruction that deprived prior appropriators of their water rights, creating a public nuisance. The Court ordered plaintiffs-appellees to demolish the dam at their expense within 90 days. It also awarded moral damages of P2,000 each to defendant-appellant and every intervenor-appellant, and P5,000 in attorney’s fees, payable jointly and severally by plaintiffs-appellees.