§451d Disposal of Improvements; Water Rights; Revertibil­ity of Relinquished Land

Summary

After the Secretary approves an exchange, the person who gave up the land has 90 days after getting notice to remove or sell any buildings or other improvements they put on that land. Their buyer or transferee may also remove those improvements, but they must respect any other people’s legal rights or interests. When the exchange is completed, any federal reclamation water right tied to the original land ends, and that water supply becomes available to be reassigned under the federal reclamation laws. Any land given to the United States becomes public domain and the Secretary can manage or dispose of it under those same reclamation laws.