I doubt such laws have EVER seen their day in court vs an individual collecting a few gallons of water for personal use. That would seem to clearly violate constitutional rights to life and liberty.
The only case where they might have any weight would be widespread collection of water to the extent that it had a measurable impact on the community, but this would involve large quantities of water and would almost certainly involve business interests rather than personal ones.
Here's contact info for 20 water rights lawyers serving my hometown of Las Vegas, NV [1]. To be blunt, you are underestimating the complexities of water rights law.
[1]: https://attorneys.lawinfo.com/water-rights/nevada/las-vegas/
please don't be so quick to judge when the individual's circumstances may be more complex than first assumed.