A new bill has been introduced in New York State that, if passed, will clarify paddlers’ right to paddle New York’s rivers and streams. The bill, A.10048, was introduced by Assemblyman Alexander B Grannis (D-Manhattan), and will amend the Environmental Conservation Law with a new "Title 33: Public Right of Passage on Navigable Waterways".
The bill was actually first drafted over 15 years ago, and has been on hold awaiting the outcome of a court case. The case is now resolved and the bill is ripe to move forward – all it needs is revitalized public support. American Whitewater joined a dozen other environmental groups earlier this week in formally supporting this bill in a letter to Assemblyman Grannis. Paddlers that live in New York, or that paddle in New York are encouraged to follow our example and send a letter or make a phone call to your representative and/or Assemblyman Grannis in support of Bill A.10048.
The importance of formalizing the public’s right to navigate rivers can not be overestimated. This is a rare opportunity to do just that and we hope that you will help us make it a reality.
To read the bill: http://assembly.state.ny.us/leg/?bn=A10048
To contact your representative: http://assembly.state.ny.us/mem/
The letter sent by American Whitewater and our partner organizations is below:
Adirondack Council · Adirondack Mountain Club · American Canoe Association · American Rivers, Mid-Atlantic Region · American Whitewater ·The Catskill Center for Conservation and Development · EPL/Environmental Advocates · New York State Conservation Council · New York State League of Conservation Voters · New York Rivers United Parks and Trails New York · Residents’ Committee to Protect the Adirondacks Scenic Hudson · Sierra Club – Atlantic Chapter
June 14, 2006
Hon. Alexander B. Grannis
Member, NYS Assembly
712 Legislative Office Building
Albany, NY 12248
Re: In support of A. 10048, Public Navigation Rights
Dear Assemblyman Grannis:
We, the undersigned, are writing in support of A. 10048, titled “Public Passage in Navigable Waterways,” whose primary purpose is codification in a single State statute of the longstanding existing common law public right of navigation. Enactment of A. 10048 will make the law concerning this right much more accessible, understandable and transparent. At present the law concerning this public right is scattered in numerous case law decisions and, without passage of this bill, the right will continue to be difficult to find and difficult to interpret, causing continued confusion and conflict between riparian landowners and waterway users.
We recognize that you were a prime sponsor of this legislation when the bill was active in the 1989 – 1991 period, when it passed the Assembly in 1990, and we appreciate the key role that you have played in re-introducing it at this time. The continuity that you have provided, after action on the earlier legislation was placed on hold in June 1991 at the beginning of the 9-year court case concerning the South Branch of the Moose River, has been critical in moving ahead again towards enactment.
The successful conclusion of the Moose River case in the Court of Appeals, important as it is, did not lessen the need for this legislation.
The same problems of inaccessibility to the law and difficulty in interpreting numerous applicable cases still exists. Also, this is a statewide issue, not limited to the Adirondacks despite the focus there. The fact that conservation easements have been acquired by the State on thousands of acres of timber lands in the Adirondacks providing much new access on navigable rivers in that region, doesn’t mean that a comprehensive statewide solution isn’t needed to the problems already described.
A. 10048 is written in plain English; it is easy to understand. The bill assures riparian landowners that the public has no right to be on private property other than to make necessary portages incidental to the public right of navigation and then only to the minimum extent required to accomplish those purposes. It also authorizes riparian landowners to establish portage routes on their land along the shores of navigable waterways. It references existing provisions of the General Obligations Law, reassuring landowners that they have no extra responsibility or duty of care, beyond normal, to keep their premises safe for those who are exercising the public right of navigation.
It has been nearly four decades since Paul Jamieson, the dean of Adirondack canoeing, began to call attention to the longstanding existence of these public rights. Later he advocated strongly for the legislation, now numbered A. 10048. It has been 16 years since this legislation was first introduced in 1989. After all of this time and considering the positive findings of the Court of Appeals in the Moose River case, settling the key issue that caused the hiatus in the legislation in those earlier times, it is more than time for this bill to be enacted. It is time for the State of New York to definitively describe, in a single statue and in plain English, and give visibility to this public right, a right that has had a shadowy existence in the labyrinth of the common law for 228 years. Thank you for all that you are doing to ensure passage of this legislation.
Sincerely,
Brian Houseal, Executive Director
Adirondack Council
Neil Woodworth, Executive Director
Adirondack Mountain Club
Pamela S. Dillon, Executive Director
American Canoe Association
Stephanie D. Lindloff, Associate Director, Dam Programs
American Rivers, Mid-Atlantic Region
Mark Singleton, Executive Director
American Whitewater
Tom Alworth, Executive Director
The Catskill Center for Conservation and Development
Robert J. Moore, Executive Director
EPL/Environmental Advocates
Wally John, Legislative Vice-President
New York State Conservation Council
Marcia Bystryn, Executive Director
New York State League of Conservation Voters
Bruce Carpenter, Executive Director
New York Rivers United
Robin Dropkin, Executive Director
Parks and Trails New York
Peter Bauer, Executive Director
Residents’ Committee to Protect the Adirondacks
Ned Sullivan, Executive Director
Scenic Hudson
Roger T. Gray and John Nemjo, Co-chairs, Adirondack Committee
Sierra Club – Atlantic Chapter