Summary
This bill codifies the common law right of public access to navigable waterways in the state, including situations where the navigable waters flow over private lands.  This bill also provides for portaging, scouting and poling on private land only to the extent necessary to by-pass obstructions in a waterway.  The bill does not allow the public to cross private land for access to, or egress from, a navigable waterway.  The bill also provides that the DEC may, in the furtherance of public safety and/or protection of natural resources, limit access to certain waterways.  Also, the bill makes clear that landowners generally cannot be held liable for damages should a member of the public be injured while exercising their right of passage

Explanation
For years there has been confusion regarding the public’s right to use the state’s waterways, and the rights of riparian landowners to restrict access to such waterways.  While in the past much of the focus regarding the use of the state’s navigable waters concerned commercial traffic, today the focus is increasingly on recreational uses.

Following a 1998 Court of Appeals decision regarding the South Branch of the Moose River, recreational navigation is now looked upon as a continuation of the traditional right of navigation that was formerly applicable to commercial navigation.  This bill will remove much of the ambiguity that has been associated with determining which of the state’s waterways are available for public recreational use as well as continued commercial use.  The end result will be an increased use of the state’s waterways for recreation, an increased appreciation of the state’s environment by those who enjoy the state’s waters and increased economic activity in communities that play host to recreational boaters.

Environmental Advocates of New York supports this bill.