Imagine if you had a stream on your property that was fairly pristine (as I do) and all of a sudden it was full of mud and silt due to upstream use from this type of activity...
Eastern United States water rights and impacts down stream is based on Old English law from whence we came. - Riparian Rights. I researched this in considerable depth before I bought my land.
General principle
Under the riparian principle, all landowners whose property is adjoining to a body of water have the right to make reasonable use of it. If there is not enough water to satisfy all users, allotments are generally fixed in proportion to frontage on the water source. These rights cannot be sold or transferred other than with the adjoining land, and water cannot be transferred out of the watershed.
Riparian rights include such things as the right to access for swimming, boating and fishing; the right to wharf out to a point of navigability; the right to erect structures such as docks, piers, and boat lifts; the right to use the water for domestic purposes; the right to accretions caused by water level fluctuations. Riparian rights also depend upon "reasonable use" as it relates to other riparian owners to ensure that the rights of one riparian owner are weighed fairly and equitably with the rights of adjacent riparian owners.[1]
While one does own their own land (in the great scheme of things, we are just the temporary current generation holder), the impacts of land use lasts and lasts... hence what constitutes reasonable use is defined in part what impact the use has on others and for long term.
I try to manage my woodlands for long term use, in return it takes care of me in providing a good winter time energy supply, privacy and respect from the adjoining landowners...
You never know when you may need to cash in that respect from an adjoining landowner who could have major impact on you. My neighbor whose land has been in their family since the 1900s did a selective timber cut a couple of years ago that could have really impacted the view from my land.. He values that land dearly and hunted for a long time to find a timber cutter who would do it his way and leave the land in good condition afterwards..
A lot of them salivated over 50+ year old straight as an arrow pine trees that cover 120 acres.. and wanted to cut with no restrictions..
Out of respect for the impact on me, he did not cut standing timber on my side of the stream (part of which he owns, other lengths along the stream I own); had the spread the slash over the entire land, left enough timber to retain the residential development value which in this area would go for $10,000/acre in 10 acre lot sizes..
Some day he will probably cash in and reap the benefit of his wisdom in forest land management which will be fine with me... and the kind of neighbor I respect.. <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/kewl.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/patriot.gif" alt="" /> and I think what constitutes being a good citizen, seems to be getting in short supply these days. <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/rolleyes.gif" alt="" />
