16 U.S.C. § 1286: Definitions

Summary

Defines three key terms used in the chapter. River is any flowing body of water, estuary, or part of one, including streams, creeks, runs, kills, rills, and small lakes. Free-flowing describes a river or section that flows in its natural state without dams, diversions, straightening, rip‑rap, or other changes; small existing dams or diversion works do not automatically rule out a river from being considered for protection, and this does not allow new such structures inside protected rivers. Scenic easement is the right to control land use (including the air above it) inside a river’s authorized boundaries to protect its natural character, without disturbing regular uses the owner had before; buying the land but reserving those uses counts as a scenic easement for this chapter but is not treated as full ownership under section 1277(b).

Title 16, §1286

Conservation, Source: USLM XML via OLRC

As used in this chapter, the term—

(a)“River” means a flowing body of water or estuary or a section, portion, or tributary thereof, including rivers, streams, creeks, runs, kills, rills, and small lakes.

(b)“Free-flowing”, as applied to any river or section of a river, means existing or flowing in natural condition without impoundment, diversion, straightening, rip-rapping, or other modification of the waterway. The existence, however, of low dams, diversion works, and other minor structures at the time any river is proposed for inclusion in the national wild and scenic rivers system shall not automatically bar its consideration for such inclusion: Provided, That this shall not be construed to authorize, intend, or encourage future construction of such structures within components of the national wild and scenic rivers system.

(c)“Scenic easement” means the right to control the use of land (including the air space above such land) within the authorized boundaries of a component of the wild and scenic rivers system, for the purpose of protecting the natural qualities of a designated wild, scenic or recreational river area, but such control shall not affect, without the owner’s consent, any regular use exercised prior to the acquisition of the easement. For any designated wild and scenic river, the appropriate Secretary shall treat the acquisition of fee title with the reservation of regular existing uses to the owner as a scenic easement for purposes of this chapter. Such an acquisition shall not constitute fee title ownership for purposes of section 1277(b) of this title.

Notes & Related Subsidiaries

Editorial Notes

Amendments

1986—Subsec. (c). Pub. L. 99–590 inserted provisions relating to function of appropriate Secretary with respect to acquisition of fee title. 1974—Subsec. (c). Pub. L. 93–279 substituted “within the authorized boundaries of a component of the wild and scenic rivers system, for the purpose of protecting the natural qualities of a designated wild, scenic or recreational river area” for “for the purposes of protecting the scenic view from the river”.

§1286 Definitions

Summary

Title 16, §1286

Notes & Related Subsidiaries

Editorial Notes

Amendments

Citations & Metadata