Riparian rights are a system of rights and duties that determine the reasonable use, duties, and allocations of water to owners of waterfront property. These rights are rooted in English common law, so they are typically implemented in former British colonies such as the eastern United States and Canada. In principle, these rights ensure that riparian owners can make reasonable use of water adjacent to their property while protecting the rights of other riparian owners.
A person must own land adjacent to a body of water to be considered a riparian owner. Generally, a riparian owner has inherent riparian rights included in his property rights. The owner usually has exclusive rights to his bottomland for anchoring docks or rafts, his beach, and his upland, but not to the water itself. The owner cannot infringe upon the rights of other riparian owners or the public to make reasonable use of the water. Reasonable use is weighed by proportion of land owned that abuts the water and the needs of other users.
The particulars of riparian rights vary by country, by state, and by body of water. Rights to fishing, building, and operations to prevent flooding are traditionally protected, but since issues of water scarcity, fish endangerment, pollution, and sedimentation have come to light, governments often step in to regulate. There is also high precedent for disputes between riparian owners, as riparian rights are based on the principle of not impinging on others’ rights. These disputes, however, usually solve only the immediate problem without setting rules or precedent for future disputes. This allows for flexibility, which is important as environments and owners change.
In England and Wales, riparian rights and duties are laid out by the Environmental Agency. These riparian owners may build into the watercourse with government supervision unless it impedes navigability or unless the land underneath is owned by someone else. Welsh and English owners also have the right to protect their land from flooding with supervision of the Environmental Agency and fish with an Agency rod license. The right to fishing, unlike the property right portion of riparian rights, can be sold or transferred, but any fishermen must be licensed. Riparian owners have the duty to keep riverbeds, water, culverts, and trash screens clean, and not to obstruct the migration of fish.
In the United States, the majority of states east of the Mississippi River follow the principles of riparian rights. These rights are similar to those in England and Wales and are monitored, for the most part, state by state. U.S. states have run into several disputes over the moving of water from its natural watercourse. The Roman Empire’s Justinian Code and Roman tradition laid the foundation for much of riparian rights, setting forth the idea that water is a public good and should not be diverted from its natural course. Much of the disputes in the United States, especially in the southeast, center around this principle and the desire to use water for hydropower, irrigation, or drinking water.