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National Organization for Rivers 



The association of people who protect natural rivers and your legal rigtils to visit rivers. 

 Founded in 1978. Contributions are tax-deductible. PubDstiing CURRENTS Magazine. 

 Membership Offices: 212 West Cheyenne Mountain Boulevard. 

 Colorado Springs. CO 80906. • Phone:719-579-8759. • Fax:719-576-6238. 



^aSSit 



Dear River Trustee: 



This letter is to tell you what the National Organization for Rivers (NORS) is 



working to achieve, why you should Join us, (or renew your membership,) and 



how it will benefit you. 



Jh.ereJsjLJ>ifl_dj£teKlice throughout America between what the law says 



:t?*^f3 about rivers, and hovy ri vers are tre ate d in actua l practice . The U.S. Supreme 



- S^ Court has ruled thatfa-lveR_that,are"navlq able Itv fact are na vlgab^eTn law..r and that 



, '2yl£f "navigation" includes canoeing, kayaking, and rafting. And that the banks of 



^^^^^^ navigable rivers are public land up to the "ordinary high water mark," which, 



depending on the local terrain, can be a rather wide strip of land— land that is dr y and 



---^^ us eable mos t of the time. A nd that this land m ust be open to you, for tfi shlrlqy 



--* *^ ^Trrilckln gTcanrpI hgyarid^t fier nori''destructlvC'>ffsKatio ^ 



The Supreme Court has also repeatedly ruled that the test of whether a river 

 is "navigable" is a federal test, even though it determines state ownership. And that 

 this test applies equally In all SO states— including your state. And that all navigable 

 rivers— as well as those strips of land along them— are "held in trust for the public' by 

 the states. Further, the courts have ruled that a state cannot sell or give away these 

 lands and waters to private owners— as trustee, the state is obligated to protect these 

 rivers, and the strips of public land along them, for p ublic navigation and enjoyment. 



(SsyoiLB5iF*hiyJuS£jt^j!fitlhaLwayJiu*aljft5l£o^ 

 ^ Most people in Georgia believe that only a few large rivers In the state are 

 "na vigable", and all the rest b elpnq to the adjacent private landowners. Just ask 

 the gano< ilflsaiKhiiL Wpr»-aiTi'«apd for running one of them! 

 ^The Kansas State Legislature has declared that only three rivers in Kansas are 

 "navigable". And even those three are not being "held in trust for the public" — the 

 Kansas River near Lawrence (one of the three) is now threatejne_d_byj3roposed 

 dredging for sand for construction use, which would "Becimate its bald..eagie' 

 population and destroy its values for the public. 

 * In Colorado, most people (Including most government people) think that most of 

 the state's rivers are private property because of the "Emmert decision" of the 

 Colorado State Supreme Court. They are unaware Jhat. in that case, both sides 

 agreed that the river was "not navigable". And that'it.wasn't_up,to.xhem to decide 

 what is "navigable" anyway! 

 ^ Just recently in Oregon, a bill was Introduced in the legislature that, if passed, 

 would attempt to change the definition of "navigable" to cover only a few large 

 rivers, and make all the rest private property— similar to Georgia, Kansas, etc. 

 ■ ♦ In New Mexico, the Rio Grande- one of the nation's major rivers, eminently 

 navigable— Is closed to the public where it flows through various tribal reserva- 

 tions. Yes, the land in these reservations belongs to the tribes— but not the high- 

 ways, and not the navigable rivers, including those strips of land along them! 

 *♦ And in most other states, many navigable rivers, and countless strips ofjand 

 below the "ordinary high water mark" along navigable rivers, are blocked by barbed 

 wire fences and No Trespassing signs 



But according to the courts, this type of state legislation, and these other 

 situations, are not legal— whether a river is "navigable" for purposes of ownership Is 

 a question of federal law. not state law All the rivers in Georgia. Kansas, Colorado, 

 Oregon, and New Mexico that can be run by canoes, kayaks and rafts are navigable, 

 all of them are held in trust for the public by the state, and on all of them, the state 

 cannot legally sell or give away public rights to private owners. This applies equally 

 to all 50 states— including your state! 



How can this be? If that's the law, why are so many rivers In so many states 

 closed or partially closed to the public, and why are so many rivers turned over 



