# Management of Small Docks and Piers

# Impacts to Navigation and Public Access

**Introduction---**

Even the smallest of private docks, extending out into a waterway, has
the potential to affect navigation, mooring, or anchoring of vessels
powered by engines, sails, or paddles. Additionally, such a dock may
block foot passage or fishing along the shore or shellfishing in
shallow, nearshore waters.

Boat travel in coastal waters is a public right established through the
commerce clause of the U.S. Constitution which gives the Congress
regulatory power over navigable waters---an authority that has been
delegated to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE).

Access along the shoreline is defined by the Public Trust doctrine which
holds that the citizenry has certain rights of access along the shore,
typically for fishing, shellfishing, and navigation. In some states,
these rights include the right to walk in either the intertidal area or
the dry sand area above the high-tide line. However, the definition of
just which parts of the shoreline are open for access (sub-tidal,
inter-tidal, or above the high tide line) and the purposes for which the
access may be used varies between states.

These rights of longshore access must generally be balanced against the
riparian rights of landowners adjacent to the water's edge. Riparian
rights of waterfront property owners mandate that they have access to
the adjacent waterbody. This does not, however, necessarily authorize a
dock that extends into public waters or across lands where public trust
rights exist. The Courts have found that the requirement for riparian
access may be met by the establishment of a dinghy or canoe launching
area---with no structure. Consequently, all docks extending into public
trust areas or public waters should be reviewed for impacts to
navigation and alongshore access.

## Impacts to Navigation---

The typical sorts of impacts to navigation due to small docks include
the following:

-   *Extension into designated federal navigation projects or
    traditional navigation passages through the waterways.*

This impact is particularly important in narrow river segments, at the
mouths of rivers, or in shallow areas where only a narrow navigable
channel exists. The issue is compounded where periodic channel
realignments occur due to the shifting of sediments by storms or
floodwaters.

Federal navigation projects occur on waterways where taxpayer dollars
have been invested to create or maintain a designated channel, turning
basin, or anchorage.

There are instances where a proposed dock would not affect a designated
navigable channel or a federal navigation project, but could adversely
affect passage by paddle craft (*e.g.,* canoes and kayaks) through
traditional passageways along the shore. In some situations, a dock may
force small paddle craft into the dangerous situation of entering a
channel utilized by larger, powered boats. For safety's sake, the
smaller craft typically remain close to the shore---the same portion of
the waterway where docks are generally proposed and constructed.

> In some instances, the design of the dock (*e.g.,* its height over the
> water or structures at the water end) may impede safe navigation by
> obstructing views along the waterway. Structures may obscure oncoming
> boat traffic or boats leaving docks. They may also obscure aids to
> navigation.

-   *Extension into a designated mooring field or anchorage area*

Mooring fields or anchorage areas may be established and maintained by
the Army Corps of Engineers (*e.g.,* designated safe harbors), state
government, or municipalities. A ruling by the USACE must establish that
they do not impede navigation. Mooring fields generally serve multiple
boats within public waterways. Boats on moorings must be free to swing
with tides, currents, and/or wind conditions. Extension of a private
dock into, or near, these areas can affect the placement of moorings,
safe navigation toward the moorings or anchorages, or the ability of
boats to safely swing on moorings or anchors.

-   *Impacts to navigation between docks*

> Private docks constructed too close to existing public or private
> docks or boat landings may impede safe navigation to, and use of,
> those existing facilities. Boats need room to maneuver around docks;
> the amount of room necessary is dependant on the size, configuration,
> and powering mechanism of the boats (*i.e.,* size of engine; sail
> versus engine powered, etc.) Docks that are too close together may
> lead to difficulties in launching or landing vessels.

## Management of Impacts to Navigation---

Management of impacts to navigation may be done at the federal level
(through the Army Corps of Engineers), the state level (by protecting
citizens' rights in the waterway) or at the local level (through local
zoning of the uplands, shoreline or waters; or through building codes).

The New England District of the Army Corps of Engineers developed a set
of guidelines for the design of docks to minimize impacts to navigation.
These may be viewed at the District's web site at
[www.nae.usace.army.mil/reg/reg2.htm](http://www.nae.usace.army.mil/reg/reg2.htm).
They will be used in this module to provide an example of the sorts of
issues and techniques that may be used. Similar guidelines have been
developed throughout the country---often implemented through General
Permits developed in conjunction with state agencies. Although the
numerical standards may vary between jurisdictions, examples of the
types of standards found in these guidelines may include those below. In
some instances, such guidelines have been incorporated into local or
state regulatory programs.

Examples of such standards may include:

-   *Prohibiting structures that extend into a federal navigation
    project, traditional or buoyed navigation channel, turning basin or
    designated anchorage, or a mooring field.*

In some instances the prohibition is against intrusion into such areas,
in others a specific setback distance is mandated.

> ![](media/image1.pct){width="5.43125in" height="4.025in"}
>
> **Figure 1.** This graphic shows typical setbacks from federal
> navigation projects, mooring fields, or anchorages.

-   *Limiting the length of the dock to a percentage of the width of a
    linear waterway.*

> Most such limits are on the order of 20--25 percent of the width of
> the waterway. Using these figures, even if docks are constructed on
> both sides of the waterway, 50--60 percent of the waterway would
> remain unimpeded for navigation. Lengths of docks may also be limited
> to a percentage of the linear frontage of a property, *e.g.,* the dock
> may extend no further than 50 percent (or some other figure deemed
> appropriate for the specific area) of the frontage. A third option is
> to set a maximum limit for the length of the dock.

-   *Establishing a minimum distance between docks.*

> This may be done directly by setting a minimum distance between docks
> or by mandating a setback from riparian lines (extensions of property
> lines into the water). In most instances the figure used for such
> setbacks is on the order of 25 feet, meaning that adjacent docks could
> not be closer together than 50 feet. The New England District of the
> Corps uses the 25-foot figure, based on a median-sized recreational
> vessel length of approximately 32 feet. A minimum turning radius for
> such a vessel is 1.5 times its own length or 48 feet; which was
> rounded to 50 feet. The spacing between docks may be greater if the
> docks are designed for use by larger boats. Oftentimes, exemptions are
> made for single, communal docks to be utilized by adjoining properties
> as a means to lessen the overall number of docks constructed.
>
> ![](media/image2.pct){width="5.557638888888889in"
> height="4.125694444444444in"}
>
> **Figure 2.** This graphic illustrates typical limits for dock length
> in linear waterways and setbacks from property lines to avoid
> interference in landing vessels.

-   *Establishing a minimum setback from public facilities such as boat
    ramps or swimming areas.*

-   *Limiting the design of the dock or structures at the water end of
    the dock in narrow or winding waterways to allow for safe lines of
    sight for boating traffic or aids to navigation.*

Some jurisdictions prohibit roofed or walled structures at the ends of
docks, others limit heights of the dock or spacing of pilings or cross
members to ensure a clear view.

-   *Preventing new docks from extending beyond the length of the
    existing structure (infilling).*

For example, under the New England District of the Corps guidelines, new
structures cannot surpass the length of existing docks on adjacent
properties.

## Impacts to Public Access---

With limited exceptions, the land below the low-tide line is public,
held in trust by states for the citizens of the nation. Public rights
and interests in inter-tidal areas and, in some states dry sand areas
above the high tide line, are rooted in a body of law known as the
public trust doctrine.

The Public Trust doctrine is based on two major principles:

1.  The public has fundamental rights and interests in natural resources
    such as the sea, the shore, and the air; and

2.  The state, as trustee of the public interest, has a duty to preserve
    and enhance both these natural resources and the public's right to
    use them.

The landward extent of public trust lands varies from state to state. In
some (*e.g.,* Massachusetts and Maine) private ownership extends to the
low-tide mark. In others, private ownership stops at the high-tide line.
However, even in the "low-tide states," the public retains certain
rights of access to the intertidal zone for specific
purposes---typically fishing and navigation. In "high-tide states" the
intertidal zone is typically available for strolling. In some states
(*e.g.,* Oregon, North Carolina, New Jersey) these rights are even
extended a discrete distance landward from the high-tide line.

This lateral access along the shore, guaranteed under the public trust
doctrine, differs from "perpendicular access" to the shore, *i.e.,* the
ability to get from a public street or parking lot across private land
to public trust areas. Unless an accessway has been established
perpendicular to the shore, the public cannot cross private land to get
to the shoreline without trespassing.

The construction of docks across public trust lands and into public
waters can affect the ability of people to partake of their public trust
rights, including fishing, shellfishing, strolling, aquaculture sites,
etc. Managers seeking to permit structures in these areas must be
mindful and protective of the public's rights while balancing the
interests of access to the water by adjacent private landowners.

Typical impacts of dock construction on public access rights include:

-   *Obstructing the ability to walk along the waters edge, either in
    the water or through the intertidal zone.*

Pilings, decking, and cross members of the dock may make it impossible
for an individual to pass comfortably or safely along the shore.

-   *Obstructing access to recreational or commercial shellfishing areas
    or designated aquaculture facilities in the water.*

Docks extending over these areas, or a series of docks "walling them
off", may preclude the public's rights to access these waters in order
to harvest or grow shellfish.

## Management of Impacts to Public Access---

Management of public access rights are typically done at the state level
through legislation related to the protection of public trust rights.
Public access may also be protected indirectly at the local level
through use of the police powers (protection of public health, welfare,
and safety) to define the design and construction of docks. Management
techniques at the local level to maintain or increase access might
include overlay zoning ordinances, wetland protection ordinances, or
building codes.

Examples of standards developed through these legal techniques could
include:

-   Establishing a setback from existing or potential recreational or
    commercial shellfishing areas or areas in use for aquaculture.

-   Requiring some means of comfortable passage past the dock. Options
    include a minimum height and opening through the dock structure to
    allow walking under the dock, a set of stairs to allow walking over
    the landward end of the dock, or establishment of a right of way
    around the landward end of the dock.

-   Mitigating significant impacts to public rights by negotiating
    perpendicular access rights of way from upland areas to the water's
    edge.

-   Establishing rules for safe boating in nearshore areas to preclude
    danger to those passing along the shore on foot or while swimming.

-   The development of a Special Area Management Plan to limit docks in
    areas of high public use for activities such as swimming,
    shellfishing, or paddling.

## Bibliography---

> New England District, US Army Corps of Engineers. 1996. *Guidelines
> for the placement of fixed and floating structures in navigable waters
> of the United States regulated by the New England District, U.S. Army
> Corps of Engineers.* Available at
> [www.nae.usace.army.mil/reg/reg2.htm](http://www.nae.usace.army.mil/reg/reg2.htm)