NY Env Conserv L § 15-0103 (2021)
2021 New York Laws ENV - Environmental Conservation Article 15 - Water Resources Title 1 - Short Title; Statement of Policy; Definitions; General Provisions 15-0103 - Legislative Findings.

§ 15-0103. Legislative findings.Article  15  shall  be  construed and administered in the light of the   following findings of fact:1. The sovereign power to regulate and control the water resources  of   this  state  ever  since  its  establishment  has been and now is vested   exclusively in the state of New  York,  except  to  the  extent  of  any   delegation of power to the United States;2.  New  York  State  has been generously endowed with water resources   which have  contributed  and  continue  to  contribute  greatly  to  the   position of preeminence attained by New York in population, agriculture,   commerce, trade, industry and outdoor recreation;3.  Adequate and suitable water for water supply, domestic, municipal,   industrial,  agricultural  and  commercial  uses,   power,   irrigation,   transportation,  fire  protection,  sewage  and  waste assimilation, the   growth of  forests,  maintenance  of  fish  and  wildlife,  recreational   enjoyment  and other uses is essential to the health, safety and welfare   of the people and economic growth and prosperity of the state;4. In recent years our population growth and the development  and  use   of  new technology and processes have resulted in demands for more water   and the equitable use thereof for these purposes;5. In recent years recreational activities are making new and  greater   demands  on lakes and streams of the state for boating, fishing, bathing   and water sports, and the lands adjacent thereto for  campsites,  access   areas and public beaches;6.  The  growth  of  cities  and  urban areas and their expansion into   formerly rural areas has in many  cases  resulted  in  the  filling  in,   diversion  and  destruction  of  water  courses,  necessarily destroying   aquatic habitat  and  lessening  supplies  of  water  for  multiple  use   purposes;7.  Increased motorized highway travel and public safety are requiring   the construction of new, better and larger  public  highways  which  may   alter  the  water  ways of the state and encroach upon water courses and   affect their uses;8. All  fish,  game,  wildlife,  shellfish,  crustacea  and  protected   insects  in the state, except those legally acquired and held in private   ownership, are owned by the state and held for the use and enjoyment  of   the people of the state, and the state has a responsibility to preserve,   protect  and  conserve  such  terrestrial  and  aquatic  resources  from   destruction and damage and to promote their natural propagation;9. The unreasonable, uncontrolled and unnecessary interference with or   defilement and disturbance  of  water  courses  create  hazards  to  the   health,  safety  and  welfare  of  the people of the state causing great   economic loss by erosion of soil, increased costs of water  purification   and  treatment,  the  loss  of  crop  lands and forests by flooding, the   destruction and failure of  natural  propagation  of  fish  and  aquatic   resources  and the loss of water for domestic, industrial, navigational,   municipal, agricultural, recreational  and  other  beneficial  uses  and   purposes;10.  The  unreasonable  and  unregulated  (a)  interference  with  the   channels and beds of lakes and streams by construction  of  dams,  roads   and other structures, (b) alteration of water courses and gradients, (c)   impounding of water, (d) dredging and filling in of stream beds, and the   unreasonable  removal  of  sand, gravel or other materials from streams,   and by other action, have resulted in pollution of such waters, increase   in turbidity and the deposit of silt and debris, irregular variations of   velocity, temperature and levels of water, erosion of banks and  uplands   and the flooding of valuable lands; 11.  The  department, and two of its predecessors, the Water Resources   Commission  and  the  Water  Pollution  Control  Board,  has  classified   substantially all of the waters of the state;12.  The  department,  pursuant  to  title  11  of  article  15 of the   Environmental  Conservation  Law,  is  continuing  the   work   of   its   predecessor, the Water Resources Commission in undertaking comprehensive   planning  for  the protection, conservation and development of the water   resources of the state;13. It is in the best interest of the state that provision be made for   the regulation and  supervision  of  activities  that  deplete,  defile,   damage  or  otherwise  adversely affect the waters of the state and land   resources associated therewith.