New York Codes, Rules and Regulations › Title 6 - DEPARTMENT OF ENVIRONMENTAL CONSERVATION › Chapter X - DIVISION OF WATER RESOURCES › Subchapter A - GENERAL › Article 1 - MISCELLANEOUS RULES › Part 666 - Regulation Or Administration And Management Of The Wild, Scenic And Recreational Rivers System In New York State Excepting Private Land In The Adirondack Park › Section 666.6 - Boundaries of river areas

Current through Register Vol. 46, No. 28, July 10, 2024
(a)
					 Boundaries will be established subject to the finding of the commissioner that
					 they are consistent with the purposes and policies of the act and facilitate
					 the management objectives thereof. Boundaries will be delineated and
					 established to include within the river area those natural, cultural and
					 recreational features whose protection and preservation are necessary to
					 accomplish the purposes of the act. Such features may include: scenic areas;
					 natural, scientific and cultural features; flood plains and wetlands;
					 significant fish and wildlife habitats; watershed and hydrological aquifer
					 features, ecologically important areas and river-related outdoor recreational
					 facilities. In delineating a river area boundary, consideration may be given to
					 the existence of property boundaries or regulatory boundaries.
(b) In recreational river areas, the
					 department may designate specific areas as communities that meet the criteria
					 for such areas as specified in section
					 666.3(m) 
					 of this Part. Also, any local government partially or wholly within a
					 designated river corridor may submit to the department the boundary of a
					 proposed community designation. Such proposal will include specific boundaries
					 and supporting information relative to the criteria. The department will
					 publish a notice in the Environmental Notice Bulletin and in at least one
					 newspaper having general circulation in the area of any departmental or local
					 governmental proposal for a community designation and may hold a public hearing
					 prior to making a decision to adopt, modify or reject such proposal. Boundaries
					 may not exceed a width of one-half mile from each bank of the river.
(c) Boundaries will be established by the
					 commissioner following a public hearing held in or near the river area after a
					 river has been included in the system. The department will publish notices in
					 the Environmental Notice Bulletin and in at least one newspaper having general
					 circulation in the area at least 30 days in advance of any such departmental
					 hearing. Failure of any person to be aware of the hearing will not invalidate
					 the boundary subsequently established. Within the Adirondack Park, the
					 boundaries will be mutually agreed upon by the department and the Adirondack
					 Park Agency.
(d) Upon establishment
					 of the boundary, the commissioner will file a map and narrative description of
					 same with the clerk of each county in which the designated portion of the river
					 is located. The commissioner will also notify affected local governments and
					 state agencies of same and provide them with a map and narrative description of
					 the boundary. A notice of establishment of the boundary will be placed in the
					 Environmental Notice Bulletinand a map and narrative description of the
					 boundary will be provided to interested parties upon request.
(e) Boundaries may be established or amended
					 independently or concurrent with the process of adopting a river management
					 plan and any complementary regulations for an individual designated river, as
					 provided by section
					 666.7 
					 of this Part.
(f) Upon the
					 designation of a river in the system and until boundaries for the river are
					 established, the provisions of this Part will be applicable within one-half
					 mile from each bank of the river.
(g) Unless otherwise specified, the
					 boundaries of river areas described as a uniform distance from a river bank
					 will themselves wind and turn as the river does. All distances from a river
					 will be measured horizontally from the bank of the river.
(h) The commissioner may amend the boundaries
					 of any river area after a public hearing, at the initiative of the department
					 or as may be requested by any other person, if in the judgment of the
					 commissioner such amendment would further the purposes and policies of the act
					 and more aptly facilitate the management objectives thereof. Notice of the
					 hearing will be provided in the same manner as when boundaries are established
					 originally.
(i) Upon request by any
					 landowner, tenant, mortgagee, contract vendee or optionee or other person
					 having a legal interest in a given property, the department will determine the
					 terminal points of the river area or classified sections thereof and the bank
					 at relevant points along the river area.