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Riparian Rights and Responsibilities.As a riparian landowner you have certain rights and responsibilities in relation to the watercourse flowing either through or adjacent to your property. These rights are known as “riparian rights” and have their basis in common law. They have been defined as the results of many legal cases over the years. These rights are not to be presumed as absolute. You may, in any event, have to obtain consent from the Local Authority, Environment Agency, British Waterways, or other body for certain activities connected with the watercourse in question. Unless it is known to be owned by others or yourself in total, you are presumed to own the land up to the centre of the watercourse. You have the right to receive the flow of water in its natural state, without undue interference in quantity or quality. You have the right to protect your property from flooding, and protect your land from erosion. You will in most cases need the prior consent of the Environment Agency for any works. If the work affects sites of known conservation or archaeological value, you may need further permissions from the relevant English Authorities. Environmental issues, including flood risk, wildlife conservation must also be considered. You have the responsibility to pass on the water flow without obstruction, pollution or diversion affecting the rights of others You have the responsibility to accept flood flows through your land, even if caused by inadequate capacity downstream. There is no common law duty to improve a watercourse however you are responsible for maintaining the bed and banks of the watercourse, this includes any trees or shrubs growing on the banks. You are also responsible for clearing any debris, natural or otherwise, including litter and animal carcasses, even if it did not originate from your own land. Your local District Council may give you advice on the removal of animal carcasses. You have the right to fish by rod, hook and line: you have the right to lease this right. You must not cause any obstruction to the free passage of fish. You are wholly responsible for keeping the bed and banks of the watercourse clear of anything that may cause any obstruction. That includes anything on your land that may be washed away by high flow to obstruct any bridge or structure downstream. You are also wholly responsible for keeping clear all structures that you own including culverts, screens, weirs or mill gates. Failure to carry out these responsibilities may result in civil action from the local authority or others. f you require any more information please contact your local District Council and ask for their literature. ~~~~~~~~~~ If you know of any free fishing in your area - Please let us know. If you wish to contribute a feature for this site - We are looking for content of 200 words or more to do with any aspect of fishing - We would like to publish your photos too! Links Exchange we will be pleased to exchange web-links with anyone who has a web site that is anything to do with fishing - Contact us with details.
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