The following article appeared on p. 6 of The River Reporter:

CAC discusses strand

By TOM RUE
NARROWSBURG - In a long promised session on what member Karen Ridley called "an issue not easy to pin down," the Upper Delaware Citizens Advisory Council (CAC) spent much of its October 23rd meeting discussing the rights and responsibilities of riparian landowners and passing recreationists on the narrow ribbon of river shore-line known as the strand.
In her report to the council, Ridley cited confusing and apparently contradictory case law precedents in Pennsylvania, New York and Montana - which she described as being in the legislative forefront nationally. Montana has designated "navigation easements" along certain inland waterways, with rights clearly spelled out, according to Ridley.
"Pennsylvania appears to be more logical [than New York]. The trouble is, in New York State it is very difficult to tell what is legal," said Ridley who owns a large tract in
Sparrowsbush.
Generally, recreationists are entitled access to the strand only from the water, not by crossing private property. Portaging around dangerous rapids, resting, fishing, and even hunting seem to be allowable public uses of the Pen- nsylvania strand, she said.
Ridley said Pennsylvania and New York differ on theories of ownership of the strand, accounting in part for differences in public rights. In Pennsylvania, she said landowners own to the low water mark, and the public has an "absolute right" up to the high water level.
New York landowners at the meeting said their deeds indicated ownership to the river's middle, or state line. However, Ridley read a recent letter from Charles Morrison of the NYS Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) which claimed the state owns the area "from the mean high water mark to the center of the river."
Ridley described Morrison's letter as "a bombshell" and said she had been unable to contact him for clarification.
She urged the CAC to lobby lawmakers for legislation defining river user and landowner rights and liabilities on the strand.
In another matter, the council received a detailed report from NPS regional chief scientist John Karish concerning the water quality monitoring program conducted jointly by the NPS and the Delaware River Basin Commission, as well as other related projects.
Regarding a study of effects of the Cortese Landfill, Karish said there appeared to be "very little if any effects on either the macroinvertebrates or the fishes in the Upper Delaware River" as a result of toxic chemicals leaching into the water south of Narrowsburg.
However, he admitted it was "very tricky" to interpret some of the data, and that DEC officials have challenged some of the NPS interpretations. Karish said the final report will be released in December or January.
He described briefly an NPS "report to managers" by Dr. Matthew Carroll of the Pennsylvania State University School of Forest Resources. Karish called "darned good" Carroll's chronology and analysis of the Upper Delaware planning process.
Acting chair Larue Elmore noted the next meeting is at 7:00 p.m. on November 20, when the Upper Delaware Heritage Alliance will make a presentation. On December 11th, developers in the river corridor will report to the CAC on their projects, Elmore said.