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15-23-313. Specific designations — Prohibitions — Policy — Exemptions.
Arkansas Code — all titles (historical 2020) · legal_authorities
15-23-313. Specific designations — Prohibitions — Policy — Exemptions.
(a)(1) Notwithstanding any other provisions of this subchapter, the following segments of rivers or streams are designated as components of the Arkansas Natural and Scenic Rivers System:
(A) The Cossatot River, from Gillham Reservoir, Section 8, Township 5 South, Range 30 West, upstream to its headwaters near Baker Mountain, South Line of Section 15, Township 3 South, Range 30 West;
(B) The Strawberry River, from the line dividing Sharp County and Izard County, Section 12, Township 17 North, Range 7 West, upstream to its headwaters near Byron, North Line of Section 3, Township 19 North, Range 9 West;
(C) The Saline River, from its confluence with the Ouachita River, Section 9, Township 18 South, Range 10 West, upstream to the Saline-Grant County line; and
(D) The Little Missouri River, from the upper end of Lake Greeson, South Line of Section 31, Township 5 South, Range 26 West, upstream to its headwaters south of Big Fork, Center of Section 32, Township 3 South, Range 28 West.
(2) The requirement of establishing an advisory committee or developing a management plan as specified in §§ 15-23-308, 15-23-311, and 15-23-312 are waived for the segments of rivers or streams designated as components of the system pursuant to this section.
(b) The following provisions shall apply only to river segments and stream segments designated as components of the system pursuant to this section:
(1)(A) It shall be unlawful for any person to construct any permanent dam or other structure that would impound waters in the principal bed of any of the river segments or stream segments designated as components of the system pursuant to subsection (a) of this section.
(B) However, the establishment or maint
Source: Arkansas Code — historical release 78 (November 6, 2020) · 15-23-313
Stored review status: Historical 2020-11-06 source release; later amendments not reconciled; machine-extracted, not independently legally reviewed; source heading status: text_in_historical_source. A text match is a research starting point; applicability is not established.
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Stable record: arkansas_code:legal_authorities:15-23-313
Source file: gov.ar.code.title.15.odt
Pages: Not recorded – Not recorded
Passage SHA-256: 86af0309034f2b78d1c62e975354a0000b553c94926e971c24bdde6fd1a043bd
Source location: content.xml paragraph 17508
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15-23-313. Specific designations — Prohibitions — Policy — Exemptions.
(a)(1) Notwithstanding any other provisions of this subchapter, the following segments of rivers or streams are designated as components of the Arkansas Natural and Scenic Rivers System:
(A) The Cossatot River, from Gillham Reservoir, Section 8, Township 5 South, Range 30 West, upstream to its headwaters near Baker Mountain, South Line of Section 15, Township 3 South, Range 30 West;
(B) The Strawberry River, from the line dividing Sharp County and Izard County, Section 12, Township 17 North, Range 7 West, upstream to its headwaters near Byron, North Line of Section 3, Township 19 North, Range 9 West;
(C) The Saline River, from its confluence with the Ouachita River, Section 9, Township 18 South, Range 10 West, upstream to the Saline-Grant County line; and
(D) The Little Missouri River, from the upper end of Lake Greeson, South Line of Section 31, Township 5 South, Range 26 West, upstream to its headwaters south of Big Fork, Center of Section 32, Township 3 South, Range 28 West.
(2) The requirement of establishing an advisory committee or developing a management plan as specified in §§ 15-23-308, 15-23-311, and 15-23-312 are waived for the segments of rivers or streams designated as components of the system pursuant to this section.
(b) The following provisions shall apply only to river segments and stream segments designated as components of the system pursuant to this section:
(1)(A) It shall be unlawful for any person to construct any permanent dam or other structure that would impound waters in the principal bed of any of the river segments or stream segments designated as components of the system pursuant to subsection (a) of this section.
(B) However, the establishment or maintenance of a water gap fence or low water bridge shall not be deemed a dam obstruction of the flow of such a river or stream unless the water gap fence results in impoundment of the waters of the river or stream; and
(2)(A) It shall be unlawful for any person to channelize or realign the principal channel of any of the river segments designated as components of the system pursuant to subsection (a) of this section.
(B) However, the clearing, snagging, or removing of river channel blockages caused by floods or other acts of nature shall not be deemed channelization.
(c) A violation of subsection (b) of this section shall be a Class C misdemeanor.
(d)(1) The Arkansas Natural Heritage Commission is authorized to apply for and the court is authorized to grant a temporary or permanent injunction restraining any person from violating or continuing to violate any provision of this section or any rule promulgated under this section, notwithstanding the existence of other remedies at law.
(2) The injunction shall be issued without bond.
(e)(1) This section shall be construed so as to obtain reasonable conservation of waters in the streams designated in this section.
(2) The policy of this state is to:
(A) Protect the designated streams and the fish and wildlife in and around those streams;
(B) Maintain proper ecological balance;
(C) Protect water quality;
(D) Protect natural and scenic beauty;
(E) Protect riparian landowner rights; and
(F) Protect and preserve the designated streams in their natural and scenic state for future generations.
(f) None of the provisions of this section shall:
(1) Prohibit the continued use of all existing water intake structures and appurtenances for the purpose of withdrawal of surface water for any and all beneficial uses;
(2) Prohibit the construction of water intake structures in the future; or
(3) Be deemed to in any way impair or interfere with the continuation of the present uses of lands along any river or stream.
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Arkansas Code — all titles (historical 2020) · legal_authorities
15-23-308. Arkansas Natural Heritage Commission — Duties.
The Arkansas Natural Heritage Commission shall:
(1) Survey, evaluate, and assess the rivers to be considered for designation as components in the Arkansas Natural and Scenic Rivers System;
(2) Recommend to the General Assembly rivers to be considered for entry into the system;
(3) Contract for any professional services with any federal, state, or local governmental agency or private individual or organization as may be necessary for the proper performance of its functions under this subchapter;
(4) Organize, establish, and serve on an advisory committee for each river considered for recommendation for designation into the system; and
(5) Review water-related projects, including state and federal projects, for their potential impacts on the system.
Source: Arkansas Code — historical release 78 (November 6, 2020) · 15-23-308
Stored review status: Historical 2020-11-06 source release; later amendments not reconciled; machine-extracted, not independently legally reviewed; source heading status: text_in_historical_source. The source passage cites 15-23-308. This identifies an authority to review, not proof of applicability.
Arkansas Code — all titles (historical 2020) · legal_authorities
15-23-311. Procedure for designation of river.
The procedure that the Arkansas Natural Heritage Commission shall follow to submit a river to the General Assembly for designation as a component into the Arkansas Natural and Scenic Rivers System is as follows:
(1) The commission shall decide, based upon the classification and evaluation system, the priority of rivers to be considered for inclusion in the system;
(2)(A) Having selected a river for potential designation, the commission, with the advice of local county governments through which the river flows, shall establish an advisory committee.
(B) This advisory committee shall:
(i)(a) Consist of three (3) members of the commission appointed by the chair to represent the state at large and five (5) members who are residents of the river area and appointed by the local county quorum court.
(b) If the river flows through more than one (1) county, four (4) members shall be appointed by each county quorum court.
(c) At least three (3) of the local residents of the four (4) appointed from each county shall be riparian landowners;
(ii) Assist and advise the commission concerning the planning for the management and protection of the river;
(iii) Serve at the call of the commission or on call of a majority of the members of the advisory committee; and
(iv) Elect a chair from among its members;
(3)(A) A public hearing shall be held after the advisory committee has been appointed and a management plan has been drawn up.
(B) More public hearings may be held as needed;
(4)(A) The commission shall submit to the General Assembly a report showing the proposed area and classification, the characteristics which qualify the river for inclusion into the system, the general ownership and land use in the area, and t
Source: Arkansas Code — historical release 78 (November 6, 2020) · 15-23-311
Stored review status: Historical 2020-11-06 source release; later amendments not reconciled; machine-extracted, not independently legally reviewed; source heading status: text_in_historical_source. The source passage cites 15-23-311. This identifies an authority to review, not proof of applicability.
Arkansas Code — all titles (historical 2020) · legal_authorities
15-23-312. Approval of management plan.
(a) Notwithstanding any other provisions of this subchapter, no management plan or part thereof for a river or portion of a river included in or designated for inclusion in the Arkansas Natural and Scenic Rivers System shall be implemented or submitted to the General Assembly for its approval unless and until the proposed management plan has been submitted to and approved by the quorum court of the county in which the river or portion thereof is located.
(b) However, if the quorum court fails to take action to either approve or reject any such management plan or portion thereof within three (3) months from the date the plan is submitted to the quorum court, the plan or the portions thereof not acted upon by the quorum court shall be deemed to have been approved.
Source: Arkansas Code — historical release 78 (November 6, 2020) · 15-23-312
Stored review status: Historical 2020-11-06 source release; later amendments not reconciled; machine-extracted, not independently legally reviewed; source heading status: text_in_historical_source. The source passage cites 15-23-312. This identifies an authority to review, not proof of applicability.