Last Thursday, New York State’s
Court of Appeals heard a case on a canoer’s trespassing on private land. The
court case, while somewhat lacking in sex appeal, gives an interesting insight
into the ongoing struggle of complex laws attempting to govern the private and
publicly owned park. The case itself centers on a journalist who essentially
turned himself in by writing a story about his canoeing trip across the
privately owned section of a river. The disputed waterway is coveted canoeing
territory connecting Little Tupper Lake and Lake Lila. Although in a strictly
literal sense the case is about the navigability of one specific length of a
river, still in a broader scope the court is creating a precedent on the extent
of private property rights of land within the park.
In a case like this one of the most
helpful indicators for understanding the true repercussions is looking at what
groups are sponsoring what side of the legal battle. Several environmental
groups including the Adirondack Mountain Club, Environmental Advocates, and the
Department of Environmental Conservation have come to Browns defense indicating
that however small, something is at stake. On the flip side, the Property
Rights Foundation of America (shocking), Empire State Forests Products
Association, the Farm Bureau, and the Adirondack Landowners Association support
the owners of the private property in question.
Without launching into full-scale
investigative mode, my personal take on the case is that this is a battle
between those who believe in the exploration of the park versus those who’d
like to own part of the park. As a class of college students it’s hard to
imagine many falling on the landowner’s side, but at the same time it’s
important to try to put ourselves in someone else’s shoes, and maybe imagine our
own possible property-owning futures.
I agree with you that we should consider what it is like to have our own property in the future. Since we do not own property yet, I think it is easy for us to focus on the benefits of accessibility (to the park) to the public. However, there is an argument for private owners to have control of their own land and their rights cannot be simply stripped from them either.
ReplyDeleteIt's really hard to deal with these private/public land disputes. The Adirondacks are made to be explored, but having people within the park complicates everything. This struggle is very unique to the Adirondacks and very interesting and telling of the Adirondack legacy.
ReplyDelete