§ 46-28-2 - Legislative findings and declaration of public policy.
SECTION 46-28-2
§ 46-28-2 Legislative findings anddeclaration of public policy. – (a) Rhode Island needs an affirmative, clearly articulated program to plan for,manage and protect its rivers and watershed resources on an integrated, inter-agency basis, that supports systems level planning.
(b) Many of the rivers of Rhode Island or sections thereofand related adjacent land possess outstanding aesthetic and recreational valueof present and potential benefit to the citizens of this state. Thepreservation and protection of these rivers and their immediate environmenttogether with their significant recreational, natural and cultural value ishereby declared to be a public policy. It shall be the policy of the state ofRhode Island to protect these values and to practice sound conservationpolicies and practices relative thereto. It is also recognized that it is inthe public interest to:
(1) Preserve open space, natural resources and features, andscenic landscapes;
(2) Preserve cultural and historic landscapes and features;
(3) Preserve opportunities for recreational use of rivers;
(4) Encourage the establishment of greenways which link openspaces together;
(5) Establish a rivers policy consistent with the RhodeIsland Comprehensive Planning and Land Use Regulation Act, chapter 22.2 oftitle 45 as set forth in § 45-22.2-3(c);
(6) Continue the regional and comprehensive planningactivities for rivers, water quality, and land use conducted by the RhodeIsland department of environmental management and the Rhode Island departmentof administration; and
(7) Utilize the rivers policy and classification plan andother relevant elements of the state guide plan, plans and programs of stateand federal agencies, and watershed action plans to coordinate the activitiesof the public and private sectors so as to achieve the objectives of thissection.
(c) It is, therefore, essential that a Rhode Island policy bedeveloped so that these purposes may be fulfilled. The general assembly affirmsthat it must assure the people of this generation and their descendents theopportunity to appreciate aesthetic and utilize the recreational qualities andresources of the state's streams and rivers. To implement these policies is thepurpose of this chapter and in furtherance thereof to establish the RhodeIsland rivers council which will coordinate and oversee the clean up andpreservation of the quality of rivers in Rhode Island.