Riparian rights and obligations

Riparian ownership

Riparian owners have certain rights and responsibilities.

In the case of ditches, streams and rivers, it is the landowners on each side of the watercourse who are responsible for the maintenance of the watercourse itself and the flow within it.

It is not just those who have a watercourse flowing across their land that are affected, but also those with land where the watercourse forms a boundary with another landowner. Their rights and responsibilities even apply where a watercourse passes immediately adjacent to a boundary, even if it is outside the landowners’ ownership, as the flow of the watercourse has the potential to affect this land.

For more information on the extent of riparian ownerships, see Practice Notes:

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Riparian ownership—rights and responsibilities
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Riparian owners and fishing rights
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Property boundaries

Regulating riparian owners

Riparian owners may need permission for some activities from a regulator such as a local authority, internal drainage board (IDB) or the Environment

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