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| Go-Paddle: An Introduction to River Access for Canoeists in the UK. |
England and Wales
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One of the most controversial issues in UK canoeing is the canoeists right of access to rivers.
Within England and Wales members of the public have no automatic right to launch a canoe or kayak on to any river. This legal situation is different from all other countries in the world, where canoeists are generally able to paddle large and small non-tidal rivers without seeking permission.
Currently only 2% of rivers in England and Wales have access rights to the public, leaving approximately 65,000km of rivers on which paddlers may be considered to be trespassing. This unfavourable situation has arisen as many inland waters in this country, especially the smaller and upland rivers, are privately owned and to canoe on them without permission could constitute an act of trespass.
Where there is no public launching point, or a public footpath to the water’s edge it is necessary for the paddler to get permission to cross private land to access the water.
On many rivers there is also a historical conflict between fisherman (who generally have to pay the landowners to fish a stretch of river) and canoeists who seek free access. Landowners, for obvious reasons, support the anglers and attempt to restrict access for canoeists
using the unproven arguement that canoeing disturbs fish stocks and damages spawning grounds.
Historically, canoeists have tried to negotiate voluntary access agreements with landowners, in which access to rivers is limited to certain periods of the year. The success of these agreements has been varied, with some operating sucessfully for many years and others limiting access to such an extent that paddlers ignore the agreements. More recently the British Canoe Union has been
lobbying parliament to try and establish a 'right to paddle' similar to the recently introduced 'right to roam' for walkers. To date this has been unsucessful. Further details are available on the BCU Rivers Access Campaign website.
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Scotland
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| In Scotland the river access situation is much more favourable to canoeists with a paddlers rights to access being amongst the best in Europe. The 2003 Scotland Land Reform Act established statutory rights of access to most land and waterways within Scotland
with access being regulated by a voluntary access code rather than legislation.
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