This presentation introduces the student to the complex and confusing world of riparian water boundaries. The seminar begins with the historical development of water boundary law with regard to Rome, England, and the United States. After a foundation has been laid, the boundary between private lands and the sovereign, a boundary in continual conflict, will be discussed in depth. Next, students will apply what they have learned in group exercises by calculating and drawing water boundaries in various situations. And finally, emerging issues such as climate change and sea level rise will debated among the group.

1. ©
TONY NETTLEMAN
INSTRUCTOR
WWW.CNETTLEMAN.NET
CHARLES.NETTLEMAN@GMAIL.COM

2. COMPLEXITY OF
WATER BOUNDARIES
SURVEYING WATER BOUNDARIES
CAN BE FRUSTRATING BECAUSE…
• The shoreline is constantly moving
• The surveyor must have a basic knowledge of law,
geology, engineering, and other sciences
• Judges have difficulty understanding how these
types of cases should be decided

3. COASTAL LAND USE

4. ORIGINS OF
RIPARIAN LAW
• Modern water boundary doctrines are
based on Roman Law, and quite similar to
Justinian’s Code
• Roman Law was refined over the centuries
by court cases and codified by English
scholars such as Lord Hale and
Blackstone’s Commentaries

5. ROMAN EMPIRE
CODE OF JUSTINIAN (500 AD)

6. TYPES OF EVIDENCE
• Historical aerial photos
• Witnesses
• Reliable historical documents and original
field notes
• Upland tree species, soil sample,
topography, vegetation, and escarpments

7. THE ORDINARY
HIGH WATER MARK
The OHWM is defined as
the boundary along the
river that delineates the
vegetation line, which
destroys its value for
AGRICULTURAL
purposes

8. TYPES OF
MEANDER CORNERS
• The purpose of meander
corners is to mark every point
where a standard, township or
section line intersects a
meanderable body of water
• Meander line surveys begin
and end at meander corners
• Meander corner types include
meander corners, special
meander corners and auxiliary
meander corners

9. PROPORTIONATE
SHORELINE METHOD
• This method was first
established by Johnson V.
Jones (1861) and is
referenced in Manual 8-133
• The new frontage along the
water boundary of an
accreted area is
apportioned in the same
ratio as the frontage of the
ancient bank

11. TIDAL WATERS
TIDELANDS ARE USUALLY OWNED BY
STATES AND HELD IN PUBLIC TRUST
OFFSHORE SUBMERGED LANDS
(SEAWARD OF HIGH OR LOW WATER
MARK)

1953 Submerged Lands Act quitclaimed submerged
land (ocean and inland navigable waters) to states
 Usually 3 miles from ordinary low water
 Exceptions – Texas and Florida extend nine miles into
Gulf

12. SPRING AND NEAP TIDES
• Most
prominent tidal
factor
• Spring: full
moon
• Neap: first and
last quarter
moon

13. TIDAL AND GEODETIC
RELATIONSHIPS
• Geodetic datum relationships to
tidal datums are established at tide
stations by connecting tidal bench
mark networks to the national
spatial reference system (NSRS)
maintained by NGS
• Relationships created using either
leveling or static GPS
• Relationships only reliable locally
due to parameters such as
variations in range of tide,
bathymetry, topography, geoid
variations, and vertical land
movement

14. STOP THE BEACH
RENOURISHMENT, INC.(SABRE)
VS. THE FLORIDA EPA (2009)
• Florida wanted to create a
state-owned public beach
between private waterfront
property and the Gulf of
Mexico through its beach
(re)nourishment program
• Homeowners sued because it
would cut them off from the
beach and the accretions
• The Supreme Court ruled for
the EPA