Public rights on waterways re article in Western Producer

[15444]

How far up the lake/river bank does the crown own?

You would have to confirm to be sure, but as far as I have been told, none. Not a single inch.

[makar]

10 meters back in my home quarter on the subbed off half. This is in alberta, i own to the high water mark because my home was grandfathered when i bought it.

[Guest]

yea it's interesting , you can put a boat lift right in front of a lakefront million dollar cabin and as long as you can get to it without trespassing on the cabin property , nothing can be done . has happened around here

[samhill]

The crown doesn't own the creek bed on non navigable waterways, the crown does have jurisdiction on the water or you could say they own the water. The public does not have right of use on non navigable waterways.
On navigable waters the crown owns 30 metres from water edge on each side.

[ColevilleH2S]

Are you sure your creek is a navigable waterway? I found this list, and there are only 64 Rivers on it. (List near bottom of the page)
http://laws-lois.justice.gc.ca/eng/acts/n-22/FullText.html#h-27 http://laws-lois.justice.gc.ca/eng/acts/n-22/FullText.html#h-27

[15444]

Seems that individual provinces make up their own rules, as usual. Ontario does not recognize the banks as being Crown land. In the Prairie provinces, however:

"Stream and lake beds are crown property. This was affirmed by the 1894 North-West Irrigation Act and by a 1932 Supreme Court of Canada decision.

The principle that lake beds and streams are crown property continues in current legislation. Manitoba’s Crown Lands Act reserves the bed of a body of water and a strip of land 30 metres from the highwater mark for the crown.

If land borders a navigable waterway, the crown also reserves “the public right of landing from, and mooring, boats and vessels so far as is reasonably necessary.”

Saskatchewan’s Provincial Lands Act reserves the public right of access to lakes, rivers, streams and bodies of water “and the right of passing and repassing on or besides the land on either side and wherever necessary for the use thereof.”

Alberta legislation simply provides that the crown has title to all “beds and shores” of permanent and naturally occurring bodies of water, rivers and streams."