AI-assisted research summary: The scenic river system is administered by the department of environment and conservation, and the commissioner can issue needed regulations. Publicity and development are limited in specified scenic river areas.
The scenic river system shall be administered by the department of environment and conservation in cooperation with the wildlife resources agency and according to the policies and criteria set forth in this chapter. The commissioner of environment and conservation is authorized to make and enforce such regulations as are necessary to carry out this chapter as they relate to the scenic values of river areas. In such administration, primary emphasis shall be given to protecting aesthetic, scenic, historic, archaeologic, and scientific features of the area; no buildings for accommodation, administration, or similar purposes shall be constructed, within a scenic river area, within view of the river or its banks, nor shall any automobile parking lots, campgrounds, or similar facilities be located in areas not adequately screened from the river. When publicizing the state's scenic rivers system, the commissioner shall not publicize, and shall omit from any publicity, any Class II or Class III river any part of which flows through a county with a population in excess of four hundred thousand (400,000) according to the United States census of 1970 or any subsequent census. Management plans for protection may differ in intensity within a given class of rivers or within a given river area, based on special attributes of the different localities, but should adhere to the following criteria as closely as possible: Class I scenic river areas should be managed in a manner which: Would best maintain and enhance those conditions which are attributed to a wilderness type area, and those criteria embodied in § 11-13-103; Would allow camping and river access only at designated public access areas acquired in fee; and Would allow for public use only within prescribed public use easements or public access areas; Class II scenic river areas should be managed in a manner which would best maintain and enhance the scenic values of the river and the adjacent lands while at the same time preserving the right of riparian landowners to use the river for customary agricultural and other rural purposes; and Class III scenic river areas should be managed in a manner which would best maintain and enhance the scenic values of the river while at the same time preserving the right of riparian landowners to use the river for customary agricultural, residential, recreational, commercial, and industrial purposes.