Alabama rivers close to dredging!!

By a regulation which went into effect last fall, all navigable rivers in Alabama are closed to dredging. Any non-navigable stream is ok with landowners permission. I have been talking with the Dept of Conversation all winter trying to work this out with no luck. As of now, a game warden or other law officer can ticket any one disturbing, or removing anything on the bottom of a river classified by the state as navigable. This shuts down the Tallapoosa. This is not a law, but a regulation. One person I have talked with spent $50,000 in 2006 fighting a regulation against picking up articles off the river bottoms. He and Perry Massie were caught taking items out of the river at Selma. Perry paid thefine and went home , this man fought it for several years, won , but , but spent a butt load of money!!

What regulation is that? State? Most states did stuff like that based on the EPA's over-reaching, which has been cut back some.

I haven't dredged in Alabama, only worked a small amount, though I was born there and lived there some (Air Force stationed me at Maxwell AFB and I lived and worked at Atmore before that). I did not think Alabama would follow the Kalifornias, Oregons, etc., in that path to the left...

Conservation and Natural Resources Reg 220-4-.15 filed August 11, 2016 effective Sep 25,2016. Basically,section l makes it unlawful to "damage or remove any trees ,crops,plants, minerals,precious metals, dirt,gravel,stones,artifacts,fossils,firewood,mulch,leaf litter,sod or pinestraw " on any state owned land. The river bottoms of navigable waters being declared as State Owned. This is a tregulation, not a law. You could fight it and may win. However it would take a friendly state legislator and MONEY!!
Not a tree hugger type reg, just to keep the "good ole boys" from tearing up state lands. Covers other activities such as camping,fires, hunting etc.

Kinda still begs the question. Does the State of Alabama own the ground or Do the People of Alabama own the land. Somebody needs to tell the Government who they represent. SAD!!!

Dickb

kilnmaint wrote:Conservation and Natural Resources Reg 220-4-.15 filed August 11, 2016 effective Sep 25,2016.  Basically,section l makes it unlawful to "damage or remove any trees ,crops,plants, minerals,precious metals, dirt,gravel,stones,artifacts,fossils,firewood,mulch,leaf litter,sod or pinestraw " on any state owned land.  The river bottoms of navigable waters being declared as State Owned.   This is a tregulation, not a law.  You could fight it and may win.  However it would take a friendly state legislator and MONEY!!
Not a tree hugger type reg, just to keep the "good ole boys" from tearing up state lands. Covers other activities such as camping,fires, hunting etc.

This is pathetic. Almost ashamed to admit I was born there.

As a tourist, it sure tells me. STAY AWAY!!!!!!!

Dickb

Kilnmaint,

Sad, sad, sad...

Government.........at all levels...........federal, state, county, city............have all made themselves the enemy of the people!

In Kalifornia (the People's Kommunist Repiblik of) the state parks people for 2017 made the entire Auburn State Recreation Area now a "hands and pans only" prospecting area.....all 40 miles of NF American River and MF American Rivers and 42,377 acres of Mother Lode country.

https://www.parks.ca.gov/?page_id=502

Gold Panning Regulations


The Auburn SRA only allows gold panning using the “hands and pans” method. Please abide by the following regulations when collecting minerals:

Panning for gold is considered to be “rockhounding” as the term is applied in the Department. The gold pan is the only exception permitted to the exclusion of tools from rockhounding in a unit (T-14 CCR 4611 (i))

Rockhounding is the recreational gathering of stones and minerals found occurring naturally on the undisturbed surface of the land, including panning for gold in the natural water-washed gravel beds of streams (T-14 CCR 4301(v)).

Tools and equipment may not be used in rockhounding, except a gold pan. Rocks or minerals gathered may not be sold or used commercially for the production of profit. One person may gather no more than 15 pounds of mineral material per day. Historic and prehistoric or archeological specimens may not be gathered. In state recreation areas rockhounding is limited to beaches which lie within the jurisdiction of the Department and within the wave action zone on lakes, bays, reservoirs, or on the ocean, and to the beaches or gravel bars which are subject to annual flooding on streams. Rockhounding is limited to within the wave action zones of lakes and streams. Muddy water from panning must not be visible more than 20 feet from the panning operation (T-14 CCR 4307, 4308, & 4611).

If you have any questions, please call the Auburn SRA office for more information.
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Bastards all... It was one of the few places in all of Kalifornia you could still use non-motorized/non-mechanized tools & equipment to crevice, sluice, bedrock bust, etc. Now, nothing but a pan and your hands. They have RUINED it. All for the eco-Nazis and nothing for anyone else!

Randy C-17A

Just remember this come election day! And tell your friends about it also! Maybe even get on the local / state news reels to say your piece!

Russ,

The ONLY hope there is to write Kaliforna Congressman McClintock, that's his district, and beg him to pressure the Kalifornia State Parks people to go back to allowing hand tools and sluices again...

I wrote him.

Never got a reply... Sad. Politicians just DON'T help us......only themselves. SO much swamp needs draining. I am ready for a revolution, start over!

Randy C-17A