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Show 18 ORGANIZATION tinues without any requirements for permits, filings, or other ad- ministrative procedures; but certain legislation has substantially facilitated riparian water use by reducing conflicts, disputes, and litigation between riparians. Most notable is the "harmless use" statute, which provides in essence that any riparian use is lawful even though it is inconsistent with the riparian rights of others, so long as it is not causing actual damage to such other riparians. This statute seems to be ex- tremely useful from a practical standpoint, since a major problem in riparian jurisdictions has been extensive litigation whereby riparians suffering no present harm have brought suit to enjoin other riparians from continuing uses which could be harmful in the future if they ripened into prescriptive rights. Most typically, the complaining riparian was making no present use of the water but if "unreasonable" uses by others became prescriptive rights it would preclude the complainant from initiating reasonable future uses on his own land. The New York statute renders such litigation unnec- essary, because it provides that prescriptive rights cannot be ob- tained through unreasonable but harmless uses. In an indirect way, New York does exercise substantial control Over water allocation and use. This results from the fact that cer- tain legislation authorizes creation of a number of water supply entities which exercise control over water allocation, distribution, and use within their service areas. These entities, in turn, are subject to certain State legislative and administrative controls with respect to the use of the water supply. Thus, while these water sup- ply agencies are not required to obtain permits in order to divert water from watercourses, they are subject to certain State controls in the allocation and use of such water. They are also subject to supervision by the State in water use planning before water supply projects are constructed, and they are guided by the statewide water use plan. With respect to certain other types of water use and water related activities, New York exercises a considerable degree of direct administrative regulation. For example, permits are required for waste assimilation (pollution discharges); licenses are required for the generation of hydroelectric power; and State approval is required for stream bed alteration, impoundments and obstructions in watercourses, and excavation and fill operations. As men- tioned above, the nature of New York's regulation of water use has been illustrated because it typifies those States that are endeavoring to impose controls over water use while still embracing the riparian rights system. (4) REFORMS WHICH LIMIT OR ABOLISH THE RIPARIAN SYSTEM One of the most perplexing features of traditional riparian water use is that there are no records to reveal the nature, extent, or scope of water use. Another is the uncertainty and instability-or outright illegality-of water use on nonriparian land or by non- riparians. Many Eastern States have endeavored to solve problems |