ELR Citation: ELR 20436
No(s). 6798 (M.D. Tenn. Apr 25, 1974)

The court issues a mandatory injunction requiring the defendant to remove a permanent bridge which he constructed across a tributary of the impounded Cumberland River without seeking a permit pursuant to the Rivers and Harbors Act of 1899. The authority of the United States over navigable waters extends to the regulation of a tributary stream to the extent that its high water level is the same as that of the main body of navigable water into which the tributary flows. The bridge in this case was constructed at a point below this high water level and becomes submerged during periods of high water, thus impeding navigation up the tributary. The government need not prove that such an unauthorized obstruction was unreasonable in order to obtain injunctive relief under the statute, nor does defendant's assertion that the injunction is inequitable since it will require substantial expenditures alter the clear provisions of the Act.

Counsel for Plaintiff
Charles H. Anderson U.S. Attorney
U.S. Courthouse
801 Broadway
Nashville, TN 37203

Counsel for Defendant
Thomas N. Bateman
221 S. Third Street
Clarksville, TN 37040