Catching up on my inbox, I see that the Arizona Court of Appeals unanimously that a special commission was wrong and the Salt River was navigable at the time of Arizona statehood. That affects who owns the land in the riverbed, and that affects rights of sand and gravel companies and others who thought they had legally purchased land. The new ruling says the state owns the river lands. [right, historical photo fo the Roosevelt dam on the Salt River. Credit, Salt River Project]
Arizona Republic reporter Howard Fischer runs through the legal history and quotes an attorney for a public interest group saying the ruling will set standards for examining ownership of the Verde, San Pedro, Santa Cruz, and Gila rivers as well.