Rivers has sediment not sentiment

Via Wesley J. Smith:

Now, a proposal is being pushed in the UK to give “rights” to the Frome River. From the SomersetLive story:

The River Frome could soon be capable of bearing the same rights as humans and companies, if proposals to establish a nature rights by-law go ahead.

Sustainable Frome is campaigning to get Frome Town Council to create a new type of by-law which recognises the river as a legal system capable of bearing the same rights as us humans.

The key elements of a nature rights by-law for the river were laid out at a town council meeting last July. These would be:

1. That the river be given appropriate rights stemming from the function of rivers within the wider whole of nature.

2. That local people and the council be granted the power to enforce these rights on behalf of the river. Currently anyone trying to defend the nature of the river has to show sufficient interest in order to bring a case.

3. That the river must not be subordinated to the rights and interests of companies of natural persons, whose property claims must respect the rights of the river.

Now I like Fantasy stories just as much as my favorite genres. Always liked sentient rivers that struck deals in such stories. This is all just fine for fiction.

Now if rivers are sentient and has rights, Old Man River is due some Social Security back payments.

Ol’ man river, that ol’ man river
He don’t say nothin‘, but he must know somethin’
He just keeps rollin‘, he keeps on rollin’ along

Although they might consider all the back taxes rivers must owe since they have the same rights and thus duties as humans.