What do littoral rights refer to?

Littoral rights pertain specifically to the rights of property owners whose land is adjacent to large bodies of water, such as lakes and oceans. These rights grant the owner access to the water and the use of it for recreational purposes or other uses that do not infringe on the rights of others.

Understanding littoral rights is crucial for homeowners and real estate professionals because they can influence property value and usage. For instance, a property that has access to a lake may have different zoning regulations or restrictions on development due to its proximity to water.

In this context, the other options do not accurately represent what littoral rights entail. Rights to surface minerals, for example, involve access to minerals found on the land but are unrelated to water rights. Similarly, rights to land under lakes represent a different legal concept—riparian rights, which typically relate to smaller bodies of water. Rights to navigable waterways is another distinctive category often associated with public access and use, separate from the specific rights related to more expansive bodies of water that characterizes littoral rights.