Ohio River Corridor — ORSANCO, USACE Navigation Servitude & Federal Levee Authority (KY)
Tracked preemption from the Kentucky overlay bundle.
Overview
← All state preemptionsKentucky overlay roll-upKentucky zoning wikiKentucky building codesFederal overlaysGlossaryFederal-conflict: Yes
Effective
1899-03-03
Sunset
—
Authority
federal_via_state
Scope
state:KY
Other Kentucky preemptions
2024 HB 443 — Objective-Standards / Ministerial-Application MandateKRS 65.490 et seq. — Tax Increment Financing (Local Development Areas)KRS 67C / Ky. Const. §156a — Louisville Metro Consolidated Local GovernmentKRS Chapter 224A / 224.01-400 — Brownfield Voluntary Environmental RemediationKRS 100.348 — Manufactured Housing Anti-Exclusion & Parity (2025 HB 160)KRS Chapter 350 / SMCRA — Surface Coal Mining Regulation & Mountaintop RemovalOffice of Kentucky Nature Preserves (OKNP) — Designated Nature Preserves & T&E HabitatKRS 146.200 et seq. — Kentucky Wild Rivers System
Trigger predicate
When this evaluates true for a parcel, the law's preempted fields take precedence over base zoning.
OR
parcel.ohio_river_frontage==Trueparcel.within_ohio_river_floodway==Trueparcel.behind_federal_ohio_river_levee==True
Preempted fields
3 fields on the base district schema are rewritten when the trigger fires.
| Field | Op | Value | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
review_type | require | usace_section_10_rha_permit | 33 USC §403 (Rivers and Harbors Act §10): USACE Louisville/Pittsburgh District permit required for any structure or work in/affecting navigable Ohio River; navigation servitude is paramount federal interest |
base_districts[*].ohio_river_water_quality_standards | override | orsanco_pcs_compliance | ORSANCO Pollution Control Standards layer on top of state §401 / NPDES standards for the Ohio River main stem |
land_development.levee_district_encroachment | require | usace_section_408_levee_district_approval | 33 USC §408: USACE Section 408 approval required for any alteration or encroachment on federal levee systems (Louisville, Newport, Covington, Henderson, Paducah floodwalls) |
Citation
Authority source
33 USC §403 (RHA §10); 33 USC §408 (USACE levee alteration); ORSANCO Compact (codified at KRS §224.18-720 and parallel statutes in 7 compact states); USACE Louisville District navigation charts
§ 33 USC §§403, 408; KRS §224.18-720 (ORSANCO compact)
Research notes
Ohio River forms KY's entire northern boundary across 11 river-frontage counties: Boone, Kenton, Campbell, Pendleton, Bracken, Mason, Lewis, Greenup, Boyd, Lawrence (small), and northern reach via Carroll, Trimble, Oldham, Jefferson (Louisville), Hardin (small), Meade, Breckinridge, Hancock, Daviess, Henderson, Union, Crittenden, Livingston, Ballard. Federal levee systems protect Louisville (USACE Ohio River Floodwall, 29-mile system), Newport-Covington, Henderson, Paducah, and smaller communities. Navigation servitude is paramount — riparian rights subordinate. Cross-state coordination via ORSANCO.