"Each year, around a half a million people go whitewater rafting in Colorado, and the industry is a key economic driver in many rural towns. But in recent months, the issue of rafting and who can float through stretches of private property has divided the state.

The topic surfaced in the state legislature when a private landowner wanted to ban rafting on a two-mile stretch of river that flows through his ranch. "

Bente Birkeland reports for NPR's Morning Edition July 22, 2010. [2]