- Take Action! Georgia Right to Paddle Imperiled

The Georgia General Assembly has embarked on a process that could result in a sweeping loss of the public’s right to paddle rivers in Georgia. Following some legislative back-and-forth, a committee is now formally convening that will address the matter and may choose to issue a list of streams that they consider to be open to public use under civil-war-era state law. American Whitewater feels strongly that the General Assembly should support outdoor recreation through codifying a modern set of public river use rights rather than attempt to delineate every stream that is or is not open to the public. There are some tangible steps that paddlers can take to help. 

1. Contact Your State Legislator. Let them know that you live and work in Georgia in part because of access to the State’s whitewater rivers, and that maintaining public access to rivers is an important value that you and your family hold. Ask them to contact their colleagues on the Georgia House Study Committee on Navigable Streams seeking support for paddling all rivers and streams in Georgia that are capable of being recreationally navigated. Take action here. 

2. Map Your Headwater Descents. We are not sure where this committee’s work will lead, but we believe that mapping where people have paddled could provide important evidence to the legislature. This is especially true of the upstream-most and oldest descents of rivers, which show the committee that recreational navigation extends far upstream and back many years. All descents are welcome! Please use this survey tool to map some of your descents.