They decided not to change the 1863 law, and did not chart any clear legislative course forward.
This is better than some courses they could have taken, the Georgia House Study Committee on Navigable Streams and Related Matters.
However, they seem to left the problem for everyone else to navigate in ad hoc partnerships,
which could leave paddlers having to negotiate passage among many parties.
Final Report for little change, maybe privatization of passage 2024-12-01, Georgia House Study Committee on Navigable Streams and Related Matters
Here are the recommendations of the committee from their final report:
- Maintain the definition of navigability set forth in O.C.G.A.
§44-8-5(a) and the right of passage for navigable streams as
found in O.C.G.A. §52-1-31;
- Refrain from a statutory delineation of navigable and
non-navigable streams;
- Incentivize and strengthen tools to foster collaboration and
partnerships between landowners, nonprofits, and local/state
government that increase opportunities for public access and
conservation of Georgia’s waterways;
- Preserve the Georgia Outdoor Stewardship Program;
- Urge the Department of Natural Resources to further publicize
and fund new technologies that assist in tracking and resolving
disputes on waterways; and
- Protect Georgia’s fishing, hunting, trapping, and outdoor
recreation traditions, as well as those reliant on waterways such as
logging and farming, by carefully analyzing the impact of any
potential legislation on these sectors.
They paid commendable attention to what the public had to say, including fishers, paddlers, riparian landowners, loggers, farmers, and trappers (who said current law does not permit them to trap on public waters).
Noting pulls in various directions, the committee continued to support the 1863 law that requires a navigable stream to be
“capable of transporting boats loaded with freight in the regular course of trade either for
the whole or a part of the year,”
while the committee also depended on GA-DNR’s opinion: Continue reading →