Georgia River Gala to honor river protectors

ATHENS – Georgia River Network, the only statewide advocacy organization dedicated solely to protecting Georgia’s rivers, will host the Georgia Rivers Gala at the Atlanta History Center on Aug. 22 to honor river protectors and support the future of river recreation.

The theme for the second annual Georgia Rivers Gala is “Freedom to Float” to celebrate the many significant uses of Georgia rivers across history and raise support to protect the freedom to explore Georgia’s rivers and streams through kayaking, canoeing, tubing and other forms of river recreation.

President Jimmy Carter will receive the River Hero award for his enduring environmental legacy for Georgia’s rivers. Carter’s grandson Jason Carter, a former Georgia State Senator, will accept the River Hero award on behalf of his grandfather.

“President Carter came to our Paddle Georgia river adventure event on the Flint River in 2008 to share how he advocated against proposed dams,” Rena Ann Peck, the executive director of Georgia River Network, said. “He applauded our efforts to help create the Flint Riverkeeper and our continued work to help build 30 other river conservation organizations over the past 26 years.”

President Carter loved spending time outdoors, especially on rivers, and preserved many wild spaces for outdoor recreation. After paddling the Flint River, then-governor Carter vetoed plans for three dams proposals on the Flint. After paddling over Bull Sluice, a class V rapid on the Chattooga River, he protected the Chattooga River from dam building and designated the Chattooga as a Wild and Scenic River, the first river to receive the title nationwide.

As president from 1977 to 1981, Carter continued to protect water resources and encourage river recreation. He de-authorized more than 16 national water reclamation projects that would have harmed riverways, and encouraged river recreation and signed into law the legislation that designated land to the future Chattahoochee River National Recreation Area and the 48-mile Chattahoochee River Water Trail that flows through Atlanta.

Carter also worked to protect water on the coast by creating the Shore Protection Act that saved Little Tybee Island from mining, and the Coastal Marshlands Protection Act that banned mining in the marsh. These success stories are proof points that our current legislature could save the Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge from a proposed mine.

“For generations, my family has explored the Okefenokee Wilderness Canoe Trail," Jason Carter said. "My grandfather, my father, me and my children have all paddled the swamp, and slept on camping platforms under the stars as gators eyed us from the water. Just as my grandfather signed into law the Coastal Marshlands Protection Act to save our coast from mining, today our state has a historic opportunity to outlaw mining that would harm the Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge and St Marys River. I hope our leaders will do everything they can to protect this incredible, beautiful and irreplaceable natural wonder.”.

Peck said Georgia needs more leaders to speak up for the protection of wild spaces and outdoor recreation at this historic turning point for Georgia’s rivers. This year the Georgia General Assembly passed HB 1172, a bill designed to clarify Georgians' right to boat, fish and hunt on our rivers and streams. Legislators also passed a resolution to create a legislative study committee to investigate which streams in Georgia are navigable.

In the process, legislators signaled a strong intention to restrict our rights to freely explore all of Georgia's rivers and streams, indicating their interest toward using the 1863 definition of navigable streams, originally designed for river freight, as the standard to judge where river recreation should be allowed to occur.

“The quality of life for all Georgians is greatly enhanced by improved public access to all of the state’s waterways,” Joe Cook, Georgia River Network's paddle trip coordinator and guidebook author, said. “Likewise, this access supports the state’s robust outdoor recreation tourism industry. These businesses provide Georgians with thousands of jobs and are highly dependent on Georgia’s waterways.”

Georgians are encouraged to join outdoor recreation enthusiasts, conservationists and leaders from across the state at the Georgia Rivers Gala: Freedom to Float at the Atlanta History Center on Aug. 22 from 6-9 p.m. Guests will enjoy a cocktail hour with hors d'oeuvres, a brief program, dinner, and live music by Rob Jordan & Friends.