Boating enthusiasts and representatives of the recreational boating industry are asking Georgia lawmakers to separate the right to float along the state’s rivers and streams from hunting and fishing.
That was a major theme of the final meeting Nov. 13 of a legislative study committee that has been grappling with how to guarantee Georgians access to the state’s navigable rivers and streams without violating private property rights.
“The right of passage is independent of laws relating to navigability,” Joe Cook, paddle coordinator for Georgia Rivers, a member of the Freedom to Float Coalition, told members of the study committee. “Common law guarantees the right to float.”…