Resource Name (Heading 1) - USDA Forest Service - US ...

Summary of Public Comments - Managing Recreation Uses in the
Upper Segment of the Chattooga Wild and Scenic River Corridor EA
it and non-recreation ORVs. This discretion may include restricting or prohibiting a recreational
activity, a number of recreational activities or, perhaps in rare circumstances, all recreation use
within a section (subsection) of the designated component. Through the institution of restrictions
or prohibitions in certain sections of the river, the administering agency may balance recreation
uses of the river corridor to protect and enhance all ORVs, free-flow and water quality for the
entire designated component. Any limitations need to be based on achieving the desired
conditions for recreation and protection of non-recreation ORVs, free-flow and water quality. The
preferred alternative is designed to enhance boating by expanding the boating opportunities while
at the same time protecting the non-boating experience in the upper segment of the Chattooga
WSR.
Q) Section 6(b) of the Wild and Scenic Rivers Act (WSRA) specifically prohibits the use of
condemnation for fee title purchase of private lands if 50 percent or more of the acreage within
the boundaries on both sides of the designated river are in public ownership (federal, state, or
local government). In addition, Section 6(a) (1) of the Act prohibits acquiring more than 100
acres per river mile within the corridor, which is approximately 50 acres on either side of the river
bank. Fee title condemnation is allowed to clear title or to acquire conservation, scenic, or other
types of easements reasonably necessary for public access. The objective of Wild and Scenic
River designation is to protect and, as possible, enhance the values which caused the river to be
designated. Should some proposed or actual use clearly threaten the Outstandingly Remarkable
Values which resulted in the river's designation, negotiated efforts will be pursued to remove the
threat through local zoning, state provisions, land exchanges, purchases on a willingseller/willing-buyer
basis, and other actions short of condemnation. Purchasing a partial right
(easement) or the property in fee title is usually the last resort. If an easement is purchased, the
owner will sell certain development rights and receive a payment, yet retain title to the land.
Where an exchange, scenic easement, or voluntary purchase cannot be negotiated and an activity
(actual or proposed) threatens or significantly degrades river values or the associated area, the
government could pursue condemnation so as to protect the river values which led to designation.
Condemnation is rarely used by the federal government and is the last option in protecting the
values for which the river was designated. (Source: Interagency Wild & Scenic Rivers Council).
The issue of navigability and the rights of the public with respect to this section has not been
adjudicated by a court of law. No federal or state agency or authority has officially determined or
specifically opined as to whether this section of the river is navigable and thus subject to general
public use without permission.1 According to FSM 2354.14 - Navigability of Rivers, “Most
rivers in the country have not been adjudicated as navigable or non-navigable. Consider them
non-navigable until adjudicated otherwise.” The North Carolina Attorney General appears to be
the proper state authority to provide an opinion regarding navigability of the river pursuant to
state law. Ultimately, however, the authority to determine navigability resides exclusively with
the federal and state courts. North Carolina law provides that a river that can be navigated for
“pleasure boating” in its natural condition is navigable-in-fact and therefore navigable-in-law.
Such waters are subject to the public trust doctrine, which authorizes the public to use the waters
for recreational purposes such as swimming and fishing.
Sample Public Comment(s) for PC 26:
Subconcern # A
Someone in the Forest Service is using tax payers money to break federal law, preventing the public from
using federal land (which is paid for and owned by the United States Citizens). (Ltr# 44, Cmt# 1)
Subconcern # B
The U.S. Forest Service recently released a Draft Environmental Assessment aimed at continuing the 35
year-old ban on paddling (canoeing, kayaking, and rafting) on the Upper Chattooga River in North
Carolina, South Carolina, and Georgia. The agency is essentially trying to invent a new management
practice that excludes paddlers. The area is already protected as a Wild and Scenic River and as a
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