The North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission is hosting a public meeting to discuss a new management plan for the Green River Gamelands on the evening of August 1, 2013.  The new plan will inform how the area is protected and managed for at least the next decade.  The meeting announcement specifically welcomes kayakers and other recreationists to attend the meeting and offer their opinions.  

At the heart of the 10,000 acre Green River Gamelands is the Green River itself: the class III+ Upper Green, the iconic Class V Green River Narrows, and the popular Class II Lower Green.  These sections experience regular dam releases from the Tuxedo Hydropower Project upstream.  The Gamelands form the scenery and the access for some of the best paddling in the Southern Appalachians for nearly all ability levels.  

Green River paddlers are encouraged to attend the meeting or submit online written comments to discuss your vision for the future of the Green River Gamelands.  The agency promises a broad discussion, and asks the following questions of written commenters: 

• What habitats do you think are most important to protect and/or improve on the Green River Game Land?
• Considering those that live on land and in water, what species do you think are most important to protect and/or improve on the Green River Game Land?
• How do you use the Green River Game Land?
• Please explain why you think the current level of access is, or is not, satisfactory on the Green River Game Land?
• What suggestions, if any, do you have for changing how the Green River Game Land is managed and maintained?
• What would encourage you to start using the Green River Game Land, or to continue using it more actively?
• What additional comments do you have about the Green River Game Land?

Details of the meeting can be found here, and directions on submitting written comments can be found here.