Critical public lands protection tool under attack!
Please take action today
 For more than 50 years, The Land & Water Conservation Fund (LWCF) has supported the protection and management of national parks, forests and close-to-home recreational areas, ensuring that all Americans have access to the outdoors. The LWCF is funded through a portion of revenue collected from offshore oil and gas drilling leases in federally-owned waters – not taxpayer dollars.
More than $40 million of LWCF funds have been used to help acquire 27 properties within the Chattahoochee River National Recreation Area, totalling 800 acres!
Despite overwhelming bipartisan support for the LWCF, the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Interior and the Environment is working on a bill that will cut its funding by 32%. While this cut is less than what the Trump Administration has proposed, which is a virtual elimination of funding, it would still be a significant reduction that will put public lands at risk.
We need you to make your voice heard on the issue this week, so we can preserve more land along the shores of the Chattahoochee River.
As a member of the Chattahoochee Coalition with The Trust for Public Land, Chattahoochee Riverkeeper and other partners, we ask you to please urge Senators Johnny Isakson and David Perdue and your Representative to protect the LWCF and ensure the future of America’s public lands and iconic places.
Go to www.chattahoocheecoalition.org. Click on Act Now to get all the information you need to make your voice heard; three calls or emails and you will have helped protect our national park system. Thank you! |
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PEOPLE OF THE PARK
 No volunteer job in our national park is too big – or too small – for Kerstin and Bob Bagus. Originally from Chicago, the couple moved to the Atlanta area a dozen years ago for Kerstin’s job with ClearStar, where she is the director of global initiatives. With Bob  recently retired, Kerstin says that she urged him to find a volunteer job to keep him busy. A drive past one of the park units in the Chattahoochee River National Recreation Area resulted in their contacting Dave Thomas, CRNRA Volunteer Coordinator. More than eight years later, Kerstin and Bob have each donated literally thousands of hours to the park.
Avid hikers, they have completed the multi-day training class for trail maintenance and often lead trail crews, Kerstin’s favorite activity. Bob is a charter member of the CRNRA chainsaw crew and has personally cleared hundreds of trees from park trails. Kerstin and Cynthia Patterson, another dedicated volunteer, are affectionately known as the “Forest Fairies”. Along with other CNRNA volunteers, they do whatever is needed: monitoring trail conditions, reaching out to visitors, and removing trail obstructions with tools they carry in their packs. Every Monday morning, you can find the Bagus’ picking up trash at Settles Bridge and McGinnis Ferry Units, and for years they have participated as leaders in the annual Sweep the Hooch event. To become a CRNRA Volunteer in Parks (VIP), click here.
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THINGS TO DO... Take a walk in the park over the Thanksgiving holidays!  With more than eighty miles of trails, you have lots of choices along a 48 mile stretch of the Chattahoochee River. For a park map, click here. To plan your visit, click here.
Trail Plan Underway
 More than 85 CPC members and National Park Service staff attended our annual Member Celebration at the river, despite the chilly late October weather. Thank you! We recognized special volunteers and supporters and celebrated a $50,000 gift made by CPC and The Trust for Public Land to Superintendent Bill Cox (above right) to help fund the first-ever trail master plan for the CRNRA. The plan will assess the existing trail conditions and develop recommendations for maintenance, restoration and connectivity to local trails. Stay tuned!
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CRNRA WISH LIST: Two canoes, a vehicle vacuum, a wall surface cleaner (restrooms), a Dewalt 2-speed planer and a Roland plotter. If you can donate any of these items, or would like to donate funds to help us purchase them, please contact info@chattahoocheeparks.org.
Become a member of Chattahoochee Parks Conservancy today!
As a member, you can help us achieve our vision of an inspired and thriving community of support for the Chattahoochee River National Recreation Area. Click here to join! |
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Chattahoochee Parks Conservancy Inc. is proud to support our Chattahoochee River National Recreation Area, a unit of the national park system managed by the National Park Service.