Laws Intended To Keep The Buffalo River Clean
Posted on July 25, 2007
Filed Under Buffalo River Float |
Maintaining the scenic beauty of the Buffalo National River is not something that “just happens”. There are rules and regulations that must be followed when floating the river. The rules are not meant to detract from the experience of paddling the river. They’re simply intended to keep the river clean and to keep people safe.
The Arkansas Game & Fish Commission has put together a beautiful website which clearly states the regulations needed to keep the river clean. Those rules can be found by following this link. I’ll highlight the regulations here:
Glass Containers are Prohibited - With the exception of containers used for substances that are prescribed by a licensed physician. That means NO glass soft drink or beer bottles in your canoe. This shouldn’t be a problem because you can always purchase your beverages in plastic or in cans.
Fasten Cooler Lids - In the event you should turn your canoe over, you’re likely to lose at least some of the contents you had packed in your cooler if it’s not secured properly. Wrap a “bungee” around your cooler and strap the cooler in your boat and you should be fine. While not specified in the regulations, I would recommend strapping “everything” in your boat and not just your cooler. Rod & reels don’t float very well 
Attach and Use a Mesh Litter Bag - If you’ve never been to the Buffalo, you may not realize how beautiful it is. Sure, you’ll see some trash occasionally, but considering the many thousands of people that come to the river each year, it’s unusually pristine. The only way it will stay that way is if everyone does their part to keep this river clean! Carry along at least one, if not two, mesh litter bags. The canoe rental shops along the river will normally provide these for you if you’re renting their canoes, or you can usually buy them locally if you bring your own canoe or kayak. Most importantly…USE THE BAGS! When you finish a drink or have trash from a snack or meal, put it in the bag, cinch it shut and make sure it’s securely tied into the canoe. And if you smoke…., please put your cigarette butts in the bag as well. You don’t know how bad we hate to see cigarette butts floating down the river!
Use a Floating Holder for Beverages - Essentially this means that if you have a drink in the boat, (not in the cooler or trash bag), it needs to be in some kind of a container that floats so that if you should turn over or drop the beverage out of the boat, it will not sink. I think there are a lot of people that aren’t aware of this law, and I have to admit that I wasn’t aware of it until I started researching. We typically make a camping/floating trip with 50 or more people each year and I’ve never heard anyone mention this? So…regardless of whether it’s a new law or one that simply hasn’t received much attention, it’s still a LAW.
Again…use common sense and treat the river with respect by keeping it clean and everything should be fine.
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