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In 1974, Congress designated the 57-mile Chattooga River (and its 15,432-acre corridor) as a component of the National Wild and Scenic River System. The uppermost portion of the Chattooga Wild and Scenic River (W&SR) is located in the Nantahala National Forest (NF) in North Carolina. The river flows in a southerly, southwesterly direction to form the boundary between the Chattahoochee National Forest (in Georgia) and the Sumter National Forest (in South Carolina). In the initial 1976 river management plan for the Chattooga River, the U.S. Forest Service used zoning to manage the upper and lower segments of the river for different recreational opportunities. As a part of that initial zoning effort, management direction prohibited floating on the upper segment above GA/SC Highway 28 (which includes a section of the river in the Sumter NF, a section of the river in the Chattahoochee NF, and all of the sections of the river in the Nantahala NF). Under the authority of 36 CFR 261.70(a)(7), these prohibitions were codified at 36 CFR 261.77 (in January 1978). In general terms, 36 CFR 261.77 prohibits floating activities on the Chattooga W&SR unless authorized by a permit. Consistent with the river management plan that was incorporated into the forest plans, the original terms and conditions of the permits issued pursuant to 36 CFR 261.77 allowed floating on the Chattooga W&SR, but only on that portion of the river located downstream of GA/SC Highway 28. On January 31, 2012, the Chattahoochee, Nantahala, and Sumter NFs issued Decision Notices that amended their Forest Plans to incorporate new management direction for the Chattooga W&SR. Generally, these new decisions allow floating above GA/SC Highway 28 with certain restrictions. To be consistent with this new management direction, the agency is proposing to amend 36 CFR 261.77.