Speaking to the chapter on March 28 will be KellyTaylor. He will be discussing the hatchery and what is planned this year and into the future. 

Kelly received his bachelor's degree in Biology from Georgia Southern in 1992 and  began working at Bo Ginn National Fish Hatchery in Millen, GA, as an animal caretaker in 1994. Two years later, he served as a tractor operator at Bo Ginn being employed half-time by U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the other by the state of Georgia (wearing a federal uniform half of each week and a state uniform the other). Bo Ginn ceased operation in 1996 due to funding which resulted in his transfer to animal caretaker at Wolf Creek National Fish Hatchery in Jamestown, KY, and then to the Chattahoochee Forest National Fish Hatchery in 1999 where he has served as a Fishery Biologist since 2000.  Taylor then served as Assistant Manager of the Chattahoochee Forest National Fish

Hatchery since 2006. In 2008, he was delegated the task of temporarily serving as Acting Hatchery Manager for Erwin National Fish Hatchery, in Erwin, TN. Following the retirement of Manager Deborah Burger. Taylor was officially promoted to the position of   Manager at the Chattahoochee Forest National Fish Hatchery effective January 10, 2016.

With well over 20 years of experience himself, Taylor leads a team of well-trained and educated professionals that can boast over 80 years of experience between them. On his team are Facility Operations Specialists Terry Callihan and Mitchell Pickelsimer, Program Assistant Crystal Thomas, and Animal Caretaker Jamey Mull.

Taylor resides in Union County with his wife Jinger, and two daughters Piper and Jada.

A new tool for anglers has opened its doors to the world. It's a web-based platform that helps anglers find guides from the Caribbean to Alaska. It's called Fisher Guiding, and it's goal is simply to make guided fishing trips accessible for everyone.

"The whole idea behind it is accessible angling, making fishing more open," says Fisher Guiding CEO and co-founder Edward Hill. "It's a marketplace for anglers to discover and book fishing guides, and a tool for guides to promote and manage their bookings."

Hill says Fisher Guiding was born out of necessity when he tried to book a fly fishing trip in the Everglades in 2016. "I always wanted to fish the Everglades, but you really need a guide to do it right. Between research, finding a guide with good reviews and a reasonable price point, then getting in touch with that guide, it took way too long. And, I couldn't book the trip online. From that, the idea for Fisher Guiding came about."

Click on the logo above to find out more about this new online guide-finding service.

Last month  Georgia  TU members   were present at the Bass Pro Shop's "Tie One On"  event where many shoppers stopped by to learn more about TU or sit down and tie  their first fly.  This event, over the past years, has been very successful in supporting our educational program and our chapters have been generous in their support.

The event is coordinated by the Georgia Council of Trout Unlimited and monies collected from donating chapters over the past years have gone to help fund educational sessions at Smithgall Woods and to the growing 5 Rivers programs in the state. 

Senate Bill 165 addresses solid waste management and seeks to impose liability. SB 165 was introduced by Senator William Ligon, but has not received a committee hearing with the Senate Natural Resources Committee.

GWC has created resources for you to learn more about this issue. 

Georgia Water Coalition supports SB 165, HB 387 and HB 388.  Both House Bills have stalled in the House of Natural Resources and Environment Committee.

What You Can Do:

Info taken from the "Georgia River Network Newsletter"

On Saturday, April 22, The Upper Chattahoochee Chapter of Trout Unlimited will offer a comprehensive one-day fly fishing clinic for young men and women, ages 10 to 15.  The Rizzio clinic is designed for the beginning fly fisher and will provide basic instruction in all phases of fly fishing including fly casting, knot tying, insect identification, and conservation. 

Certified instructors and mentors work with students to provide individual instruction and answer questions. Each student is awarded a certificate upon completion and WILL RECEIVE A REDINGTON FLY ROD AND REEL OUTFIT!

 

The clinic is limited to 36 students and is offered at a nominal cost of $20. Students are provided all necessary equipment, but should bring weather appropriate outdoor clothing, a brimmed hat, sunglasses or prescription glasses (mandatory safety item), insect repellent, and sunscreen. Students who prefer to use their own fly rod may do so. No hooks will be used on the line; this is an instructional day. 

All instructors bring a lot of enthusiasm to their classes. Each is passionate and eager to teach the art of fly fishing and pass along their interest in conservation.  Unfortunately, due to the limited space, students who have previously attended this clinic are not eligible to attend again.

2017 Rizzio Clinic Information:

Saturday April 22, 2017 (8:30am-1:30pm)

Chattahoochee Nature Center

9135 Willeo Road

Roswell, Ga 30075

For more inforamtion, contact our Education Chair Tom Hayes at

9:30-11:30 am: Career Expo  at Emory's Student Center, DUC.

12:00-2:00 pm: Leadership Luncheon and annual Awards Program at Emory's Cox Hall.

2:30-4:30 pm: Water Talks and WaterHub Tours at
Emory University's state-of-the-art water reclamation facility. 

5:00-7:00 pm: Cocktail/social hour and closing.

For more info visit the website HERE or check the event out on FaceBook  HERE .

EarthShare of Georgia connects people to trusted  nonprofit organizations dedicated to conserving and protecting our air, land, and water...w orking for the day when our air, land, and water are clean, abundant and healthy.

EarthShare of Georgia is a means to donate, through payroll deduction, to Trout Unlimited or over 60 participating environmental and conservation groups that are participants. Employee giving campaigns for EarthShare of Georgia have grown steadily each year, from 8 in 1993 to more than 50 in 2014 representing more than 400,000 employees in both public and private sector. EarthShare has raised more than $6 million to help support environmental causes.

 

Is your company a member of EarthShare?

EarthShare of Georgia has over 50 Company Partners, including 2016 Earth Day Award Winners, Cox Enterprises, Chattahoochee Riverkeeper and Kaiser Permanente. Many EarthShare partners provide a matching contribution on behalf of employees who participate through payroll deduction. This is an excellent means to support Trout Unlimited on an on-going basis. To learn more, go to the website,   EarthShareGA.org and/or ask your employer if they are a Company Partner. If not, encourage them to do so. EarthShare of Georgia is part of a nationwide network of EarthShare affiliates dedicated to raising funds for environmental organizations through employee giving campaigns. 

Trout Unlimited has become active in supporting research into finding a way to control the Woolly Adelgid that is destroying our hemlocks along our precious mountain brook trout streams.  The Woolly Adelgid is a small aphid like insect, less than a 1/16 of an inch long that first appeared in Virginia in 1951 and has since spread from Maine to Georgia destroying hemlocks that shade our streams.

Hemlock Trees are a keystone species and play a unique role in providing food and habitat for about 120 species of vertebrates and more than 90 species of birds, shade for native plants, cool temperatures for trout streams, and protection for watersheds and water quality. How many environmental "dominos" might fall if the hemlocks fall?

Healthy mature trees such as hemlocks can add as much as 7-10% to  property values, provide the net cooling effect of 10 room-sized air conditioners running 20 hours a day, perform millions of dollars worth of water purification per mature tree along our waterways, and save billions of dollars a year by filtering CO2 and other pollutants from the air as they produce oxygen for us to breathe. Can we afford to lose these valuable trees?

savegeorgiashemlocks.org .