Public Water Access Advisory Board

The Public Water Access Advisory Board (PWAAB)'s charge is to advise, monitor and coordinate state agency public access efforts including the Statewide Public Access Program. The Board is in support of the Fish and Game Department's Public Access Program to maximize these state ownerships on public water for the public's benefit.

Enjoying public water access: Click on the image below for a 3-minute video about launching from Fish and Game's boat access facility in Laconia for a fishing trip on on Lake Winnisquam. Opened in 2009, the site earned the N.H. Engineering Excellence Award in the Water Resources Category from the American Council of Engineering Companies.

The Public Water Access Advisory Board is comprised of 19 members representing the following organizations and interests: N.H. Fish and Game Department; Department of Resources and Economic Development; Department of Environmental Services; Department of Transportation; Department of Safety; Office of State Planning; two members of the general public; two Senators; two House members (one from Resources and Recreation Committee and one from the Fish and Game Committee); public members representing the following interest groups: hunting, fishing, power boating, lake associations, rivers associations, non-motorized boating and the Governor's Commission on Disability. Members are appointed for a term of 3 years.

Public Water Access Advisory Board (PWAAB) members have worked on a number of important access endeavors over the years, becoming a central repository for access information and fostering a communal effort between state agencies that deal in public access.

For a list of Fish and Game public water access sites in New Hampshire, click here.

For an interactive GIS map viewer of all N.H. public access and other recreation sites, click here.

ACCESS! Feature article about the public access program in N.H. (from NH Wildlife Journal, March/April 2010)

To learn about the proposed Wild Goose Public Access site on Lake Sunapee, click here.

Upcoming meetings of the N.H. Public Water Access Advisory Board (PWAAB)

The public is invited to attend Public Water Access Advisory Board meetings. Routinely, these meetings generally occur on Mondays in alternate months, from 9 a.m. to 12 noon at the N.H. Fish and Game Department headquarters, 11 Hazen Drive, Concord, N.H. Please note that meeting dates are subject to cancellation or change, so public participants should call Administrative Secretary Ellen Macneil at 603-271-2461 to confirm.

PWAAB Meeting Schedule:

PWAAB Annual Reports
(click on year):

PWAAB meets on the first Monday of every other month:

June 4, 2012
August 6, 2012
October 1, 2012
December 3, 2012

Location: N.H. Fish and Game Department headquarters, 11 Hazen Drive, Concord.
Time: 9:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m.
Contact: Thomas Quarles, PWAAB Chairman, (603) 695-8641 ; or Ellen Macneil, Administrative Secretary, (603) 271-2461

PWAAB Meeting Minutes (click on date) - Minutes are posted only after formal approval.

2011 Minutes

2010 Minutes

Archives of past meeting minutes

Current members of N.H.'s Public Water Access Advisory Board are listed below with their contact information:

BOARD MEMBER NAME and affiliation	ADDRESS	TERM EXPIRES
Thomas Quarles, Esq, Chair - General Public	Devine, Millimet & Branch, P.A., 111 Amherst Street, Manchester, NH 03101; Phone: (603) 695-8641; Fax: (603) 666-4288; Email: tquarles@devinemillimet.com	October 27, 2013
Ellen Macneil, Administrative Secretary	NH Fish and Game Department 11 Hazen Drive, Concord, NH 03301 (603) 271-2461; ellen.macneil@wildlife.nh.gov	N/A
N.H. FISH AND GAME DEPARTMENT Glenn Normandeau, Executive Director Richard Fink, Public Works Manager Jeffrey King, Biologist III	11 Hazen Drive, Concord, NH 03301; Phone: (603) 271-3511; Fax: (603) 271-6938 Glenn Normandeau: (603) 271-3511 Richard Fink: (603) 271-1134; richard.fink@wildlife.nh.gov Jeffrey King: (603) 271-1748	N/A
Mary Ellen Mel Pfeifle - Hunting Interests	80 Ring Hill Road, Bradford, NH 03221; Phone: (603) 938-5981; Email: mpfeifle@conknet.net	October 27, 2013
The Hon. Jeanie Forrester, NH State Senate	State House, Room 105-A Concord, NH 03301 Phone: (603) 271-4151 (w); Email: jeanie.forrester@leg.state.nh.us	N/A
The Hon. James Forsythe, NH State Senate	L.O.B, Room 5, 33 North State Street, Concord, NH 03301; Phone: (603) 271-3067 (w) Email: james.forsythe@leg.state.nh.us	N/A
The Hon. John W. Henson, Fish and Game Committee, NH House of Representatives	15 Grove Street, Exeter, NH 03833-2709; Phone (h): (603) 772-3725; Email: john.hensen@leg.state.nh.us	N/A
The Hon. Tyler W. Simpson Fish and Game Committee NH House of Representatives	PO Box 757, Ashland, NH 03217-0757; Phone: (603)968-9285 (h) ; Email: Tsimpson.rep@gmail.com	N/A
The Hon. Laurie Pettengill R. R. & D Committee NH House of Representatives	PO Box 35, Glen, NH 03838-0035; Phone: (603)986-0162 (h); Email: laurie.pettengill@leg.state.nh.us	N/A
Jayne E. Spaulding - General Public	18 Brick Mill Road, Bedford, NH 03110-5114; Phone: (603) 471-0735 (h); (603) 493-5406 (w); E-mail: jaynespaulding@hotmail.com	October 27, 2012
Joseph A. Norton - Hunting Interests	PO Box 772, Henniker, NH 03242; Phone (h): (603) 428-7171; Fax: (603) 623-7783; Email: ed@nhwf.org	October 27, 2010
R. Andrew Robertson Non-motorized Boating	32 Haynes Rd, Deerfield, NH 03037; Phone: (603) 463-7158 (h); (603) 736-8562 (w); Email: arobert536@aol.com	October 27, 2013
Richard Smith - Fishing Interests	123 Prospect Hill Road, Hancock, NH 03449; Phone: (603) 525-4229; Email: d-smith@worldpath.net	October 27, 2013
Joseph B. Goodnough - N.H. Lakes Association	213 Bay Point Road, Box 2023, Newbury, NH 03255; Phone: (603)763-9667 (h) ; Email: joe.goodnough@myfairpoint.net	October 27, 2013
Marcy Stanton, River Interests	76 Stable Road, Milford, NH 03055 Phone: (603) 672-3148 (h); (603) 801-0624 (c); Email: marcystanton09@gmail.com	December 16, 2013
B. David Bryan - Coastal Conservation Commission	36 Great Hill Drive, Newmarket, NH 03857; Phone: (603) 661-0147; Email: David_Bryan_NH@oldnacl.com	October 5, 2011
Jacquie Colburn -- NH DEPARTMENT OF ENVIRONMENTAL SERVICES	29 Hazen Drive, Concord, NH 03301; Phone: (603) 271-2959; Email: jcolburn@des.state.nh.us	N/A
Lt. Timothy Dunleavy, NH DEPARTMENT OF SAFETY	31 Dock Road, Gilford, NH 03249; Phone: (603) 293-2037; E-mail: timothy.dunleavy@dos.nh.gov	N/A
Bob Spoerl - NH DEPT OF RESOURCES AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT	PO Box 1856, Concord, NH 03302-1856; Phone: (603) 271-2214 x307; Email: bspoerl@dred.state.nh.us	N/A
Matt Urban - NH DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION	7 Hazen Drive, PO Box 483 (mailing) Concord, NH 03302; Phone: (603) 271-3226; Email: murban@dot.state.nh.us	N/A
Stephen Walker, NH OFFICE OF ENERGY AND PLANNING	NHOEP, Johnson Hall, 107 Pleasant Street, Concord, NH 03301; Phone: (603) 271-6834; Email: steve.walker@nh.gov	N/A
Jillian Shedd or Thomas Manning GOVERNOR'S COMMISSION ON DISABILITY	GCD, 57 Regional Drive, Concord, NH 03301 Phone: 603-271-4177 Jillian.Shedd@nh.gov; Thomas.manning@nh.gov	N/A
Scott Verdonck Powerboat Interests	19 Benjamin Drive, Goffstown, NH 03045; Phone: (603) 660-8463 (h) (775)557-4140 (o); Email: sverdo1@yahoo.com	October 27, 2013