State Marine Board denies Fly Creek Inlet no-wake zone
The Oregon State Marine Board on Tuesday denied a request by residents of Fly Creek Inlet on Lake Billy Chinook for a “no-wake zone” and other new rules banning unauthorized anchoring, mooring or beaching of a vessel in the area. But they did agree to draft new rules for boat operations in the area, as well as repair floating restrooms for the popular lake.
The actions took place at a special board meeting, held by teleconference at the Marine Board office in Salem.
The meeting was held to discuss a petition for rulemaking on Lake Billy Chinook to comply with petition timelines. Additionally, the board considered a grant request to repair two floating restrooms on Lake Billy Chinook and adopted rules for the aquatic invasive species program.
The board, on a 4-0 vote, denied a petition received on Oct. 2 requesting rulemaking to adopt a new rule to establish a no-wake zone in the Fly Creek Inlet on Lake Billy Chinook, as well as prohibit unauthorized anchoring, mooring or beaching of a vessel in the area.
The board voted 3-1 to open rulemaking for boat operations in the Fly Creek Inlet, which means that staff will recommend new rule language that will go out for public comment in the near future, a board representative said.
The board also approved a grant with the Oregon Department of Parks and Recreation to repair two floating restrooms on Lake Billy Chinook. It authorized $16,051 in federal Clean Vessel Act funds and $3,949 in state boater funds to match an estimated $7,341.27 cash, labor and administration for a total project cost of $27,341.27.
The funds will repair broken components, replace 8 inch cleats with 12 inch cleats, repair and replace toilets and expand the drain lines from 3 inch to 4 inch diameter, for improved drainage into the holding tanks.
The Marine Board also moved to adopt Aquatic Invasive Species Prevention Permit Rules, OAR 250-010-0650, that allows commercial businesses and outfitters/guides who rent manually powered boats to be issued a single business certificate of compliance in lieu of individual boat permit carriage requirements. This rule change will reduce cost and processing time for the agency and allow marine law enforcement to focus on safety vs. compliance with administrative requirements on the water.
To view the agency staff report, visit http://www.oregon.gov/OSMB/info/Pages/Board-and-Public-Meetings.aspx
