Unnecessary new policy is all pain for boaters, little gain for whales
by Chris Woodward
The administration wants to restrict speed to 10 knots (11.5 miles per hour) for all boats over 35 feet for up to seven months out of the year and up to 100 miles out at sea for much of the East Coast. The claimed purpose is to protect the endangered right whale from being hit by boats. Jeff Angers, president of the Center for Sportfishing Policy (CSP), says the policy is not safe for boaters.
“Most boats that would go offshore are constructed with a deep V so that they can take the waves,” he explains. “But they can only take the waves when they’re going at ideal speeds, and 10 knots is not just not an ideal speed – it is in many cases unsafe to operate a boat at 10 knots when you’re in some of the weather conditions that we see while we’re offshore.”