Online petition makes racket about noisy speedboats

Don Plant Kelowna Courier:
The call to stop loud boats from roaring along Okanagan Lake is louder than many predicted. A website created 10 days ago to gather support for a crackdown on the high-decibel vessels had collected 2,196 names by noon Sunday. The website‘s author says the online petition shows how broad the concern is over noise pollution on the lake. “It goes way beyond people who live on the lakeshore. These are people who live on the hillsides in the Mission, West Kelowna Estates, Poplar Point, Carrs Landing and Peachland. They hear noise reverberate up the hillside,” he said. The Central Okanagan man agreed to be interviewed only if his name is withheld. He‘s afraid owners of excessively loud boats will target him. RCMP told Kelowna city council last month there are no effective restrictions that limit how loud a boat engine can be or how fast vessels can travel. Critics of the noisy boats, which can be worth more than $100,000, say the current fine of $115 amounts to pocket change for the owners. “Some boats burn that much in an hour on gas,” the website‘s author said. “They‘re deafening. You have to stop talking. “If you‘re out in a boat with your family . . . it‘s quite frightening. Some (boaters) are doing horrendous speeds.”

The crux of the problem is an exhaust system that allows a boater to emit exhaust above the water line at the flip of a switch so he can go faster. Often, there‘s no muffler to deaden the noise. Petitioners want a law that requires boats to use a fixed system that emits exhaust only below the water line. If caught without one, boaters would face a hefty fine. Caught again, and police would impound the vessel until it‘s properly modified. An estimated 20 cigar boats with two engines ply Okanagan Lake in the Kelowna area. Dozens more use normal V-8 engines that can switch their exhaust systems from below to above the water line. Critics plan to deliver the petition to municipal, provincial and federal governments. They want mayors to discuss the issue at the annual Union of B.C. Municipalities meeting in late September. Kelowna council has said it hopes to persuade provincial and federal officials to adopt boating speed limits, decibel-based noise restrictions for engines and higher fines for those who break the rules.