Officials get more leeway on derelict vessels Bill will help keep boats afloat
tohara@keysnews.com
Monroe County fared well in the state legislative session this year when it comes to protecting water quality and cleaning up derelict vessels.
Gov. Rick Scott signed a bill Thursday giving local marine officers more latitude in dealing with derelict vessels before they sink.
Derelict vessels have been a major problem off the Florida Keys, and Monroe County government has spent more than $270,000 a year in recent years to remove them. The money comes from locally generated vessel registration fees, which could be used for issues that benefit boaters more, such as channel markers and boat ramps.
The expense of salvaging such vessels grows exponentially once they are abandoned and sink, which is the case most of the time in Monroe County. Rarely does the county recoup the salvage costs for derelict vessels, county and FWC officials said.
HB 7025, sponsored by Florida Keys State House Rep. Holly Raschein, prohibits vessels that are at risk of becoming derelict from anchoring on, mooring on, or occupying state waters and authorizes Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission officers or specified local law enforcement officers to determine what vessels are at risk of becoming derelict and ordering them removed or fixed.
“I anticipate that the new at-risk regulations will help the county by addressing those vessels which meet the at-risk criteria before they deteriorate to derelict condition,” said Rich Jones, who oversees the county’s Marine Resources Division. “I hope that the At Risk bill will be successful in significantly reducing the number of derelict vessels in the Keys, as well as the rest of the state, in the near future.”
An FWC officer or local marine officer may determine that a vessel is at risk of becoming derelict if any of the following conditions exist:
• The vessel is taking on or has taken on water without an effective means to remove water.
• Spaces on the vessel that are designed to be enclosed are incapable of being sealed off or remain open to the elements for extended periods of time.
• The vessel has broken loose or is in danger of breaking loose from its anchor.
• The vessel is left or stored aground unattended in such a state that would prevent the vessel from getting underway, is listing due to water intrusion, or is sunk or partially sunk.
Monroe County is among a handful of counties participating in an FWC pilot program that gives local governments more control as to where vessels can be moored and on placing stiffer regulations on the pumping of sewage and keeping vessels from being abandoned. The pilot program is slated to sunset in 2017.
The county also received about $500,000 to go toward its vessel sewage pump-out program.
“Monroe County has had great success with their mobile vessel pump-out program,” Raschein said. “I am glad we were able to provide funding in the budget for it again this year. We are working so hard to protect our near-shore waters, and this program is a critical piece of that puzzle.”