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SUNNY Temp: 60 °F Wind: CLM at 0 mph Thursday, August 28, 2003 SECTIONS Home Page Local News Sports Business Obituaries Life Opinion - Politics AP News Weather Classified Archives Site Map EXTRA HomeLife Magazine Joy Magazine Tempo A & E RogueValleyAutoFinder RogueValleyHomeFinder Real Estate Showcase Wellness Connection Newspaper in Education Prime Times Outdoor Journal Personals Movie Times TV Times E The People CLASSIFIEDS Find a Car Find a Home Find a Job Find Everything E SOUTHERN OREGON Automotive Communities Entertainment Publications Recreation Calendar ABOUT US FAQ What's New Advertise Home Delivery Classified Ad Employment Contact Us Media Kit Email Story to a Friend July 25, 2002 Motors could be banned on Coos County streams By MARK FREEMAN Mail Tribune Growing conflicts with some boat anglers using motors while fishing for winter steelhead on the South Fork of the Coquille River have prompted a proposal to ban all motors on this popular Coos County stream. A Coquille man has petitioned the Oregon State Marine Board to rid the South Fork of any motor use because of the social conflicts. The issue primarily stems from rifts between some anglers — primarily river guides — who use small outboard motors on driftboats and those who either fish from the bank or from driftboats powered only with oars, says Wayne Shuyler, the Marine Board’s deputy director. Some anglers believe the use of motors disturbs the winter steelhead in this narrow stream, either when used to motor up and down the river or to hold a driftboat stationary in the current, Shuyler says. The Marine Board gathered public input during a hearing Wednesday in Coos Bay. However, the Marine Board will continue to take written comments through July 31. Send comments to Shuyler at Oregon State Marine Board, P.O. Box 14145, Salem, OR, 97309. Faxed comments should go to Shuyler at 1-503-378-4597, and electronic mail should be sent to: [email protected]. The Marine Board has two other boating issues up for public comment — one involving electric motors on waters like Agate Lake near White City and another involving boat traffic on the Siuslaw River near Florence. The Marine Board is looking to lift all thrust requirements on electric motors on Agate Lake and a dozen other Oregon lakes where gas motors are banned. The proposed change would not remove the designations but make requirements consistent where use of these quiet and clean motors are required, Marine Board spokesman Randy Henry says. Some lakes, like Agate Lake, ban even electric motors with maximum thrust of more than 25 pounds, while many other lakes have 30-pound thrust maximums and one has a 35-pound limit, Henry says. But some electric motors don’t even list their thrust levels, and most pamphlets listing the electric-only motors for Oregon lakes don’t list the thrust maximums, Henry says. "This just isn’t practical," Henry says. "This is a deal that, in the real world, doesn’t make a lot of sense." A Marine Board staff member noticed the discrepancies and recommended the rule change, Henry says. Along with Agate Lake off Highway 140, the electric motor limitations exist on the following water bodies: Fahey, Upper Empire, Middle Empire and Lower Empire lakes in Coos County; Walton Lake in Crook County; Ben Irving Reservoir in Douglas County; Meadow Lake in Jefferson County; Mission and Goose lakes in Marion County; and Lake Penland and Willow Creek Reservoir in Morrow County. Another Marine Board proposal up for public comment would create a no-wake zone with a 5 mph speed limit on five miles of the Siuslaw River in the Duncan Island area near Mapleton. A riverside landowner is seeking the change for a stretch of river between Karnowsky Creek and Sweet Creek. The request claims that boat wakes have damaged riverside private property, degraded water and air-quality from boat motors and damaged salmon habitat. The Marine Board is taking public comment on the electric motor and Siuslaw River proposals through July 31 as well. Reach reporter Mark Freeman at 776-4470, or e-mail [email protected] Printer Friendly Version Email Story to a Friend Subscribe Archive: Click to Search Mail Tribune Home Local News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Life Opinion - Politics | AP News | Archives | Site Map E Southern Oregon | Classified Copyright © 1997-2003 Mail Tribune. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy | Terms & Conditions Website Feedback A D V E R T I S E R S SPECIAL SECTIONS Rogue Valley Auto Finder Rogue Valley Job Finder --> Rogue Valley Home Finder Joy Magazine Homelife Magazine Tempo Real Estate Showcase Food for Thought Hike of the Week Wellness Connection Outdoor Journal Moving to Southern Oregon? Volunteer Openings Prime Times