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Jet boat race finds opposition Group files appeal with federal board By PAUL FATTIG GRANTS PASS -- Joe Serres knows it's a bit like attacking motherhood, apple pie and baseball in this town nestled along the picturesque banks of the Rogue River. But the environmental activist also believes a 28-mile jet boat race held during the annual Boatnik festival on Memorial Day weekend is bad for river habitat. The Klamath-Siskiyou Wildlands Center based in Williams has filed an appeal with the Interior Board of Land Appeals in Arlington, Va. to block a Bureau of Land Management decision allowing the annual jet boat races. "We're not trying to stop the Boatnik," stressed Serres, co-director of the center. "The hydroplane races in the Grants Pass area and all that, that's not an issue. We're just concerned about the jet boat races down the river." Yet the BLM and the Grants Pass Active Club, which organizes the festival each year to raise funds for children, say the races have no substantial negative impact on the river environment. "We put on the race for kids in the Rogue Valley," said club president Keith Trahern, adding that the three-day festival raises about $100,000. "That weekend is the only fund raiser we have. "It's only a couple of hours out of two days a year. The boats run in four to six inches of water. It doesn't have a lot of effect on salmon runs or anything else." This marks the third straight year the decision to allow the jet boat races has been appealed to the IBLA. The board, which judges the merit of administrative appeals of BLM decisions, rejected similar appeals by environmental groups in 1998 and 1999. The area in question is the recreational section of the nationally designated Wild and Scenic river between the mouth of the Applegate River and a site known as Alameda a few miles downstream from Galice. The hydroplane races are conducted upriver nearer Grants Pass on Memorial Day. The jet boat races draw crowds of spectators along the riverbanks as the boats zip by in excess of 100 mph. The festival began in 1959, but the jet boat races have been held only four times. The Rogue River race is part of the annual International Whitewater Jetboat Championships held on the West Coast this year. It is expected to draw participants from around the world. The Wildlands Center alleges violations of the National Environmental Policy Act and says the BLM conducted inadequate wildlife surveys and monitoring from previous races. "We feel they are underestimating the impact of jet boats on the Rogue River," said Serres, a law school graduate who has not yet taken his bar exam. "We will pursue all legal and administrative means to gain a stay in the decision to allow the jet boat race. "The interests of protecting the Wild and Scenic Rogue River from the serious threats posed by motorized use such as jet boats is an issue that we will never back away from," he added. If the appeal is rejected, the center may field a request for a restraining order in federal court to halt the race, he said. "There is no way we are trying to shut down Boatnik," he reiterated. "But we are against aggressive motorized use on the Rogue River." The BLM, which has jurisdiction on the river from Grants Pass to the mouth of Grave Creek, made the decision last month to issue a special use permit for jet boat races in the Boatnik 2000 festival on May 27 and 28. However, it has delayed awarding the permit pending the appeal. The IBLA has 45 days to rule on the appeal. "We have not been able to substantiate significant impact on the resources (because of the race)," said Karen Perault, spokeswoman for the BLM's Medford District. Studies conducted by the agency on potential impact by the jet boats have determined there is no substantial environmental damage to the resource, she said. Meanwhile, the BLM will be releasing its draft environmental impact on the river's Wild and Scenic section this spring which will include a decision for longterm authorization of the races. "We anticipate this will be the last year we write an environmental assessment concerning this request" for a special use permit by the Active Club, Perault said. The organizers have made an effort to reduce environmental concerns, Trahern said, noting that they no longer allow refueling in mid-race after environmentalists objected to the potential for fuel spills. "We've never spilled any gas, but we took their concerns into consideration," he said. Today's Edition : News | Sports | Business | Weather | Tempo | Classifieds Mail Tribune Copyright � The Mail Tribune 2000, Medford, Oregon USA