News

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

May 4, 2005

Congress Holds Hearing on PWC Use in the National Parks

The House National Parks Subcommittee brings attention to the discriminatory ban of Personal
Watercraft from U.S. national parks.

Contact:
Brian Berry, 202-777-3524

Washington, DC—Members of the Resources Subcommittee on National Parks in the U.S. House of Representatives decried the baseless discrimination against personal watercraft (PWC) today in a hearing on Capitol Hill. The hearing was called by Representative Devin Nunes (R-CA), Chairman of the Subcommittee, to investigate into the long overdue rulemakings in several national park units that have banned personal watercraft use since 2002. Chairman Nunes was joined by several bipartisan Members of Congress at the hearing where they unanimously voiced concern that the National Park Service (NPS) is taking too long to complete these rulemakings.

"This is simply a matter of fairness for American families," Chairman Nunes said. "It is vitally important that our National Parks be open and accessible to everyone, including those who want to use personal water craft. Furthermore, there are nine park units that have not made a decision on whether to allow personal watercraft use and the users of those parks deserve to know if they can enjoy the upcoming summer months on the water."

In March 2000, the NPS established regulations that generally prohibited personal watercraft use (PWC) in most National Recreation Areas, Lakeshores and Seashores. At the same time, the park service established a two-year grace period for 21 park units where personal watercraft use was prevalent. Each unit that seeks to reopen to PWC is required to complete a comprehensive scientific study of PWC impacts on the local environment and economy and prepare a rule allowing continued PWC use. To date, fifteen units have completed an environmental assessment, all of which conclude that PWC use should be allowed. Seven of these units have completed the rulemaking process and have welcomed PWC users back. There are still nine of the 21 units that have not issued regulations for personal watercraft use.

“We are very encouraged that Congress has brought this issue to the light of day. We hope the end result is that, soon, personal watercraft users will be able to access and enjoy more of the U.S. park system.” stated Maureen Healey, Executive Director of PWIA.

Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Department of Interior, Paul Hoffman, testified and told the subcommittee that four park units are in their final stages of the rulemaking and could reopen any day. These units include Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore (MI), Fire Island National Seashore (NY), Bighorn Canyon National Recreation Area (TX), and Gulf Islands National Seashore (FL/MS). When pressed for an answer about when the other remaining park units will be reopened, Hoffman said “well in advance of the next boating season.” These units include Big Thicket National Park (TX), Gateway National Recreation Area (NY/NJ), Curecanti National Recreation Area (CO), Cape Lookout National Seashore (NC), and Padre Island National Seashore (TX).

While not one of the 21 park units identified in the 2000 NPS rule, Biscayne National Park in Miami , FL was the topic of lengthy questioning during the hearing. Members of the subcommittee and Deputy Assistant Secretary Hoffman agreed that the ban at Biscayne National Park should be reconsidered. This is great news for PWC owners who experienced a setback last December when the NPS at that time denied a petition asking for a local environmental assessment study of PWC use.

Dave Bamdas, owner of Riva Motorsports in Pompano Beach and Key Largo , Florida , also testified at today’s hearing. He explained that “there was never any study at Biscayne – scientific or otherwise – at the local level to justify the ban.” When asked by Chairman Nunes, Hoffman confirmed that indeed there is no study that shows any negative PWC impact at Biscayne National Park .

Mark Speaks, President of Yamaha Watercraft Group, told Members of Congress while testifying that the personal watercraft industry is “not asking for special treatment—only for a level playing field. He implored the Members to take action to allow the environmental assessments and rulemakings to happen in a timely manner, and let sound science and facts—not bias—decide.

Advancements made to PWC technology have resulted in a 75 percent reduction in emissions and 70 percent reduction in sound since 1998. All manufacturers offer models equipped with four-stroke engines, which account for the vast majority of sales today and are universally recognized as one of the most efficient engine types. These enhancements have made today's PWC some of the most environmentally friendly motorized vessels on the water.

In addition to being environmentally-friendly, PWC have become an economic engine in several parts of the country. Ms. Freddie Hancock, owner of Lake Powell WaterWorld of Page, Arizona , testified to the fact that boaters have a huge impact on the economy in her tourist-dependent region. When the ban at Lake Powell took effect, some businesses went under and closed for good, hotels lost a lot of business, restaurants had trouble filling up, and grocery stores were empty. She encouraged the subcommittee to walk away with one clear message, that personal watercraft have evolved into some of the cleanest and quietest motorized vessels on the water. The National Park Service's environmental assessments in the 15 parks which have been completed confirm this point.

More than 1.4 million Americans enjoy boating on personal watercraft. PWC can fit up to three people and are an affordable boating option for family recreation with the typical PWC customer today being over 40 years old and married. As the trade association representing personal watercraft manufacturers in the U.S. , PWIA actively advocates for states to adopt reasonable regulations such as mandatory boating safety education for all PWC users, a minimum age of 16 to operate PWC, and daylight-only usage restrictions. PWIA’s mission is to ensure that personal watercraft and personal watercraft users are treated fairly when local, state, and federal government officials consider boating regulations. More information on PWIA is available at www.pwia.org.