LURC requests ban compromise Campers want personal watercraft off lake

ROCKLAND – The Land Use Regulation Commission voted Thursday to send a proposal to ban personal watercraft on West Grand Lake in Washington County back to its staff to craft a compromise.

The detour was unexpected. The plan has jumped back and forth for two years between the Legislature and the commission, which serves as the zoning body for the state’s Unorganized Territories.

All it took Thursday were two Maine guides to convince LURC that the problem with the one-person craft is only in one cove, not in the entire 14,300-acre lake, which is renowned for its salmon fishing.

The decision to seek a compromise on use of the personal watercraft, which sell under brand names such as Jet Ski and Sea-Doo, came as the window to ban them was closing.

LURC director John Williams said the two-year period the Legislature allowed to regulate surface water use will draw to a close at the end of the year, and no more petitions from the public can be accepted. He said a vote on a new proposal will take place in November after the staff presents it on Oct. 26.

A petition to ban personal watercraft on the lake was first submitted to LURC by camp owners in 1999, said Fred Todd of LURC. That died after it was passed on to the Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife, he said.

Last year, a petition to ban the watercraft was resubmitted and, after a June 27 public hearing, LURC’s staff recommended that the commission vote to ban them on the entire lake.

Of the 156 people who testified then, 82 supported the ban and 74 were opposed.

Todd said the staff recommendation was reached because of the nature of West Grand Lake. It historically has been used for fishing, and there are other lakes where personal watercraft can be used, he said.

At the start of Thursday’s meeting, LURC members were poised to vote in favor of a ban. A last-ditch attempt to dissuade them by Maine Guide Rick Crowe, who proposed the compromise idea, sparked discussion.

Crowe and fellow camp owner Bill Graceffa said personal watercraft are no noisier than the 200-horse power cabin cruisers on the lake. If the smaller craft were allowed to travel beyond the cove, located north of Grand Lake Stream, during the summer months of July and August, when the fishing is poor, they would not disturb anyone, they said.

Crowe and Graceffa, both of Princeton, said markers designating where the craft would not be allowed could be placed at Grand Lake Stream and at Monson Island.

Two of the five LURC members argued the tranquility and serenity of the lake should be preserved, and a vote to ban was nearly taken during the hour-long discussion.

In the end, five of the seven board members voted to pursue the compromise. They agreed most of the complaints they have heard were from camp owners who reside in the cove, where a public boat launch provides access.

“It is not the number of crafts. It’s how they are operated,” LURC’s Stephen Wight said.

LURC director John Williams said the concern he had was that DIF&W may not have the resources for enforcement of a ban in the cove. While LURC’s staff is working on the compromise proposal, he said he plans to consult with DIF&W.

Deirdre Fleming covers outdoor sports and recreation for the NEWS. She can be reached at 990-8250 or at dfleming@bangordailynews.net.