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The administration of incumbent U.S. president Joe Biden has announced that after the election, it will impose a regulation capable of destroying the coastal economies of states located along the eastern seaboard, including South Carolina.
Businesses that rely upon boating and fishing will close. Untold thousands of people could lose their jobs. A way of life for millions of Americans living and working along the eastern seaboard will be crushed.
It will be a gut punch to South Carolina’s $6.5 billion boating and fishing industry and South Carolina’s thriving ports.
It’s all so needless, but that’s what a power-hungry administrative state does. In this case, it chooses animals over people. It’s a false choice.
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On July 5, 2024, the White House unveiled Biden’s Unified Spring 2024 Agenda which includes his boating plan – a 10-knot (11.5 mph) speed restriction on boats between 35-65 feet long which extends 100 miles offshore.
The claimed rationale? Saving the endangered North Atlantic Right Whale. The only issue is that there has never been a vessel strike documented off the coast of South Carolina on a boat between 35-65 feet. Ever.
As America’s original conservationists, boaters and anglers are environmentally minded first. We wish no harm to these majestic creatures, but there is simply no scientific evidence for the apocalyptic approach that the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) promises to implement after the election.
This restriction would require boats to travel at the speed of a bicycle (11.5 mph). In certain fishing zones located up to 60 nautical miles offshore, the journey could extend to six hours each way, quadrupling the time compared to the current three-hour roundtrip — killing the recreational fishing industry.
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The South Carolina congressional delegation – led by representative Russell Fry and senator Lindsey Graham – wrote to the White House Office of Management and Budget and the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs. Every delegation member signed the letter except for representative James Clyburn.
The letter states in part:
“Approximately 5.1 million recreational fishing trips have been taken along the Atlantic coast by vessels 35-65 feet in length since 2008. The chance of a 35 to 65-foot recreational vessel striking a North Atlantic Right Whale during an offshore fishing trip is less than one in 1,000,000. We believe that NOAA’s proposed rule relies on an overly conservative and inaccurate risk model for justification and does not demonstrate the plausible basis for imposing a 10-knot speed limit on boats in the 35 to 65-foot size class.”
Simply put, offshore boaters have a better chance of being struck by lightning than striking a right whale.
Not only is NOAA’s solution lacking fact-based science, but the rule also puts boaters’ lives at risk. The Charleston Harbor Pilots, who are highly trained individuals that ensure safe ship movements, have voiced their concern that this would have the unintended consequence of significantly reducing safe navigation of large ships in the entrance channel of the Charleston Harbor.
Small recreational boats are not equipped to navigate the choppy waters of the Atlantic at low speeds, which heightens the risk of capsizing or swamping.
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Additionally, limiting boats to 10 knots decreases their visibility and hampers their ability to maneuver effectively, especially in adverse weather conditions. Speed is a critical safety measure during sudden weather changes, allowing boaters to return to port swiftly when facing incoming storms. This proposed speed restriction would undermine that ability, potentially leaving boaters in dangerous situations.
This rule not only poses serious safety concerns but also underscores major enforcement issues and clear government overreach. Last year, a Charleston-based boat over 65 feet was fined $15,000 by NOAA based on Automatic Identification System (AIS) data from two years prior. Not only does the penalty for speeding in a whale zone exceed that of speeding in a school zone, but it can also be issued through the mail nearly two years later. To put this into perspective, imagine receiving a speeding ticket via GPS data from the government for a violation two years ago while driving on I-26.
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“Environmental groups are beginning to link the 10-knot rule not to whales, but greenhouse gas emissions and climate change.”
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According to NOAA’s website, they are “leading global scientific collaboration and environmental stewardship,” yet NOAA has forgone any consideration of science and technology to save the whales.
The boating and fishing industry stands ready to use existing technologies such as map plotting, surveying, acoustic monitoring, thermal imaging, satellite observation, and traditional radar. We are prepared to assist NOAA in finding practical and effective methods to conserve the whale without harming coastal economies and the families who depend on them.
However, we haven’t been asked to help, and quite frankly, I don’t believe they want our help.
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As this debate spreads, it has become apparent that right whales are part of a much bigger picture. Environmental groups are beginning to link the 10-knot rule not to whales, but greenhouse gas emissions and climate change.
The International Fund for Animal Welfare has published materials explaining that a 10 percent reduction in global ship speed reduction could reduce overall greenhouse gas emissions by around 13 percent.
While solutions to save the whale do exist, it’s clear this is part of a much larger political agenda that the Biden Administration promises to launch after the election.
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR …
Gettys Brannon is the President and CEO of the South Carolina Boating & Fishing Alliance and a College Fishing National Champion. Previously an outdoors journalist, his work has been featured in numerous outdoors publications including Bassmaster Magazine, and B.A.S.S. Times. In 2022, Gettys was named to Boating Industry Magazine’s 40 Under 40.
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2 comments
Drama Queen rant.
Clueless Limousine Liberal reply, Canker Phlem.