FWC approves no-anchor zone for Pine Channel
It's designed to keep energy from being cut. By the time the 2007 hurricane season rolls around, a no-anchor zone for sailboats could be in place for Pine Channel, just off Big Pine Key. The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, during a three-day meeting in St. Petersburg last week, voted unanimously to develop a rule to create a no-anchor zone for masted vessels between Big Pine and Little Torch Key.
Both the County Commission and Keys Energy Services, the Lower Keys electric company, have sought the rule. “The workshops have already been done,” FWC Maj. Paul Ouellette said. “Now staff is preparing the language and we anticipate the final public hearing in the commission's December meeting in Key Largo.”
Power lines over Pine Channel are particularly vulnerable to errant masts. Since 1998, at least seven boats have broken loose from their moorings and crashed into power lines, resulting in power outages for the Lower Keys. “This should be implemented by the next hurricane season,” said Rich Jones, chief planner in Monroe County Marine Resources. Jones was in St. Petersburg last week to present the county's request for rulemaking.
“There was a lot of confusion and concern as to who has jurisdiction regarding anchorage and illegal mooring,” Ouellette said. “Commission Chairman Rodney Barreto asked staff to help clarify the issue and lay out who has specific authority." “Barreto asked what happens when other areas ask for the same thing,” Jones said.
The new rule will keep boat owners from what has been a preferred anchorage during heavy storms, but the tradeoff will be less likelihood for downed power lines. The last incident occurred last August as Hurricane Katrina tracked just north of the Keys. Because crews cannot repair lines until winds have died down, most of the Lower Keys were left in the dark long after the storm passed.
Two storms - Rita and Wilma - did not drag boats into the lines because the U.S. Coast Guard stopped people from mooring in Pine Channel as the storms approached, according to Julio Barroso, spokesman for Key Energy.
Both the County Commission and Keys Energy Services, the Lower Keys electric company, have sought the rule. “The workshops have already been done,” FWC Maj. Paul Ouellette said. “Now staff is preparing the language and we anticipate the final public hearing in the commission's December meeting in Key Largo.”
Power lines over Pine Channel are particularly vulnerable to errant masts. Since 1998, at least seven boats have broken loose from their moorings and crashed into power lines, resulting in power outages for the Lower Keys. “This should be implemented by the next hurricane season,” said Rich Jones, chief planner in Monroe County Marine Resources. Jones was in St. Petersburg last week to present the county's request for rulemaking.
“There was a lot of confusion and concern as to who has jurisdiction regarding anchorage and illegal mooring,” Ouellette said. “Commission Chairman Rodney Barreto asked staff to help clarify the issue and lay out who has specific authority." “Barreto asked what happens when other areas ask for the same thing,” Jones said.
The new rule will keep boat owners from what has been a preferred anchorage during heavy storms, but the tradeoff will be less likelihood for downed power lines. The last incident occurred last August as Hurricane Katrina tracked just north of the Keys. Because crews cannot repair lines until winds have died down, most of the Lower Keys were left in the dark long after the storm passed.
Two storms - Rita and Wilma - did not drag boats into the lines because the U.S. Coast Guard stopped people from mooring in Pine Channel as the storms approached, according to Julio Barroso, spokesman for Key Energy.
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