A report from the B.C. Conservation Officer Service found the vast majority of people on the water in the North Okanagan and Shuswap this past summer were breaking the rules.
Image Credit: SUBMITTED/B.C. Conservation Officer Service
November 08, 2021 - 6:00 AM
A report from the B.C. Conservation Officer Service found the vast majority of people on the water in the North Okanagan and Shuswap this past summer were breaking the rules.
The highest rate of non-compliance was found on the Shuswap River with 84 per cent of vessels checked by conservation officers found to be in non-compliance with the regulations.
Conservation officers conducted enhanced boat safety patrols on six bodies of water in the North Okanagan and Shuswap for the eighth consecutive year.
The summer of 2021 found 80 per cent of vessels checked were non-compliant, a higher number than in 2020 when 66 per cent were found to be non-compliant.
However, the conservation service report states more boat owners were in compliance with safety equipment requirements and it was seeing very few unlicensed boat operators.
The regulations change depending on what type of vessel a person is using, and while boat users need a licence, even those floating on inflatables are required to have lifejackets and whistles.
The report states that of 952 vessels checked only 186 were 100 per cent compliant with the rules. This leaves 80 per cent of all people on the water non-compliant in some way or another.
The officers took a soft approach to enforcement only issuing 40 violation tickets and instead giving out 771 warnings.
The report states that officers have the authority to order to shore any vessels that pose a threat to public safety. Thirty-five vessels were issued to shore.
Of the six waterways patrolled, the Shuswap had the highest level of non-compliance at 84 per cent, followed by Sugar Lake at 74 per cent. Mara Lake had a 69 per cent non-compliance rate, with Kalamalka Lake and Mabel Lake at 66 per cent non-compliance. Swan Lake had the lower non-compliance rate at 65 per cent.
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News from © iNFOnews, 2021