After years of suggestions, complaints and solutions for opening and management of Lake Nighthorse, I welcomed the op-ed by Kristine Johnson (Herald, May 1.) Seth Furtney added his comments in a letter (May 9.) This information is vital. Public comments on our local lake are due by May 25, to jliff@usbr.gov. Please take part.
As a former National Park Service ranger, I lived in parks for 40 years. During the 2011 public meetings on the lake, I was a member of the parks and recreation board. The discussions could be heated on the subject of boating. The majority of the attendees felt that boats should be limited to sails, muscle power and electric motors. On a later field trip to the lake, I was surprised to see a large parking lot and boat ramp. I was told that Wallop-Breaux funding meant motorboats had to be allowed.
Lake Nighthorse is a small lake, less than 1,000 acres. Regulations say that “all boats would be required to operate at safe speeds, not exceeding 40 mph in open-use zones and not exceeding 5 mph in no-wake zones.” The plan says that, “potential pollutants from combustible engines (benzene, toluene, ethyl benzene and xylenes) would be monitored on a regular basis.” No information about who will enforce or monitor. There is the problem of zebra and quagga mussels, which have found their way into many of our recreational lakes and ruined water systems. There will be an expensive inspection station to deal with the latter. Inspection is not a cure-all for lakes.
We need to take another look at our lake. Do we need styrofoam cups, paper plates, cigarette butts and that fine iridescent sheen of petroleum on our lake? Some boats may anchor and fish for the day, but many race up and down the water endlessly. We don’t need the noise. We do need a recreation ranger on hand for information, education and safety. We need maintenance personnel to keep things clean. The money for the inspection station could fund these. We need a discussion.
Mary Karraker
Durango
