The Vermont Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) is in the middle of yet another rulemaking process, proposing to revise its Use of Public Waters Rules as they relate to wakesports on Vermont’s inland lakes. I thought we had finished this process two years ago, and yet here we go again.
As the DEC has reopened the process, wakesports proponents have mobilized to prevent any changes to the rules the DEC adopted in 2024. They have brought in a lobbyist, boating industry representatives and others who have a financial stake in this conversation, but little familiarity with Vermont’s inland lakes.
In a recent hearing in Brandon, Vt., in late January, wakesports proponents cited a DEC report indicating there were no reports of wakesports-related accidents or incidents during the 2024 boating season. Would they really have us believe that no reports means there were no issues? This is a simplistic and misleading conclusion.
At two December 2024 public hearings in Newport, Vt., regarding lake petitions seeking to prohibit wakesurfing, speaker after speaker recounted incidents or near accidents they or others they knew had experienced with wake boats. I heard them with my own ears.
On Willoughby Lake, where I have vacationed for 50 years, most residents are aware that there is rarely a warden from Vermont Fish and Wildlife on the lake, limited regular state police or other law enforcement near the lake, and that the nearest authority able to enforce anything is all the way up in Newport — a good half-hour away.
I know from personal experience that folks on these lakes do not report issues about unsafe behavior or near-miss accidents, as they know they will have to see those neighbors at the next community meeting or potluck and want to keep good neighborly relations.
So they modify their own behavior when others on their lake are engaged in wakesports. They leave the lake if wake boats are operating in wakesports mode and stop venturing onto the water if wake boats are present.
In other words, when a few owners launch their six-figure, multiton wakeboats, other people often choose not to swim, boat or play in beach areas to stay safe.
My academic training in criminology and criminal justice taught me that most victims of crime do not report it. A recent article published by the Pew Research Center says only 41.5% of violent crimes and 31.8% of property crimes are actually reported. Just because incidents on the lake are not reported doesn’t mean they’re not happening.
The safety problems wake boats create for others when operating in wakesports mode are very real. Changes currently proposed by the DEC will improve safety on larger lakes that would remain wakesports-eligible and remove several smaller lakes from the wakesports eligible list.
Entertainment for a few should not be allowed to drive the many off our lakes. The DEC has acknowledged that it did not have professional expertise in safety planning when developing the rules adopted in 2024. The proposed revisions address those concerns now.
Adopting them is paramount. There is no room for compromise. Have them in place for the 2026 boating season. Let’s keep Vermont’s inland lakes safe for everyone who enjoys them.
Dana L.R. Fowler,
Lake Willoughby, Vt.
