Gulf Islands National Seashore - Personal Watercraft Public Comments Requested

http://parkplanning.nps.gov/projectHome.cfm?projectId=40970

Comment Period: 11/01/2013 - 12/15/2013

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Personal Watercraft (PWC) Use at Gulf Islands National Seashore

10/31/2013: Public Scoping Meetings and Newsletter!

2/5/2013: Notice of Intent to prepare an EIS

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Personal watercraft (PWC) were historically permitted in the units of the National Park Service (NPS) under the same regulations as other motorized watercraft. Due to the large increase in PWC use in the 1990s, the NPS published a proposed rule in 1998 which banned PWC use in all park units except for 21 units with a history of prior PWC use. These 21 excepted parks, including Gulf Islands, were given a two-year grace period to develop and implement park-specific PWC regulations in order to continue to allow PWC use. Gulf Islands prepared an Environmental Assessment (EA) for the NEPA compliance for a regulation allowing continued PWC use. The NPS completed the final regulation for PWC use at Gulf Islands in 2006.

In 2008, a lawsuit was filed claiming that the EA was deficient and violated NEPA, the NPS Organic Act, and the Administrative Procedure Act. On July 8, 2010, the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia issued a ruling, finding that the impact analyses in the PWC EA were inadequate. The court did not vacate the PWC regulations, but remanded the case to the NPS "so that it may have an opportunity to provide adequate reasoning for its conclusions." Therefore, the special regulations remain in effect and PWC are currently still allowed to operate at Gulf Islands. The NPS intends to address the deficiencies identified by the court by preparing an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for PWC use at Gulf Islands, which will include supplemental documentation, impact analyses not present in the earlier EA, and may include additional alternatives. Your input and engagement are important to this planning process.

To submit a comment on the project, please click the "Open for Comment" button on the left hand side of this page. Then select the document that you wish to review and then click "Comment on Document" to enter and submit your comments.

The NPS will hold public scoping meetings (and accept additional public comment) on November 18 and 19. Details regarding the public meetings can be found on the "Meeting Notices" link on the left side of this page.

If you would like to be added to (or removed from) the electronic mailing list for this project, please email us at GUIS_PWC_Project@nps.gov, include your email address, and indicate if you want to be added to or removed from the distribution list. Public comments will not be accepted via email.

Thank you for your interest in Gulf Islands National Seashore!

Contact Information
Gulf Islands National Seashore
Attn: S&RM Division, PWC Project
3500 Park Road
Ocean Springs, MS 39564

Where is the Gulf Islands National Seashore?  See Map  (It goes on the barrier islands from Okaloosa County to Mississippi's West Ship Island, Including much of Pensacola Beach and Perdido Key.)

Public Scoping Meeting

Date: 11/18/2013
Start: 3:30 PM
End: 7:30 PM  
Location:  Florida District, Naval Live Oaks Visitor Center, 1801 Gulf Breeze Parkway
Gulf Breeze, Florida

Please join park staff and planners to learn about the personal watercraft use project. The meetings will be in an informal "open house" format to discuss ideas and issues regarding PWC management at Gulf Islands. You are welcome to attend anytime between 3:30 and 7:30 PM.

Description:
Although the public scoping period began in February 2013 with the release of a Notice of Intent to prepare an EIS, these are the first public meetings to be held for this project. The NPS uses your comments and ideas to identify all relevant issues and concerns that could be associated with the project and to ensure that we consider all of the possible alternatives for PWC use at Gulf Islands.

We used to own some "jet skis" as PWC's used to be called,and we enjoyed them for a couple of summers. That was before they became the omnipresent danger to swimmers that they have in recent years. I personally would like to see them limited to certain areas of the bay that are devoid of swimmers and children. The people riding these noisy, dangerous contraptions are often too drunk to know what they're doing, and there have been several fatalities related to the PWC's in recent years.
I honestly think florida should require a license for boaters and for operators of PWC's and that to get the license you should have to pass rules of boating classes along with mandatory safety classes.
Pensacola is beginning to be a dangerous place to be on the water.
Alcohol is a big factor, and our Marine Patrol just isn't big enough to handle the problems.
Someday when a child is chopped up by a jet skiier, maybe we can get some serious regulations of those things.