We are now in a frenzy of public hearings in General Assembly committees.  Last week, Stonington’s First Selectman Bill Brown traveled to Hartford to testify on a bill I proposed to the Transportation Committee.  An Act Concerning Removal of Abandoned and Derelict Vessels asks for new authority to remove and dispose of abandoned boats in our waterways.  As an avid boater myself, I am always distressed when passing these relics that are left to rot in the water.

Our current marine salvage laws are considered by many to be archaic.  And, the problem lies in who removes the boats.  Is it the municipality?  The Department of Transportation?  The Department of Environmental Protection?  The Coast Guard?

My proposal is meant to address that confusion.  Under current statute, a municipality may remove and dispose the abandoned vessel only under strict circumstances.  The State Department of Transportation is responsible for removing abandoned vessels that are in our channels.  The U.S. Coast Guard can be called in if the abandoned boat is a hazard to safe navigation. The Department of Environmental Protection lacks the authority unless it is polluting the water. The state Department of Transportation’s Marine Division does not have funding for vessel removal; the courts have been ineffective in controlling offending boat owners; and, while the Harbormaster is authorized to take certain action under state law, he lacks resources or adequate support for enforcement.

As Stonington has discovered, no one is really interested in removing vessels that do not represent a hazard to navigation, but are abandoned along the shoreline.   First Selectman Brown testified that there appears to be no means of enforcement against irresponsible behavior on the part of derelict boat owners.  And, it is hard to obtain support from enforcement agencies because of jurisdictional boundaries.

The proposal would transfer the authority to the Department of Environmental Protection and provide the DEP with the ability to clean up our shoreline and get rid of these abandoned boats.  It would define vessels to be abandoned or derelict if they are aground below the flood tide waterline, or on a salt marsh, or sunk, or in danger of sinking, or anchored in an inappropriate area without a current registration. 

Through research, I have uncovered funds available in the Department of Environmental Protection which may be used to remove the offending derelict boats.  I am hopeful that we will fix the problem before we all start to enjoy our boats this summer.