"Wayne.B" wrote in message
...
On Tue, 24 Feb 2009 13:20:57 -0600, Vic Smith
wrote:

Wayne boats in the keys, and he could shed some light on it.
I'd bet that if was grounded he would get kedge off or get towed off
instead of tearing up the bed with his props.

If you run aground in the Keys you really do not want to call for help
if you can possibly avoid it. It will invite a lot of unwanted and
expensive attention.


I remember reading an interesting story a few years ago regarding boat
damage to protected areas like sea grass and coral. I've forgotten the
details, but I remember the main issue.

In Admiralty Law, the responsibility for the damage stays with the boat, not
the boat's owner at the time of the occurrence. In the case involved, a
large pleasure boat caused damage to sea grass or something off the coast of
Florida. Before any legal action was taken against the owner, the boat was
sold.

The new owner was sued for the damage. He fought it in court for years but
eventually settled by paying (I think) around $20K which was a fraction of
the original monetary damages pursed by the government agency that brought
the lawsuit.

Eisboch

On Tue, 24 Feb 2009 22:07:45 -0500, "Eisboch"
wrote:

I remember reading an interesting story a few years ago regarding boat
damage to protected areas like sea grass and coral. I've forgotten the
details, but I remember the main issue.

In Admiralty Law, the responsibility for the damage stays with the boat, not
the boat's owner at the time of the occurrence. In the case involved, a
large pleasure boat caused damage to sea grass or something off the coast of
Florida. Before any legal action was taken against the owner, the boat was
sold.

The new owner was sued for the damage. He fought it in court for years but
eventually settled by paying (I think) around $20K which was a fraction of
the original monetary damages pursed by the government agency that brought
the lawsuit.

We were at Everglades Park ranger station at Flamingo (southern tip) a
few years ago and they were telling us that there was a large
sportfish stuck somewhere in Florida Bay that had been there for
months. The park service would not allow it to be salvaged unless
there was a guarantee of no sea grass damage and no one wanted to take
the risk.

On Tue, 24 Feb 2009 22:16:04 -0500, Wayne.B wrote:


We were at Everglades Park ranger station at Flamingo (southern tip) a
few years ago and they were telling us that there was a large sportfish
stuck somewhere in Florida Bay that had been there for months. The park
service would not allow it to be salvaged unless there was a guarantee
of no sea grass damage and no one wanted to take the risk.

Sometimes the park service comes across as Nazis. It's not like leaving
that boat there isn't going to cause any damage. The early settlers of
Flamingo must have been a hardy lot. I can't imagine living there before
the invention of Deet. ;-)

On Tue, 24 Feb 2009 21:26:22 -0600, thunder
wrote:

On Tue, 24 Feb 2009 22:16:04 -0500, Wayne.B wrote:


We were at Everglades Park ranger station at Flamingo (southern tip) a
few years ago and they were telling us that there was a large sportfish
stuck somewhere in Florida Bay that had been there for months. The park
service would not allow it to be salvaged unless there was a guarantee
of no sea grass damage and no one wanted to take the risk.

Sometimes the park service comes across as Nazis. It's not like leaving
that boat there isn't going to cause any damage. The early settlers of
Flamingo must have been a hardy lot. I can't imagine living there before
the invention of Deet. ;-)

If the bugs don't get you the crocs will. We only go in the winter
months. There are some beautiful wilderness areas going north from
there.