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Fishing vessels operate near the Badger prior to its departure in fall 2024. Photo by Rob Alway.
LUDINGTON — Effective at 4 a.m. on Friday, Aug. 29, the U.S. Coast Guard will require marine vessels to stay clear of any large vessel transiting the channel and harbor. On Wednesday, Aug. 27, Coast Guard Great Lakes District (formerly known as District 9) issued a press release stating that the regulated navigation area is in effect. The area covers all navigable waters of the Ludington harbor ship channel and Pere Marquette Lake as well as navigable waters within 1,000 yards of the Ludington Harbor entrance.
All vessels and waterways users must maintain a distance of at least 440 yards from the bow, 100 yards from the stern, and 35 yards form the port and starboard sides of any vessel greater than 100 feet in length transiting through the regulated navigation area.
Violators may be fined up to $117,608 for each violation, among other civil and/or criminal penalties.
The action is made in accordance with 33 CFR 165.972 and is a result of an increase in boat traffic, especially during popular fishing seasons, such as this time of year. Law enforcement officers and the captains of the S.S. Badger commented during a public forum last year that the problem of boaters ignoring the larger vessels seems to have gotten worse.
Because the rule is from the federal government, only federal agencies can enforce it, however. While Ludington has a Coast Guard station, the station has been unstaffed for several years with the closest active station being in Manistee. The Mason County Sheriff’s Office and Michigan Department of Natural Resources patrol the harbor and Lake Michigan shoreline but cannot enforce the specific rule. They can, however, enforce laws based on federal and state standards.
Mason County Sheriff’s Dep. Mike Fort, who is in charge of the marine patrol, said the sheriff’s office will be able to ticket boaters who violate the rule based on operation standards. Fort said he can issue tickets for careless operation of a vessel. Since the Coast Guard rule is in place, operating a vessel within the parameters set in the rule is considered careless.
Additionally, the Michigan DNR is in the process of creating an administrative rule that will be parallel to the federal rule, which will allow local enforcement.
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