Central Point, Ore — Jet boaters and fly fisherman are battling over the banks of the Rogue River between the Cole River Hatchery and the Touvelle bridge after a petition to the Oregon Marine Board.
“The rules proposal is primarily to shift the actual use of this section of river back more towards what it’s been in that past, the frequency of the jet boat use has just gone up substantially here especially in the lower part of the section we’re petitioning about,” said Chuck Huntington.
Huntington is a member of the Rogue Fly Fishers, the group that helped author the petition.
He says it’s primarily about safety.
“It’s not just a fly fisherman’s issue, if you are a gear fisherman you’re probably as nervous about a jet boat going by your boat or by you wading in the river as a fly fisherman would be,” said Huntington.
Jet boat tour guides say the argument is about public rights to use the river.
“The public has a right to utilize their resource in a mutli-use situation as they see fit, and they shouldn’t have those rights taken away,” said Taylor Grimes with Rogue Jet Boat Adventures.
Huntington doesn’t see it that way.
“Downstream, where there’s an awful lot of jet boat traffic, including by some of these big commercial jet boats, they’ve established rules and everyone abides by them there just aren’t any special rules for this upper section,” he said.
Jackson County Commissioners decided to recommend that the Marine Board not make a new usage rule so it’s up to public input to change the course of the river, one way or the other.
“Read the petition that’s been submitted to the Marine Board and decide for themselves what they think about it,” said Huntington.
The Oregon State Marine Board is asking for public comment on the issue that email address is [email protected]
You can find a link to the petition here – http://www.oregon.gov/osmb/info/pages/rulemaking-and-public-notices.aspx
© 2024 KOBI-TV NBC5. All rights reserved unless otherwise stated.