A bill that would have legalized wake surfing – a fast growing, but sometimes controversial watersport – on most Connecticut lakes, will not be moving forward.
State Sen. Rick Lopes, co-chair of the environment committee, said on Wednesday the proposal still needed more work and that the bill would not make it out of the committee this year.
“Whether or not there’s a necessity for the state to make an overall ruling on this is still up in the air,” Lopes said.
The Democrat said he intends to host a working group over the summer to discuss next steps.
What is wake surfing?
Wake surfing involves a motorboat that creates waves three to four feet high with surfers riding waves on the back of the boat.
The waves can be enough to knock over nearby swimmers, boaters and cause environmental impacts. Some of those environmental impacts include shoreline erosion, damage to docks and disturbing fish spawning grounds, according to a draft study by the Department of Energy and Environmental Protection (DEEP).
Last year, wake surfing was banned on Lake Waramaug in western Connecticut. Other lake-side towns are also looking into similar restrictions.
What would the bill have done?
In a nutshell: tried to get everyone on the same wavelength.
Instead of town-by-town bans, the statewide legislative proposal would have allowed the sport on most Connecticut lakes, provided wake surfers stayed at least 200 feet away from the shoreline – acting as a buffer zone to minimize disruptions to swimmers and the environment.
But the proposal also included notable exceptions.
The wake surfing ban on Lake Waramaug would have stayed in place. Additionally, towns and cities would maintain the right to increase the recommended 200-foot distance away from the shoreline or ban wake surfing altogether through local ordinances.
While the bill is tabled for now, people on both sides of the issue agreed earlier this month that the idea needed work.
The proposal could still have created a “patchwork of town-by-town bans,” said Keith Angell, president of Lake Waramaug for Common Sense Regulation, a group that supports wake surfing.
“It's an ugly bill,” said Kelly Williams, co-chair of Protect Lake Waramaug, a group that worked to get wake surfing banned on Lake Waramaug. “It's hard to know what to do with it. Support it, overturn it.”
In a statement on Thursday, Williams applauded the environment committee’s withdrawal of the bill.
“Wake surfing is a fun sport but many Connecticut lakes are environmentally fragile and too small, shallow, and just plain busy for wake surfing,” Williams said.
“Local communities know best how to balance precious shared resources like public waters," she said.
A representative for the Lake Waramaug for Common Sense Regulation could not be immediately reached for comment.
Áine Pennello is a Report for America corps member, covering the environment and climate change for Connecticut Public
