In the News

Green Boating at Lake Tahoe
date posted: December 22 2005

Lake Tahoe Report #76
July 20, 2004
By John Cobourn and Heather Segale

Though older carbureted two-stroke engines and Jet Skis have been banned on Lake Tahoe, there are still plenty of powerboats plying the clear waters of the lake. For the many boaters enjoying Tahoe and other lakes, there is a new way of explaining environmentally friendly boating known as “green boating.” Many boaters undoubtedly already practice many of the recommendations included in the green boating strategy. However, there are new safeguards being developed each year that are important for all boaters to know.

The problems that uninformed boaters can cause include fuel spills, oil and grease spills, dumping of raw sewage, introduction of noxious weeds into the lake, damage to sensitive plant and animal species, shoreline erosion, and the introduction of cleaning products and plain old litter into the water. Two cups of gasoline spilled into a lake will contaminate over 1 million gallons of water, making it unsafe to drink. Over the span of a weekend, the untreated sewage from two people on a boat could contain the same amount of bacteria as the treated wastewater from a town of 10,000 people! Remember, some Tahoe communities draw their drinking water directly from Lake Tahoe. Sewage also contains the kind of nutrients that feed Tahoe’s unsightly algae.

To reduce these and other adverse impacts, boaters can do several things:
• Fill portable gas tanks on land.
• Use “oil only” absorbent pads around the fill pipes to catch drips. Use the same pads or “bilge pillows” in the bilge to absorb oil or gas that spills inside the boat.
• Do not top off tanks. This may cause gas to come out the vent line or “burp” back out the fill opening.
• Keep the engine well tuned and trimmed, and replace an old engine with a new four-stroke or direct fuel-injected, two-stroke engine. (When replacing an outboard engine, remember that the added expense of the new, high-efficiency four-strokes is offset by far lower fuel and maintenance costs, as well as being better for the environment.)
• Choose nontoxic boat cleaners and clean the boat away from the water when possible.
• Use nontoxic antifreeze, recycle oil and batteries, and carefully clean up all materials used in boat maintenance. Make sure there are no leaks of any kind. Perform maintenance when the boat is out of the water.
• Clean all weeds off the boat and trailer before moving them. Drain all water out of the boat and outboard cooling system.
• Use on-shore bathroom facilities or self-contained “porta-potties” on boats. Use on-shore facilities for showering, dishwashing, laundry, etc.
• Pump out marine holding tanks only at approved pump-out stations on shore. NEVER pump out into the lake.
• Practice "plus-one" boating. Pick up a piece of someone else’s trash or litter every time
you go out.
Taking ANY of these 10 steps will help keep our lake’s water clean.

In addition, boaters need to adhere to the 600-foot no-wake zone that extends out from the lake’s shoreline. That means boaters must not create a wake or reach speeds in excess of 5 mph when within 600 feet of the shore. Wave action can cause damaging shoreline erosion, stir up bottom sediment, interfere with the life cycle of sensitive aquatic life forms, and fragment important wildlife habitat.

Most boaters take pride in their knowledge of safe and clean boating practices and the care with which they apply them. They appreciate the nautical traditions of being squared away, with all provisions stowed in a shipshape manner. For these conscientious boaters, green boating is just a new name for the time-tested, common sense principles of responsible seamanship.