ASSEMBLY, No. 2398

STATE OF NEW JERSEY

INTRODUCED OCTOBER 7, 1996

By Assemblywoman VANDERVALK, Assemblymen ROMANO, Felice and Kelly

An Act concerning the regulation of personal watercraft and amending P.L.1993, c.299.

    Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:

    1. Section 2 of P.L.1993, c.299 (C.12:7-63) is amended to read as follows:

    2. A person shall not operate a personal watercraft:

    a. On the waters of this State between sunset and sunrise, or during any time of restricted visibility as determined by an agent or officer of the Marine Law Enforcement Bureau, Division of State Police;

    b. Within the confines of the Point Pleasant Canal in the County of Ocean, or the Cape May Canal in the County of Cape May;

    c. Above idle speed within 50 feet of:

    (1) A bathing beach that has its boundaries marked by buoys or signs;

    (2) The shoreline; or

    (3) Any person in the water; [or]

    d. In such a manner as to make the vessel completely leave the water or otherwise become airborne, while crossing within 100 feet of the wake of another vessel[.] ; or

    e. Above idle speed in coastal wetlands, as defined pursuant to section 2 of P.L.1970, c.272 (C.13:9A-2), and in any land determined by regulation by the Hackensack Meadowlands Development Commission, established pursuant to section 5 of P.L.1968, c.404 (C.13:17-5), to be a wetland subject to the commission's jurisdiction.

(cf: P.L.1993, c.299, s.2)

    2. This act shall take effect immediately.

STATEMENT

    This bill would prohibit the operation of a personal watercraft above idle speed in coastal wetlands in New Jersey. The bill would also prohibit the operation of a personal watercraft above idle speed in any wetland under the jurisdiction of the Hackensack Meadowlands Development Commission. The bill is in response to recent studies conducted by wildlife and marine scientists who are finding that the operation of personal watercraft may be causing damage to plants necessary for the survival of a variety of birds and marine life in coastal wetlands. One of these plants, eel grass, provides shelter and food for these various species. Operation of the watercraft not only damages plants in these environmentally sensitive areas by running over them, scientists also claim that operation of the watercraft stirs up sediments that block sunlight necessary for plant survival.

Limits operation of personal watercraft in coastal wetlands.