Mind Your Manners On Barnegat Bay Near Berkeley Shores

A Letter to the Editor from Berkeley Shores Homeowners Civic Association President Fred Bekiarian:

Over last weekend, several instances of watercraft violations were observed concerning jet skis and powerboats. One was observed navigating the main lagoon, west of the Bayview Bridge, at speed and on plane. Another was observed in the lagoon between Yardarm and Archer.

Power boats and jet skis powering to plane at the mouth of the main inlet is not acceptable. Please observe the “No Wake” markers beyond the main Amherst Inlet. We have fought for annual sediment removal from our main lagoon and the township budgets for such projects.

It is our responsibility to limit the filling in of the channel through proper boat handling and strict observance of the rules. We want all to enjoy weekends and summer days in Berkeley Shores, but we must also do all we can to protect our fragile environment.

Boating safety must be on the top of our list and there are rules in place to protect against wakes and irresponsible handling of watercraft. Residents can report such instances to the Police Departmen., but they must be prepared to file a complaint. The police can only initiate a complaint when they are physically in place to witness the incident.

The vast majority of our boat owning residents are observant of the rules regarding wakes and are appreciative of the reasons for those rules. Unfortunately, there appears to be a small minority who think the rules do not apply to them. We have reports of residents who are met with gestures and profanity when they object to irresponsible boat handling. It is up to all of us to protect our environment.