Village: New Boating Regulations Intended To Protect Lake from Erosion, Invasives

By JOSHUA YOUNGQUISTCOOPERSTOWN

The Village of Cooperstown has adopted two amendments to its boating regulations with the stated purpose of further protecting Otsego Lake, the community’s public drinking‑water source. The changes modify Chapter 44 of the Village Code, enacted under authority granted by New York State Public Health Law §1100, which empowers the village to safeguard “Otsego Lake and all watercourses tributary thereto” from contamination.

The first amendment increases the fine for speeding within the lake’s no‑wake zone. Existing law states that “no vessel shall be operated within 200 feet of the shoreline of Otsego Lake…at a speed exceeding five miles per hour,” and the updated penalty raises the fine from $50.00 to $250.00. Village officials say the increase is intended to reduce shoreline erosion and protect near‑shore habitat.

The second amendment adds a new Wakeboard Boat Policy as §44‑4. The law identifies wakeboard boats as a potential source of contamination and physical impact “by virtue of their unique design and operation that can introduce invasive species to Lake Otsego in their ballast water, and cause damaging impacts to the lake shore and structures, riparian habitat, the lakebed, and ecology.”

Wakeboard boats are defined as monohull motorboats equipped with ballast tanks or hydraulically controlled devices intended to increase wake size. Bait wells and live wells used for holding fish are excluded.