2nd Annual Lake St. Clair Clean Boating Campaign Launches With March 13th "Dockwalkers" Workshop

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: February 25, 2005

Contacts: Heather Van Den Berg, 248-601-0606, heather@crwc.org

Tom Hepp, Anchor Bay Yachting Association, 586-716-4155

Local and national organizations are joining forces once again this year to coordinate the Lake St. Clair Clean Boating Campaign promoting clean boating practices among boaters. Launched last year, the campaign uses the nationally-recognized Dockwalkers curriculum to provide boaters with simple instructions and lake-friendly products that help protect the lake’s water quality.

Participating in the program are the Anchor Bay Yachting Association (ABYA), the Marine Environmental Education Foundation (MEEF) and the Clinton River Watershed Council (CRWC). This unique network of organizations combines grassroots knowledge with national-level resources.

• ABYA consists of 29 boat clubs on Lake St. Clair representing over 4,900 boaters
  
• MEEF has successfully implemented the Dockwalkers Program with the Tennessee Valley Authority, Boston Harbor, and San Francisco Bay
  
• CRWC is a recognized authority on water resource education and protection in Southeast Michigan
  

“It is just natural that Lake St. Clair boaters want to do their share to keep these waters clean,” said Tom Hepp, ABYA Commodore. “Our lake is the heart of the $250 million recreation boating economy here and on the connecting waters of the Detroit River and St. Clair River. There are 130,000 registered boats here, and over 2 million boating trips a year.”

The Dockwalkers workshop will take place on Sunday, March 13th, 2005, Noon – 5:00 PM at Huron Pointe Yacht Club in Harrison Township. Participants will learn about the simple practices on the boat and around boatwells, gasdocks, and marinas that keep harmful pollutants out of the lake, as well as general water quality information and other water quality improvement projects happening on Lake St. Clair and the Clinton River. The harmful impacts of aquatic nuisance species will also be discussed, and the role that boaters must play in limiting the spread of these unwanted members of Great Lakes waterways.

“Protecting our water quality is up to each of us,” said Dave Staudt, Chairman of MEEF’s Dockwalkers program. “Boaters like to boat, fish, and swim in clean water. When you think about the 2 million boating trips that happen every year on Lake St. Clair and its connecting waters, those little spills while cleaning the boat, at the gas dock, and in the bilge really add up.”

“The Lake St. Clair Clean Boating Campaign is a perfect fit for our mission to protect, enhance, and celebrate the Clinton River and Lake St. Clair,” said Heather Van Den Berg, CRWC’s Education Director. “We are pleased to team up with boaters and provide education and outreach to make it effective.”

The Dockwalkers program is open to the public. All boaters wishing to enroll in the March 13th training program should contact Tom Hepp, Commodore, Anchor Bay Yachting Association, 586.716.4155.

The Clinton River watershed covers 760 square miles through four counties (Lapeer, Macomb, Oakland, and St. Clair). Over 1.4 million people live in the 60 communities through which the Clinton River flows before reaching Lake St. Clair. CRWC is a non-profit organization dedicated to protecting, enhancing, and celebrating the Clinton River, its watershed, and Lake St. Clair.