Lake Fairlee seeks wakesports exemption

On April 15th of this year, Vermont adopted a new rule governing wakeboats and wakesports on its inland lakes. This Wakeboat Rule was intended to resolve conflicts between traditional lake users and the new sport of wakeboarding (surfboarding) on powerful waves generated by specially designed watercraft — aka wakeboats. It was also intended to protect the natural resources of lakes, such as fragile shorelines, nearshore emergent vegetation, aquatic habitat, lakebeds and sediment, and lake-dwelling wildlife such as loons.  

The rule states that wakeboats may only operate to provide wakesurfing in specific zones (wakesport zones) on Vermont lakes. A wakeboat zone is defined as "an area of 50 acres (or more) that is over 20 feet deep, at least 200 feet wide, and over 500 feet from shore." 

Part of a wakeboat's specialized equipment is one or more ballast tanks that are filled with water to weigh the boat down, making it ride low in the water to throw up the maximum possible wake. Thus the Wakeboat Rule also stipulates that ballast tanks must be decontaminated before entering a new lake to prevent the spread of aquatic invasive species such as milfoil and zebra mussels. Zebra mussels are spread by moving water containing their microscopic larvae from an infected lake to a clean lake. They attach to rocks and are very sharp to step on; also they trap all the plankton that nourish the aquatic food web, thus starving native species. Water milfoil is a dreaded invasive water weed that grows from fragments and can quickly choke a lake.

The Wakeboat Rule allows wakesports on 30 Vermont lakes, as well as Lake Champlain, Lake Memphremagog, the Connecticut River, and Wallace Pond. Lake Fairlee has just enough depth and space to allow for a wakesports zone of 96.8 acres.

The Lake Fairlee Association, whose charge is "to preserve, protect and enhance the distinct ecology of Lake Fairlee and its watershed," has for years fought an expensive battle with milfoil. The LFA was part of the group of lake and pond associations requesting that the state adopt a stricter rule for wakeboats that would not allow wakeboats closer than 1000 ft from a lake shore. Under this requirement, wakeboats would have been unable to operate on Lake Fairlee. In the face of the 500-ft rule, the LFA is now petitioning the VT Department of Environmental Conservation, in accordance with the VT Administrative Procedure Act, to modify the Wakeboat Rule on a single-lake basis and prohibit wakesports on Lake Fairlee.

Their reasoning for this hinges on the fact that the wakesports zone on Lake Fairlee is in the same part of the lake where most of the summer camps are located. Summer camps are not only a proud tradition here, from 1906 onwards, but also an important part of the area's economy. Over 1,800 campers and 300 camp staff swell the local population each summer. They purchase food, ice cream, farm products, and other goods from local businesses, as do the parents of campers. In other words, they are a key factor in the area's economy.  

Children as young as 5 years attend camp on Lake Fairlee, the main attraction being the  relatively calm and safe waters of the lake. Here campers may learn to swim and to operate a variety of watercraft such as canoes, kayaks, and paddleboards. 

The LFA points to the VT Use of Public Waters Rules that state “The Rules establish a number of general management rules to protect normal uses on all lakes, ponds, and reservoirs" and "The public waters shall be managed so that the various uses may be enjoyed in a reasonable manner, considering safety and the best interests of both current and future generations of citizens of the State and the need to provide an appropriate mix of water-based recreational opportunities on a regional and statewide basis.”

The objection to the Lake Fairlee wakesports zone is that waves thrown up by wakeboats operating 500 ft from shore exert more force when they reach shore than wakes from normal motor boats. This has been demonstrated by scientific measurement. After all, wakeboats generate waves 3-4 ft tall that are powerful enough to propel a full grown man on a surfboard for as long as he wants. This leaves few choices for campers. Either they cling to the shoreline when swimming or using small watercraft, or they move towards the wakesport zone and into high energy waves. They must risk being swamped or capsized or be deprived of using most of the lake, which campers have freely enjoyed for over a century. 

In other words, as the LFA contends "The presence of five summer camps and all the children learning to enjoy normal uses on the lake make Lake Fairlee especially vulnerable to safety issues created by the powerful and dangerous wakes central to wakesports."

Simply put, wakesports create an unsafe environment in conflict with traditional camp watersports, and this will harm the viability of our summer camps. And this, in turn,  will harm the important area economy that depends on the lake. 

A public meeting will be held on December 12, 2024, in Montpelier to allow public participation in the petition process, including the Lake Fairlee petition. The state will then make a determination on whether or not to initiate formal rulemaking under the Use of Public Waters Rules regarding wakesports on Lake Fairlee. Participants may join in person or remotely.