In preparation for the upcoming boating season, the Ocean County Board of Chosen Freeholders is expected to again enter into operational agreements with the Barnegat Bay Decoy and Baymen’s Museum in Tuckerton as well as Seaside Park and Brick Township for the operation of its six pumpout boats. The boats are specially equipped vessels capable of emptying the on-board toilets and tanks of other boats, which helps keeps waste from entering the bay.
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| Photo via Patch More than 6,200 boaters used the free service during the 2014 boating season. |
The program helps the county to “continue our efforts to keep Barnegat Bay clean and to make sure boaters are safe when using our waterways,” Freeholder Joseph H. Vicari, who serves as liaison to the program, stated in a press release.
More than 6,200 boaters accessed the county’s free pumpout boat service during the 2014 boating season, making sure more than 128,000 gallons of waste water was properly treated and disposed, the release noted.
The fleet of six boats covers different areas of the bay throughout the county. The new agreements will cover the costs to operate the boats.
“We have a great partnership with municipalities and organizations that help us with the pumpout boat program,” Vicari said. “It is the cooperation forged over the years that have kept this program highly successful.”
The county provides $20,000 per boat to cover costs, including maintenance, fuel and the captains’ salaries. Meanwhile, the Ocean County Utilities Authority reimburses the county for half of the operational costs of the program.
“The Ocean County Utilities Authority has been an integral partner in this program since it began,” said Freeholder Director John C. Bartlett Jr., who serves as liaison to the OCUA. “I want to extend this board’s appreciation to the OCUA and all of the partners in the program. With their help, the program provides great environmental benefits, keeping waste out of the bay and its tributaries.”
The county unveiled its sixth boat, which is operated by Brick Township, last June. It is a 23-foot boat with a 420-gallon holding tank.
“With this program, over the years we have made certain more than 1.2 million gallons of effluent from pleasure boats using Barnegat Bay was disposed of properly,” Vicari said. “From the first boat, the Circle of Life operated by Seaside Park, to the sixth, appropriately named the Bay Defender, the program has been very successful in helping Ocean County’s efforts to keep the bay waters clean and also to assist boaters who use the waterways.”
The boats typically operate from Memorial Day weekend to the first week of October and can be contacted by using VHF Radio Channel 9.
— Kelley Anne Essinger
This article was published in The SandPaper.
This article was published in The SandPaper.
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