The Coast Guard Wants Your Opinion Before November 1

The US Coast Guard places and maintains the buoyage system for all U.S. waterways and is responsible for making sure that buoys marking channels, shoals, reefs and other shallow water hazards are correctly positioned. This year, the CG has run surveys for boat owners on the West and Gulf Coasts and is now reaching out to boat owners on the East Coast to ask their opinions on shallow water navigation and gather information on how East Coasters use their boats along the long and often very shallow coastline from Maine to Key West. The deadline for taking the survey is November 1, 2020. The survey takes about five minutes to fill out and delves into your experience, your boat and boating activities and offers comment boxes where you can add more information and make suggestions on how the CG can do their job better. Considering there are 12 million East Coast boat owners who spend their time in the shallow waters of Southern New England, the Chesapeake Bay and the Intracoastal Waterway, the state of our buoyage system is of critical importance, particularly in a year like 2020 when tropical storm activity has been so high. So, take five minutes to help the Coast Guard do a better job of placing and maintaining shallow water buoys for the benefit of all boat owners around the country. The survey is here.