Boat races on Cd'A River to receive go-ahead

COEUR d'ALENE — Despite environmental concerns, it's full speed ahead for jet boat races on the Coeur d'Alene River in May.

During a meeting on Tuesday at the Lake City Center, several residents and environmentalists said they have concerns that the 2016 USA World Championship Marathon Jet Boat Race will cause bank erosion and stir up mining waste on the river in the Superfund site on the 30-mile stretch from Harrison to Cataldo.

However, representatives from government agencies at the meeting, including from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and Idaho Department of Environmental Quality, said they have no regulatory authority to halt the race.

While those officials said there could be some environmental effect to the river from the races, there is no data to prove how much.

After the meeting, Kootenai County Sheriff Ben Wolfinger said he plans to sign off on a marine permit in the next week or so, allowing the race to happen on the river Tuesday, May 24, and Wednesday, May 25.

He said his decision is based on Shirley Ackerman, president of the St. Maries Chamber of Commerce and the race director, meeting the requirements of the KCSO permit that includes having plans for emergency services, insurance, safety, traffic, communication and other logistics. He said he also didn't hear opposition from government environmental agencies.

"I don't have any environmental expertise, so if you don't put the kibosh on this I will sign the permit because I don't have a choice," Wolfinger told government officials. "My hands are tied. My decision is based on the criteria that I have."

The event on the Coeur d'Alene River will be part of a series of races from May 20 to May 29.

The marathon starts with a show and shine boat show from 6 to 8 p.m. in St. Maries on May 20. Races will be on the 25-mile stretch of the St. Joe River from Calder to Aqua Park on May 21 and 22. Races resume on the Coeur d'Alene May 24 and 25, followed by the Grand Ronde and Snake rivers in Lewiston May 27-29.

Ackerman said as many as 30 teams from Canada, New Zealand, Mexico and the United States could compete in the series.

Boats take off in intervals so they are not side-by-side on the rivers.

Ackerman, who has been working on obtaining the permit for the Coeur d'Alene for more than four months, said jet boat races on the St. Joe River have been a success for the past four years and have provided a great spectator event and an economic boost. The deadline for her to obtain the marine permit from the Kootenai County Sheriff's Office for the Coeur d'Alene River race is April 15.

This is the second time the Joe has been chosen as the first leg of the world championship race. Ackerman said races wouldn't have continued if there were environmental red flags and she has been working with state and local agencies to ensure the races on the Coeur d'Alene follow suit.

But Adrienne Cronebaugh of the Kootenai Environmental Alliance said the Coeur d'Alene River is different from the St. Joe due to the amount of mining waste in it.

"This is one of the largest Superfunds and millions have been spent to clean it," she said. "I don't see where this (economic) benefit offsets the disturbance. What are we thinking? It's disappointing to see DEQ and EPA playing the jurisdictional hot potato and upsetting to see this reactive strategy opposed to being proactive. Our river and lake are in serious trouble from the heavy metals."

Ackerman said the boats, which can reach speeds of 150 miles per hour, mostly ride on top of the water and cause little wake, so the disturbance to the river and its banks is minimal. She said there is less impact to the river than with recreational boats.

Since races haven't been held on the Coeur d'Alene and each river is different, government officials said there is no data to know how much impact the races will have. But Bill Adams of the EPA said his agency would monitor the races — if they are held as expected — so a benchmark could be established.

Ackerman said the marathon series is held only once every four years, so the next time there would be a race on the Coeur d'Alene would be 2020. But there's also a possibility it could be held on another river then as well, she said.

Julie Dalsaso wondered if the race could be held on a different river than one that's in a Superfund site and if it's too late to alter the plan since the permit hasn't been signed. However, Ackerman said with the race only a little more than a month away and all the legwork that has been put forth the Coeur d'Alene will continue to be pursued.

Multiple attendees said they were frustrated that it appears the races are moving ahead despite little knowledge of how much impact the races will have on the river.

Mike Schlepp, a property owner along the river, said he has done his part to prevent erosion and he's concerned the race will damage those efforts. He's also concerned about the public going onto his property during the event.

Ackerman said since the Coeur d'Alene River portion of the series is being held in the middle of the week she's not expecting thousands of people to show up like they do along the Joe over the weekend.

Signs will be posted along the course warning watchers to stay off private property and to stay back from the river for their safety.

The meeting was called by Terry Harwood of the Basin Environmental Improvement Commission to get widespread input on the races on the Coeur d'Alene River.

He said he's more concerned about people who camp on contaminated material in the basin than any effects the race will have on the river.

Harwood said his mission of getting a variety of interests around the table to discuss the Coeur d'Alene River was accomplished.

"This boat race is my worm on the hook to get people interested in the river," he said.