At its recent meeting in Salem, the Oregon State Marine Board voted to initiate a rulemaking process for watercraft activity on the Upper Rogue River.

Property owners, fishermen, environmentalists and others have been calling for regulations, or an outright ban, on jet boat operations on that stretch of the river ever since Rogue Jet Boat Adventures began offering trips over a decade ago. Concerns range from noise and environmental impacts to the safety of river users.

“Just because we approve rulemaking today doesn’t mean we will make rules,” board member Val Early said at the meeting, held July 24. “We are doing fact-finding.”

The board also decided to hold an input session for stakeholders locally before they consider potential rules at an Oct. 23 meeting in Hood River. Should the board vote to move ahead with certain kinds of rules, the rules would still be subject to more public input before adoption.

“This section of the river is super complicated down there. There are different issues, whether it’s commercial or recreational or mini-jets,” said Steve Lambert, a board member from Jackson County.

Pull Quote

 “OSMB’s rule making action is essential for the board to address and investigate prior to any action being taken, or not taken. From our standpoint this is very good. We have the opportunity to illustrate what we consider to be a gross misrepresentation of the facts, and we’re not alone.”

— Rogue Jet Boat Adventures owner Taylor Grimes

In a prepared statement, Rogue Jet Boat Adventures owner Taylor Grimes wrote, “OSMB’s rule making action is essential for the board to address and investigate prior to any action being taken, or not taken. From our standpoint this is very good. We have the opportunity to illustrate what we consider to be a gross misrepresentation of the facts, and we’re not alone.”

The marine board’s policy and environmental program manager, Alan Hanson, said, “There is a significant amount of controversy, and so I think it’s appropriate we open a process to allow us to further delve into this.”

Staff members will give a presentation at the Hood River session. The board can then determine if it wants to move forward with rules or take no action, Hanson said.

The session before the October meeting would likely be conducted like a workshop, Marine Director Larry Warren said. Key leaders of various groups advocating for or against regulations would be invited to participate in a conversation. The local session will probably take place in early October.

“Having folks come in person to the board gives them a chance to dive in and have a full conversation,” Warren said. “We need to see the process play out before we engage in rulemaking.”

If the board votes to create rules, the decision allows staff to consider the issues and bring back ideas, Warren said. Consideration of rules comes when a report on a public outreach effort over river issues conducted for four state agencies is nearly final.

Along with the Marine Board, the Oregon Fish and Wildlife Department, the Department of State Lands, and Oregon State Parks collaborated on the input sessions, which were conducted by consultant Oregon’s Kitchen Table. The effort gathered over 2,000 surveys, and about 500 people attended three local sessions and one virtual session.

Hanson characterized the upcoming Kitchen Table report as opinion-based and said the board will need to look at what is and isn’t fact. But the exercise gives all the agencies a more holistic view of the issues, he said.

Rogue Jet Boat Adventures operates in an area about 5 miles upstream and 5 miles downstream of the TouVelle State Recreation Site. The company carries 10 to 25 passengers in three boats.

Passengers had previously loaded and unloaded at TouVelle. But earlier this season, state parks determined that the company was exceeding a 50-person limit at times and asked them to not violate that rule or to obtain a permit, said Chris Havel, a state parks spokesman.

Subsequently, RJBA moved the loading and unloading operation adjacent to the park underneath a bridge on Jackson County land, Havel said. Boat riders still park their vehicles in TouVelle.

Jackson County has issued a license agreement to RJBA to place temporary loading ramps underneath the Table Rock Road bridge in the county right of way to makes sure there is a safe way for passengers to get from land to the boats. The county also required an insurance provision to make sure RJBA was meeting the requirements of other agencies with oversight over the operation.

“We tried to take the intermediate line between making the park available for everyone and that anybody is barred for a good reason,” Havel said. “From our perspective, it’s a river that supports jet boat use, so they have been allowed to use the park.”

Board members discussed the role the Kitchen Table report should play and other perspectives on the rulemaking.

“There is a lot of feeling and a lot of emotion and a lot of history. A lot of those emotions are coming through at the Kitchen Table meetings, but the law enforcement data isn’t there,” Lambert said. “The safety data isn’t there, and so far, I haven’t seen environmental data that’s there for me to make a decision as severe as restricting use.”

“The lack of data is why I was hesitant about rulemaking,” board member Craig Withee said.

“I don’t want to show preference to one boating public over another,” board Chair Laura Jackson said. “I think it needs to focus on the safety aspect of things, where the safety issues truly are. I want to know more about actual impacts, not the perceived impacts.”

A proposed ban of jet boats upriver of the state park was rejected unanimously by the Marine Board in 2017.

“Our rulemaking process can take a long time — some have been one and one-half years,” Warren said. “I think Kitchen Table has set a foundation. The next step is digging a little deeper. Rulemaking is a way to tell the staff to start working for a more thorough discussion.”