Carteret County officials are set to consider proposed language that would authorize removal and disposal of abandoned and derelict vessels in navigable waters.
A violation could result in a $100 per offense civil penalty, along with remedies to recover costs incurred by the county.
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County commissioners are expected to discuss the proposed ordinance during their meeting at 6 p.m. Monday at 302 Courthouse Square in the Administration Building in Beaufort.
Several other coastal counties and municipalities have adopted similar ordinances to deal with the problem of abandoned boats. The proposed language would define an abandoned vessel as one left moored, anchored or otherwise located for more than 30 consecutive days in any 180-consecutive-day period “without the permission of the dock owner, marina owner, boat slip owner or property owner of the riparian corridor in which the vessel is located.”
The definition would also include vessels anchored “or affixed for any period of time” within 75 feet of any other legally anchored vessel or mooring, private dock or marina without the owner’s permission.
Any unmanned vessel at anchor and lacking working anchor lights would also be considered abandoned.
A derelict vessel would be one that’s in danger of sinking, has sunk, is resting on the bottom or a hazard to navigation, people or other boats or real property.
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No display of current state, federal or foreign registration when requested by a law officer also counts as derelict, as does a live-aboard vessel lacking proper facilities. Barnacle-laden vessels, substantially dismantled and unable to be used for navigation, would also be considered derelict.
The ordinance would make exceptions for shipwrecks and archaeological remains, and it lays out the steps for notice, removal and recovery, as well as penalties.
