Portions of this article came from Wisconsin Outdoor News.
Burnett County’s town of Scott cutting-edge action on the controversial wake boat issue in Wisconsin was backed recently when a federal court upheld the town’s ordinance that limits wake boat use.
The townships ordinance, which is designed to protect shallow lakes within the township from shoreline damage and disruption of lake beds, was challenged in a lawsuit filed by lake property owners. They claimed that their rights to use the lake as they wanted was being infringed upon by the ordinance.
On July 17, the town of Scott, and the entire state, was handed a victory when the U.S. District Court judge for the Western District of Wisconsin in Madison dismissed the suit. This information is according to the Last Wilderness Alliance, an advocacy group for healthy lakes. The Alliance has worked with 94 local units of government by helping them create ordinances designed to protect lakes within their boundaries from potential damage from wake boats.
According to an email from the Last Wilderness Alliance, the federal court’s decision is a win for lake protection, one of four decided cases across the country in which wake surfing interest have been challenged.
Your Wisconsin Smallmouth Alliance, plus many of its members, have contributed to the effort to enact wakeboard regulations that do not damage our treasured water environment. More similarly contested, ordinances will be watched closely.