High Powered Boats Are Coming To White River.

[Greasy B]

Al Agnew said

"I would have gone for a ban on all gas engines on the Meramec in a heartbeat back in the 1980s when jets first came into popularity. Now, unfortunately, the genie is out of the bottle. Way too many people who own jetboats, including me. It's just a symptom of the fact that we are using these rivers to death, whether it be jetboats or rental canoes, kayaks, and rafts. But I still wish that somebody would have been proactive back when the first jetboats were appearing on these streams and done something THEN to control their use. It could have been done then, before many people owned them. And the rivers would have been a lot better for it”

Al has made this point several times. If you substitute White River for Meramec this statement reflects the current situation on the Arkansas tailwater. The 1980’s is the same as pre-minimum flow on the White. Since the dam has been in place the use of high powered boats has been self regulated by the unpredictable and reoccurring low water. Once minimum flow is in place the river may only drop below 800 cfs during drought. 800 cfs is enough water to run a high powered boat through all but a few shoals. Once people invest in high power, high speed boats and the dealers are in place you will never get this “genie back in the bottle”. Now is the time for the people of Arkansas to be proactive, don’t let White River become what the Meramec and Gasconade are. Gone will the idyllic days of quaint traditional boats puttering around. The boats will be replaced by water craft that travel at such speeds they nearly fly and have a roar more akin to an airplane than a boat.

Al, Sorry for stealing your quote from a different thread. I’m not sure of the protocol but it makes the point better than I could have.

[Chief Grey Bear]

Let them have jets and what have you. Just put a 'No Wake" restriction on all unimpounded waters except the MO and MISS.

Wakes from boats cause a lot of damage to the rivers.

[Ham]

Minimum flow is still a ways off for the White. I'm still not convinced I'll ever see it. So there's still time for considering laws like that.

I've been thinking about unintented consequences for the fish once minimum flow takes place.

I've never seen the minimum flow number listed as that high (800 CFS ). I think the highest number I've seen as a possibility was 300 CFS which would be enough for me to fish most ofthe river with my little 20 HP jet.

The minimum flow numbers have certainly been a moving target.

[gotmuddy]

800cfs is not even close to 1 unit. I wouldnt worry about high powered boats on the white. They(big jets) would be here already if they were going to be.

[gotmuddy]

Let them have jets and what have you. Just put a 'No Wake" restriction on all unimpounded waters except the MO and MISS.

Wakes from boats cause a lot of damage to the rivers.

I think waters like the white below the dams arent effected by wakes nearly as much as free flowing rivers because the water level fluctuates quite a bit daily. I am by no means an expert, just expressing a opinion.

[taxidermist]

gotmuddy is right as is ham. I have seen a few big motors and the jets at under one unit get bashed hard on some of the shoals. Matter of fact someon in a big red Shoal Runner pretty much ruined his boat about 60 days ago before the high releases. With the way the White can change under high release and then the water dropping out, there has been a couple times I had to walk the Shawnee down river over some shoals!!

[Wayne SW/MO]

I think waters like the white below the dams arent effected by wakes nearly as much as free flowing rivers because the water level fluctuates quite a bit daily. I am by no means an expert, just expressing a opinion.

I don't really think that has anything to do with it, I can't think of a river that doesn't flucuate. The White does have the advantage of width which can tame some of the wakes before they reach shore, but no bank is going to avoid damage from water pressure coming upstream. The direction is contrary to the way nature has evolved in forming the banks and man can't change it, period.

[gotmuddy]

I don't really think that has anything to do with it, I can't think of a river that doesn't flucuate. The White does have the advantage of width which can tame some of the wakes before they reach shore, but no bank is going to avoid damage from water pressure coming upstream. The direction is contrary to the way nature has evolved in forming the banks and man can't change it, period.

name a river in our area that has cfm fluctuations as often as the white.

[Greasy B]

There are none that fluctuate as much in area for sure. There are probably few in the whole country. The white does suffer from an unstable substrate, maybe more than a natural river due to the extreme fluctuations.

[Wayne SW/MO]

name a river in our area that has cfm fluctuations as often as the white.

Why would more make a difference? The water still runs the same direction. Are saying the bank has been scoured to the point that reverse flows will have nothing to effect?