Hazardous Wake Ordinance

At the request of the Presque Isle Town Board, the Ordinance Committee drafted a Hazardous Wake Ordinance to address the safety and environmental impact of wakes created by boats with the ability to artificially enhance wakes by such things as bladders that are filled with hundreds of gallons of water and plowing through water, bow up, rather than operating on a plane. Such ordinances are in place in other communities in Wisconsin. Research on the effects of these artificially induced wakes indicate not only damage above the water but also below. These wakes not only erode shorelines causing property damage and the loss of important wildlife habitat but churn up the lake bed impacting fish, water clarity and the spread of invasive species such as Eurasian watermilfoil and spiny water flea.