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Volunteer corporation offers equipment and crews for canal clearing; board raises hazards, submerged boat and signage gaps
Summary
The Ocean Shores volunteer waterways corporation told the Freshwaterways Advisory Board on June 13 it has boats, harvesters and permits for clearing hazards but needs more volunteers; the board flagged a sinking pontoon, overhanging branches, decaying docks and missing buoys as immediate concerns.
A local volunteer group that harvests and maintains Ocean Shores waterways told the Freshwaterways Advisory Board on June 13 that it has equipment and boats available, but said volunteer capacity is the main constraint for clearing hazards, hauling debris and running harvest operations.
A board member raised an immediate navigational concern: president-elect Dave Royce said "the only thing I have is, the pontoon boat that was sinking. It's the main thing," urging the board to address a half-submerged vessel that could leak gasoline. Earlier in the meeting members described a pontoon with one pontoon underwater and the other partially afloat; members said previous calls to city staff had not yet produced removal.
Representatives of the Ocean Shores Waterways Corporation (introduced during the meeting as a volunteer organization with a president and treasurer) said the group has harvesters, pontoon boats, chainsaws and permits and can organize work parties. "We have equipment. We have boats. We have saws," a corporation representative said, describing recent volunteer-led clearing and an ongoing inventory of resources dating back to the group's 1991 founding.
The corporation described a need for more volunteers and clarified insurance and age requirements for volunteers. City staff and corporation speakers said volunteers must complete the city's volunteer form to be covered by city insurance; the corporation reported the city recently lowered the minimum volunteer age from 18 to 16 to accommodate younger helpers.
Board members raised multiple maintenance and safety priorities: trimming trees and branches that narrow navigation channels, repairing or removing decaying bulkheads and docks, repositioning buoys and adding speed-limit signage on the north side of the Grand Canal, and establishing agreed loading/unloading locations for debris removal. The corporation said it can reposition buoys if staff identify they were moved and supply labor for work parties if volunteers are available.
The board discussed disposal options for harvested plant material: members said the city can load material into dump trucks or a new BioCharge processing zone was available for certain organic material. Members also asked about using a Trail King tilt trailer discussed at a recent council meeting to move harvest equipment; staff said invasive weeds require containment in transport and suggested using tarps or enclosed options where required.
No formal city work order or binding assignment was adopted at the meeting. The board agreed to coordinate with city staff, the Waterways Corporation and volunteers to schedule surveys and targeted work parties. The corporation plans a preliminary waterways survey and will return with a recommended list of priority clearings and needed volunteer slots.
