Complaining about the noise, nuisance, and pollution caused by jet skis, a crowd of local biologists and outdoors enthusiasts last week urged federal officials to ban personal watercraft from the Gulf of the Farallones National Marine Sanctuary.

They were joined this week by county supervisors, who unanimously agreed that jet skis were "inappropriate" in the sanctuary, a protected area that is home to 23 endangered species of wildlife.

Nearly all those who testified during last Thursday's public hearing at Point Reyes National Seashore headquarters insisted that jet skis were incompatible with the sanctuary's mission to offer refuge for threatened wildlife and people seeking tranquillity.

Among the 50 speakers supporting the ban were biologists from Audubon Canyon Ranch and the Point Reyes National Seashore, small business owners from towns along Tomales Bay, and residents from throughout West Marin.

"I've watched our tiny little village turn into the aquatic version of Sears Point Raceway," complained Tom Thornley, a Dillon Beach contractor. "The noise can be heard anywhere in the village and out on Pierce Point."

The owner of Blue Water Kayaking in Inverness, Kate McClain, said her company's tours have been spoiled by the circling watercraft. "It definitely inhibits my mission for people to have a positive experience with nature," she said.

"There's nothing more disruptive on the bay," added Ken Levin of Inverness. "I can't imagine what would happen if their use proliferates."

Although nearly all the testimony supported a ban in principle, the sanctuary's manager, Ed Ueber, said any decision to regulate jet skis will be based on specific information, like eyewitness accounts of shorebirds being flushed from their nests or swimmers nearly getting run over.

Ueber said all testimony would be taken into consideration, but the overwhelming number of people supporting the ban last week would not be a factor. "We're not here to vote," Ueber told The Light. "We're looking for substance. We're looking for facts."

collecting data

John Grissim, executive director of the Environmental Action Committee of West Marin, said the EAC has submitted a "developing body of academic studies" to satisfy the federal agency's quest for quantitative information.

The movement to ban jet skis for environmental reasons is a new phenomenon, Grissim said, because no definitive studies have yet been published proving their adverse affects on wildlife.

EAC President Mark Dowie said the group has targeted jet skis as a nuisance to wildlife in Tomales Bay because of their intrusive noise, ability to maneuver close to shore near nesting seabirds, and potential to pollute the water with fuel additives.

Supporting EAC's contentions were biologists like John Kelly of Audubon Canyon Ranch, Sarah Allen of the Point Reyes National Seashore, and Daniel Evans, executive director of the Point Reyes Bird Observatory, all of whom agreed that jet skis have a unique ability to disturb wildlife unlike any other small boat.

Jet skis are not too common on Tomales Bay, however. Only 193 have been launched this year from Dillon Beach, compared to more than 2,000 motor boats, said Jeff Aikers, president of the Dillon Beach Surf Pilots Association.

But Grissim and others, arguing that jet skis have no other purpose than to amuse thrill seekers, said it is imperative to impose regulations before they cause any "economic casualties" by forcing jet ski rental shops and fueling stations out of business.

"We're not trying to be elitist about this," Grissim said. "The fish can't move. People can go elsewhere."

Noting that jet ski noise is already the top complaint of visitors to the national seashore, park Superintendent Don Neubacher suggested the "timing was right" for some restrictions on their use in Tomales Bay.

Ueber predicted some draft regulations will be prepared for public review and comment by early next year, but nothing would be adopted before June or July, after everyone has had a chance to participate in the debate. "We're open to everything and closed to nothing," he said.