 __ Whig 20070730(Updated: 2007.07.30 10:16:14 AM) |
Free rides draw hundreds; Association's annual event sells boating, not boats
Jordan Press Whig Standard Staff Writer
Local news - Monday, July 30, 2007 @ 00:00
The smiles on the faces of disembarking families from boats told part of the story in Confederation Basin over the weekend.
Many took up the offer of a free boat ride from the Ontario Marine Operators Association, which anchored its premier summer event in Kingston for the first time in three years.
"Other than the people who can't believe it's actually free, we get a lot of people who have [never] been out on the water," said Andrea Briggs, who runs the Discover Boating show for the association.
"We're not selling the boats. We want to get them interested in the sport."
But interest in working in the industry is on the decline at a time when marinas and boat sellers are interested in being more environmentally friendly.
The show, Briggs said, is also designed to attract more people to work in the industry.
The last time the show was in Kingston was in 2004, its first year, when more than 700 people took advantage of the free boat rides.
This year, the rain dampened numbers on the first day, Saturday, with about 350 people taking a ride. Yesterday, about 500 people went on the water.
"We actually had most of our boats full all weekend," Briggs said.
Those who took part in the free rides received 30 minutes out on the water in either a power, sail, fishing or pontoon boat.
In all, there were 14 boats in use for the event.
Exhibitors, including the Canadian Coast Guard, set up information booths at Confederation Park.
The city's marina, Confederation Basin, hosted the boats. It is a member of the association and takes part in the organization's environmental program for marinas.
The program launched seven years ago and, since then, about 300 marinas, or just over half of the association's members, have signed on for the voluntary program, which involves an environmental audit every four years from an outside agency and reports annually to the association.
This year, the program will see 100 audits done throughout the province to see which marinas will earn the top rating: five anchors.
Audit scores have risen over the years, but so far only 21 marinas have earned the top ranking. Confederation Basin, which hangs its certificate in the marina office on Clarence Street, has a rating of three anchors.
"And there's no reason Confederation Basin can't reach five," said Al Donaldson, executive director of the association.
Donaldson said last year the program prevented 54,000 kilograms of shrinkwrap from reaching landfills, saved 24,000 litres of oil from being used, and recycled antifreeze instead of having it dumped into the lake.
"Recreational boating doesn't put very much pressure on the environment," Donaldson said. "So you say, why are you bothering? Well, we want to do our bit."
The association has pushed for boaters to get rid of their old two-stroke engines, which aren't environmentally friendly, in favour of models with newer technology, Donaldson said.