Pro: Lowering speed limit would boost quality of life on Chain

A minority of boats using the Chain O' Lakes continue to get bigger, faster and louder. The majority of the boats are for family boating activities, and are smaller, slower and quieter.

Most of the 26,000 boats permitted on the Chain, are incapable of sustained speeds over 45 miles an hour. So what benefits do they get for continuing no speed limits?

Lake Geneva set speed limits that brought many of the high-speed boaters to the Chain -- a shallower, more congested body of water.

Speed limits improve the lake environment. More family- and fishing-related boat activities bring more money to the local economy than all the money the high-speed boaters have combined.

More Coverage Stories A Chain speed limit? It works at Lake Geneva [12/9/07] Pro: Lowering speed limit would boost quality of life on Chain [12/7/07] Con: Restrictions already in place are enough to curtail speed [12/7/07]

Property values are affected. Most people are not attracted to dirty water, loud and fast boats, and congested or dangerous waterways. They often hesitate to settle here for that reason.

What are the safety reasons for a speed limit? Anything that fast without brakes is dangerous, and speed is becoming the unspoken right of way on the Chain O' Lakes.

Average boaters are unsettled around these big fast boats, and smaller boats get swamped.

Enacting speed limits saves lives everywhere -- even on the water. Are speed-related boating accidents necessary to force the issue?

For the high-speed boaters, I say enacting speed limits now may prevent more extreme limits in the future when the accidents make front-page headlines and incite the general public.

Faster boats tend to create larger wakes, stir up more sediment, and erode shorelines. Big fast boats and water quality don't mix.

Nature on the Chain is struggling with the forces of development and pollution. Wildlife can only move so fast.

High speed boats drive more people off the water than on. More people having a pleasant boating experience fuel a broader local economy, than a few who use speed as their right-of-way.