DOOR COUNTY (NBC 26) — NBC26 received a tip from a neighbor who said she and her boyfriend were on his boat but couldn’t take it out on the bay because of a buildup of weeds. That led to a visit to the marina to see what was happening and talk with other boaters dealing with the same issue.
- Boaters in Sturgeon bay voice their frustrations with the pondweed situation
- Center Pointe Marina explains how pondweed can damage boat engines
- Harbor Master Ken MacDonald explains why the pondweed problem is growing
(The following is a transcription of the full broadcast story)
In Sturgeon Bay, boaters like Grailing Jones are facing a growing problem thick, spreading curly-leaf pondweed.
"If you’ve got continuous seaweed, it’s like mud," Grailing Jones said.
It’s making it harder for boaters to get out and enjoy the bay.
HEAR FROM BOATERS ABOUT THEIR FRUSTRATION WITH THE PONDWEEDS BELOW:
According to the Wisconsin DNR, pondweed is invasive and can form thick mats getting in the way of boating, fishing and swimming.
For boaters like Lee DeKeyser, his boat is surrounded by pondweed.
"I haven’t even tried. There’s no way I could get it out, even if I wanted to," Lee DeKeyser said.
Duke Cuene, a dockhand at Center Pointe Marina, says if the weeds clog a boat’s engine, it could cost thousands to fix.
"We have people on warm days say, 'I can’t move my boat it’s so densely packed, and I don’t want it getting sucked up in the engine'," Duke Cuene said.
Harbor Master Ken MacDonald at the Sawyer Park boat launch says the pondweed is worse this year due to lower water levels.
"Unless we get more water, we’re going to get more weeds. The lower the water, the more weeds we’re going to have," Ken MacDonald said.
The city says it's cutting the weeds, but they keep coming back.
For boaters like Ken Harris and many others the frustration is growing right along with them.
"I think something should be done about the darn things," Ken Harris said.
Harbor Master Ken says the pondweed will likely get worse in the bay by late July or early August.
