Enforcing Safety, Ensuring Fun

West Virginia Natural Resources Police officers educate, patrol, and protect to keep waterways safe.

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Written by Wendy Holdren

Photos Courtesy of Captain Warren E. Goodson

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With more than 2,000 miles of fishable streams and 21 lakes spanning the Mountain State, Natural Resources Police (NRP) officers with the West Virginia Division of Natural Resources have no small feat in keeping the waterways safe for both residents and aquatic life. The state’s waterways may be shared by commercial industry, recreational motorboats, and other watercraft, like canoes and kayaks, as NRP Lieutenant Colonel David Trader explains. “Even though it’s all in the same waterway, it needs to be safe for everybody,” says Trader, who serves as the agency’s Boating Law Administrator. “We specialize in education and enforcement of the rules to make it safe and enjoyable for everyone on the water.” Colonel Bobby L. Cales, Chief of Law Enforcement, says, “Our officers are highly trained and are committed to protecting the citizens of West Virginia while they travel upon the States waterways.” “As the primary enforcement agency on the water we strive to provide professional services related to recreational boating—be it education classes, incident investigations, or safety patrols.”

Across the six districts in the state, NRP officers are responsible for the patrolling and safety of the rivers, streams, and lakes that fall within their territories. These teams are trained to respond to emergency situations involving a wide variety of watercraft through various weather conditions and times of day. “All officers have some training in those areas,” Trader says. “We have teams across the state as well who are prepared for different scenarios. They’re mobile, so we can move into an area where a specific skill set is needed.”

While the NRP are well-equipped to answer the call when needed, officers ask boaters to do their part, too. Becoming educated and adhering to proper safety guidelines can make all the difference in keeping everyone safe on the water, especially during peak boating season.

The Rules of the Road

Each year in May, a series of in-person boater education courses is hosted throughout the state to kick off National Boat Safety Week. “Taking a course is a great way to brush up on your skills as boating season begins,” says Captain Warren E. Goodson. Attendees can learn navigational skills, rules of the water, safety equipment required to operate a boat, and all the specifics of personal flotation devices or life jackets. “We want you to have a very good time,” says Goodson, who serves as the NRP’s Boating Education Administrator. “We just want you to do it safely.”

Did you know that any boating operator born on or after December 31, 1986, is required to take boater education to operate a motorboat on West Virginia waterways? While some boaters may think they can hop behind the wheel and go, “it’s not like driving a vehicle,” Goodson cautions. “I want to know that, when you get behind that big machine, you know what all those bells and whistles mean.”  

In addition to in-person courses, online boater education courses approved by the NRP and National Association of State Boating Law Administrators (NASBLA) are available. Folks who complete the course receive their boater education cards. They must also register their motorboats through the state Division of Motor Vehicles.

Among the most important safety components for boaters are navigational rules and lighting, Goodson says. Lighting is essential for proper navigation—red and green in the front and white in the rear. “If two boats are facing each other, coming toward each other, navigational lights will help them identify from which side the other boat is coming. These rules of the road allow two oncoming boats to determine which way to go to avoid collision.” The white light is also called the anchor light or the stern light, he says.

Educators also provide information on first aid, how to handle fires on board, what to do if someone goes overboard—Reach, Throw, and Go—as well as navigation, nautical charts, how to plan for inclement weather, and how to take caution around lock and dam systems. Boaters can also learn safety around jet skiing and towable water sports such as water skiing.

Another tip Goodson offers is to de-winterize the boat well before taking it out on the water. “Take it to your local marina for servicing,” he says. “It’s best to do maintenance and pre-checks before going out on your maiden voyage for the summer.” He also suggests checking the weather report before a planned boating trip and notifying a friend or family member who won’t be on the boat that day about the game plan, also known as a float plan, so someone can be alert if something were to go wrong.

An Opportunity to Educate  

According to U.S. Coast Guard statistics, nearly 80% of individuals who die in boating accidents are not wearing a personal flotation device. In West Virginia, anyone on a boat under the age of 13 is required to wear a life jacket at all times while the boat is underway, and every other individual aboard must have a properly sized and readily available life jacket. “When you look at the numbers, we can save lives just by getting people to wear their life jackets,” Trader says. “Through teaching and education, we can help reduce that death rate.”

In addition to National Boat Safety Week each May, other safety-related campaigns are hosted throughout the year. The Wear It campaign encourages youth to wear properly fitting life jackets. Officers often distribute stickers to youngsters who have learned how to properly wear their gear, or even offer vouchers for local treats. Enhanced boating enforcement will be held during July, including Operation Dry Water, which discourages boating under the influence. All throughout the season, but especially during the Fourth of July holiday, officers will remove boaters who are intoxicated from the waterways. Boating under the influence has similar penalties to DUIs, and, in the instance of boating incidents, NRP officers must investigate.

During patrols, officers want to ensure boaters are meeting proper safety requirements. “You have to follow regulations, such as no-wake zones, restricted areas like lock and dam areas or swim areas, overloading, and overpowering of the boat,” Goodson says. On all motorboats, there is a capacity plate on the boat. Only so many people and so much equipment can be on board before it’s at risk of sinking.

Proper ventilation is required in a motorboat, especially if it’s a gasoline-operated vessel. Other protective devices, such as fire extinguishers, whistles, and sound producing devices, are required to be on board. Additionally, officers will look for improper or expired registrations. Just like the sticker on your vehicle, these registration stickers need to be kept updated and active.

“Many of these rules are U.S. Coast Guard regulations that the states adopt,” Goodson explains. “It’s not something created by West Virginia, but something that we follow.” Reckless operation endangers the occupants of the boat and of other boats. “Most of the time, it’s an intoxicated driver or a skipper who doesn’t know the rules of the road. We want you to have a good time. We just want you to do it safely.”  

While citations are sometimes a necessary part of the job, Goodson says, in his experience, the vast majority of people want to follow the rules. “Not every day is the same, and not every day is wonderful, but I’ve seen some really good things,” he says. “People will wave you over and ask for a courtesy check on their fire extinguisher or life jacket. Most people want to do things the right way.”

Protecting Future Resources

In addition to general boating safety, officers assist with fishing-related patrols, checking fishing licenses and ensuring that anglers adhere to their daily limits. They coordinate during fish stocking events to maintain a safe environment, too. And undercover patrols help keep poachers in check.

“For catch and release streams, our main goal is conservation,” Goodson says. “We want to make sure those fish continue to populate and breed. We want everyone to have equal opportunity to take their legal limit and to make sure our youngsters have that same opportunity. Deer season, turkey season, it’s all the same—it’s the protection of a resource so everyone has an equal opportunity to take part in that harvest.”

For Goodson, education is a lifelong passion. He has spent 15 of his 22 years with the NRP out in the field, teaching folks how to enjoy their respective sports safely—whether boating, fishing, or hunting. “I love giving my time to the recreational boater or the avid hunter. Education means a whole lot.” For him, patrols are less about writing citations and more about helping people understand the risks. “I want them to understand the why—this is why I stopped you, why you can’t do this, why it’s unsafe.”