Outboard Laws Enacted

Sun., May 23, 1999

San Francisco Examiner

Boating

California is trying to set standards that will allow authorities at each of the state’s 370 major recreation lakes to set their own boating restrictions.

A new environmental sticker is being created to label the new, cleaner four-cycle outboards, allowing local governments to create bans and limits on old two-cycle engines at specific lakes.

At San Pablo Reservoir, near Orinda, for instance, only four-cycle engines will be allowed starting next year.

Older two-cycle outboards do not meet state emission standards, both for air pollution and water pollution.

A two-cycle Jet Ski operating for two hours emits about the same amount of air pollution as a 1998 car running for 130,000 miles.

In addition, because 20 percent of the fuel/oil mix in two-cycle engines is used for cooling and passes through the engine unburned, that same machine would disperse four to five gallons of fuel/oil mix into the lake.

Local journalism is essential.

Give directly to The Spokesman-Review's Northwest Passages community forums series -- which helps to offset the costs of several reporter and editor positions at the newspaper -- by using the easy options below. Gifts processed in this system are tax deductible.

Meet Our Journalists

Jesse Tinsley

Meet Jesse Tinsley. As a certified drone pilot, this veteran Spokesman-Review photographer often can be seen capturing beautiful aerial photographs of our region. Sometimes though, the job requires getting down with the dogs.
Jim Meehan

Jim Meehan is no stranger to Zag Nation. As the lead writer covering the Gonzaga men’s basketball team, he tells the stories behind the game and gets fans a bit closer to their favorite players.
Molly Quinn

There is no artist in Spokane like Molly Quinn. Her whimsical style is instantly recognizable to readers of The Spokesman-Review. She has painted gorgeous illustrations that instantly elevate the journalism accompanying it. She brings to life the stories that defy photography. She makes our pages better.
Rob Curley

Spokesman-Review editor Rob Curley loves to talk with people and learn about their lives, whether it's a best-selling author or a stranger he meets downtown on his walk to lunch. It's that inquisitive nature combined with a playful sense of storytelling that helps make our newspaper different than most.