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has lived on the north fork of the Sebastian River, the C-54 <br />Canal, for about 10 years. He owns a boat with a top speed of <br />about 35 mph, and he is a member of the Brevard County Manatee <br />Advisory Board. Mr. Cramer stated that the C-54 Canal is without <br />a doubt a manatee sanctuary. Every day the manatees travel from <br />that sanctuary out to the Indian River to feed, and they must go <br />down the Sebastian River between the railroad trestle and the <br />U.S.I. bridge to get there; so, he did not see how you can dump <br />them out of their C-54 sanctuary canal into a 20 mph speed zone <br />in that area. Mr..Cramer stated that actually the 20 mph is a <br />terrible speed for many boats, especially if you have 5 or 6 <br />people in,the boat, because the bow comes up high and the prop <br />goes lower in the water, which is where the manatee is. A 20 <br />mph speed is also a destructive wake speed. He advised that the <br />distance from the RR bridge to the U.S.I. bridge is about 1.174 <br />miles, and at 7 mph, it takes about 10 minutes; at 20 mph, the <br />elapsed time is 31 minutes, or a difference of 61 minutes. He <br />believed it takes about 10 minutes to smoke a cigarette or to <br />drink a beer, and what is the rush! Mr. Cramer did not feel that <br />we are entitled to save 6 minutes at the risk of killing a <br />manatee and urged that we slow down in that area to 7 mph and <br />take time to enjoy the river. He further recommended that we <br />have a 7 mph speed limit for the entire Sebastian River and, in <br />addition, extend this out toward the Intracoastal possibly 200 <br />yards and give these animals a chance to disburse north and south <br />to feed. <br />Mr. Cramer believed that actually there is very little <br />commercial fishing in the Sebastian River, but he did agree the <br />commercial fishermen must have exemptions. He further noted that <br />Bill Moody is on record in favor of giving the Sebastian River as <br />much protection as it can have, and he is on record as supporting <br />Bill Moody's plea for recreational boating and water skiing. <br />42 <br />BOOK <br />80 <br />PAGE <br />45 <br />Wally Cramer, <br />9606 Mockingbird Lane, Micco, advised <br />that <br />he <br />has lived on the north fork of the Sebastian River, the C-54 <br />Canal, for about 10 years. He owns a boat with a top speed of <br />about 35 mph, and he is a member of the Brevard County Manatee <br />Advisory Board. Mr. Cramer stated that the C-54 Canal is without <br />a doubt a manatee sanctuary. Every day the manatees travel from <br />that sanctuary out to the Indian River to feed, and they must go <br />down the Sebastian River between the railroad trestle and the <br />U.S.I. bridge to get there; so, he did not see how you can dump <br />them out of their C-54 sanctuary canal into a 20 mph speed zone <br />in that area. Mr..Cramer stated that actually the 20 mph is a <br />terrible speed for many boats, especially if you have 5 or 6 <br />people in,the boat, because the bow comes up high and the prop <br />goes lower in the water, which is where the manatee is. A 20 <br />mph speed is also a destructive wake speed. He advised that the <br />distance from the RR bridge to the U.S.I. bridge is about 1.174 <br />miles, and at 7 mph, it takes about 10 minutes; at 20 mph, the <br />elapsed time is 31 minutes, or a difference of 61 minutes. He <br />believed it takes about 10 minutes to smoke a cigarette or to <br />drink a beer, and what is the rush! Mr. Cramer did not feel that <br />we are entitled to save 6 minutes at the risk of killing a <br />manatee and urged that we slow down in that area to 7 mph and <br />take time to enjoy the river. He further recommended that we <br />have a 7 mph speed limit for the entire Sebastian River and, in <br />addition, extend this out toward the Intracoastal possibly 200 <br />yards and give these animals a chance to disburse north and south <br />to feed. <br />Mr. Cramer believed that actually there is very little <br />commercial fishing in the Sebastian River, but he did agree the <br />commercial fishermen must have exemptions. He further noted that <br />Bill Moody is on record in favor of giving the Sebastian River as <br />much protection as it can have, and he is on record as supporting <br />Bill Moody's plea for recreational boating and water skiing. <br />42 <br />