Once again, ahead of the July 4 holiday, Georgia Department of Natural Resources Game Wardens across the state will be conducting heightened enforcement targeting boating under the influence this weekend as part of the national Operation Dry Water campaign.
According to DNR spokesman Mark McKinnon, they will be focused on educating boaters about safe boating practices, which includes boating sober, and enforcing the state’s boating under the influence laws.
"If you are going to drink and get in your boat, you need to have a designated operator," said McKinnon in an interview with the Georgia News Network.
Operating a vessel under the influence of alcohol or drugs is illegal on all bodies of water. In Georgia, it is illegal to operate a vessel with a blood alcohol (BAC) level of .08 or higher - the same as it is to operate a vehicle.
“The accidents and tragedies that happen because individuals choose to drive drunk or impaired, on land or on the water, are preventable. The decision lies with the individual on whether they choose to operate a boat or vehicle while under the influence,” said the Director of Georgia DNR’s Law Enforcement Division, Colonel Eddie Henderson.
Henderson said alcohol is the leading contributing factor in recreational boating deaths, and a major contributor to accidents.
The national Operation Dry Water weekend will take place June 29 - July 1. The mission of Operation Dry Water is to reduce the number of alcohol and drug-related incidents and fatalities through increased recreational boater awareness and by fostering a stronger and more visible deterrent to alcohol use on the water.
Visit operationdrywater.org or gadnrle.org for more information about boating under the influence.
