OSWEGO – New York Sea Grant (NYSG), the U.S. Coast Guard (USCG), USCG Auxiliary and Oswego City Fire Department will be providing the opportunity to learn how to boat safely, legally, and in an environmentally-friendly way at the 2022 Lake Ontario Water Festival on Saturday, May 21, and Sunday, May 22 along Oswego’s waterfront.
The festival, hosted by the H. Lee White Maritime Museum, will be held from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. along the West Pier and Wright’s Landing in Oswego, New York.
“The Lake Ontario Water Festival provides an exciting opportunity for families, boaters, and paddle sport enthusiasts to learn how to be safe, legal, and environmentally-friendly on New York’s fabulous waters, and one more opportunity to remind people that wearing a life jacket can save your life,” said David G. White II, a Coastal Recreation and Tourism Specialist with NYSG, Oswego, New York.
NYSG is one of 34 university-based programs under the National Oceanic and Atmospheric (NOAA) National Sea Grant College Program. NYSG’s Discover Clean and Safe equipped with the required and recommended gear for boating in New York will be on exhibit with “Clean, Drain, Dry” information for preventing the transport of aquatic invasive species. The exhibit will also have NYSG’s bilingual “Weather to Go: Boating Hazards” rack cards for free pickup to help people react to extreme weather-related boating and beach hazards.
The USCG’s Oswego Station vessel will be dockside with information, exhibits, and recruiting opportunities. On Saturday, the Oswego City Fire Department will demonstrate in-water rescue; on Sunday, its rescue truck will be at the festival.
The Boating Industries Association of Upstate New York will be on hand with new boats, dealers, and dock manufacturers to talk with festival visitors.
The NOAA Office of National Marine Sanctuaries (NMS) and member of the Lake Ontario NMS Advisory Council will be sharing information about the status of the effort to designate a Lake Ontario NMS.
Festival visitors will be able to meet and greet underwater sonar and remotely-operated vehicle (ROV) specialists USCG-approved Captain Tim Caza and Dennis Gerber. They will showcase their latest shipwreck discoveries and ROV equipment near the H. Lee White Maritime Museum’s Derrick Boat 8.
The Lake Ontario Water Festival also includes museum tours, dockside presentations on the World War II tugboat L-5, children’s activities, and the Happy Pirates performing troupe.
New York Sea Grant is celebrating its 50th anniversary as a cooperative program of Cornell University and the State University of New York. Since 1971, NYSG has represented a statewide network of integrated research, education and extension services promoting coastal community economic vitality, environmental sustainability and citizen awareness and understanding about the State’s marine and Great Lakes resources. Learn more at www.nyseagrant.org.