CHATHAM – The U.S. Coast Guard has announced that they are no longer considering moving the “C” buoy in Chatham Harbor.
The decision comes after an extended public comment period, where the Town encouraged concerned residents and boaters to take part in.
“Deeply concerned over the impact of removing this vital aid to navigation, the Town asked the maritime community to weigh in on the importance of this aid-to-navigation,” said a statement from the Town.
The “C” buoy is the main navigational aid that point out in the harbor but because of its exposed location, it is constantly moved by winds and storms, requiring staff to keep moving it back into place.
The Coast Guard published a local notice to mariners about the buoy removal, but the decision went unnoticed until Harbormaster Stuart Smith received a call from the chief of the cutter responsible for removing the buoy.
The statement from the Town also noted that the Coast Guard has indicated that they would “purse other additional mooring configurations to help better keep the buoy on its assigned position during heavy weather”, as well as adding a synthetic AIS signal to make the buoy easier to locate.