The U.S. Coast Guard is bringing back its plan to remove navigational aids in Northeast waters, though with a substantially reduced number of buoys under review, compared with an earlier iteration.
After receiving some 3,000 public comments over a plan to remove roughly 350 buoys from waterways, the Coast Guard is proposing to remove just 233 now.
“The [Coastal Buoy Modernization Proposal’s] main objectives remain to ensure long-term buoy-system sustainability at the most navigationally critical locations for mariners, while better understanding how navigation practices are changing through tools like GPS location, radar, AIS, electronic charts, and navigation apps,” a release from the agency noted. “The CBMP update seeks to balance the use of physical aids with other navigation tools.”
In April, the Coast Guard announced plans to discontinue hundreds of buoys — out of 5,600 in the Northeast — in an attempt to modernize waterways. The idea was to complement the rising number of vessels that use electronic navigational tools, and open up more resources to maintain buoys that boaters rely on more heavily.
But after pushback from boaters as well as congressional representatives, including U.S. Senators Ed Markey and Elizabeth Warren, the Coast Guard announced it would delay the project while taking comments under consideration.
Under the newest plan, some buoys near the Vineyard would still be removed, including the Squash Meadow East End Bell Buoy off Oak Bluffs, the Vineyard Sound Entrance Lighted Buoy 30 between Aquinnah and Cuttyhunk, and a trio off Woods Hole.
The Coast Guard has also reopened public comment, with feedback due on Nov. 15.
Removing navigational aids because of assumptions about future needs and practices sounds nuts to me.
It was this kind of thinking that led to the tragedy of the “unsinkable” Titanic.
These navigational aids are part of our seascape.
It is laughably easy to imagine scenarios in which a sailor or boater would need to be able to see or hear a physical navigational aid in order to navigate to safety.
I wonder what the logic is behind this ? It will cost money to remove these buoys . They are there– what does it cost to leave an existing buoy in the water ? I will assume zero dollars. I could be wrong-of course. But if a small boat got into trouble and could get to a buoy -and hang on to it– what would the problem be ? I just don’t get why the coast guard would spend money to make the harbors less safe.
It may seem like leaving buoys in place costs nothing, but that’s not the case. Every buoy requires inspection, repair, repositioning after storms, and eventual replacement. In fact, many of these structures are decades old, and maintaining them indefinitely drains resources that could be used to strengthen the system where safety risks are greatest.
The Coast Guard isn’t removing buoys to make harbors less safe—it’s reallocating funds to ensure the most critical navigation points remain supported long into the future.
As for small boats in distress, buoys were never designed as rescue devices. They can tip, break free, or even create false confidence for mariners relying on them as “lifesavers.” Real safety comes from layered aids: GPS, AIS, radar, electronic charts, and strategically placed physical buoys. The modernization proposal ensures that these layers work together, keeping harbors safe while making the overall system more sustainable and reliable.
I hope they keep the hooter buoy as we need that for the boundary of the Derby