Golden Sun eXtra Your Local News Source, Mohave County, AZ

According to U.S. Coast Guard data, boaters impaired by drugs or alcohol cause about 30% of fatal boat accidents nationwide. It's higher in Arizona, where between 1998 and 2007 about 40% of the 72 fatal boat accidents have involved alcohol.

Boating accidents have been declining in Arizona - from 331 in 2000 to 167 in 2007, according to the Coast Guard. But the number of alcohol-related accidents has averaged around 25 per year from 2000 to 2007, meaning the percentage total accidents has climbed from 5% in 2000 to 17% in 2007.

"I see it all the time," said Kevin Bergersen, boating law administrator for the Arizona Game and Fish Department. "People who would never, ever drink and drive choose to get into their boat and drink to the point where they're impaired."

In January 2009, punishments for those convicted of operating under the influence got tougher, but enforcement officials say not tough enough to counter the culture of drinking on the water.

The latest impaired-boating law, pushed by Sen. Linda Gray, R-Phoenix, sought to give those convicted of boating under the influence the same punishment as people who get driving under the influence convictions. Then-Gov. Janet Napolitano signed the law, which made operating a boat while impaired a Class 1 misdemeanor, which means boaters face fines and possible jail time.

"If you own a $100,000 watercraft, what's $1,000? You just pay your fines and you're done with it."

According to the Game and Fish Department's Boating Safety Report, authorities made 316 arrests in 2008 for operating under the influence. That's the fewest arrests since 2003, when Bergersen started keeping track. The highest total: 535 arrests in 2006. The report said there were 11 multi-agency checkpoints in summer 2008, bringing authorities in contact with 1,071 boats. Because of shrinking budgets, however, 2009 saw just two such checkpoints.

"Our officers' time on the water was very minimal," said Baumgarten, whose region includes Lake Havasu and most of the Colorado River. But he and others said enforcement and harsh punishments alone aren't the answer if boaters continue to associate time on the water with drinking alcohol.

"It's possible, but you have to make it routine for people," Baumgarten said. "Sadly, for most people it takes a tragedy happening to them before they realize how dangerous it is."

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