Proposed rule for surf breaks wasn’t practical

Government regulation is one tool that can manage the shared use of a resource, but it’s usually only effective if enforcement is a practical matter.

That was decidedly not the case in a proposal aired by the state Department of Land and Natural Resources for Oahu spots favored by surfers. The chief proponent has withdrawn the request for a one-year pilot program to restrict the use of stand-up paddleboards at certain times and at specific South Shore surf breaks.

The issue attracted crowds at a hearing hosted Wednesday by DLNR, including testimony on both sides. But the proposal’s withdrawal by Timothy MacMaster, who heads Safe Surf Hawaii and submitted the proposal, was a positive development, one that ought to put this particular approach to rest.

MacMaster had sought to prohibit stand-up paddleboards (SUPs) as well as surf kayaks and all other paddle-propelled watercraft at designated surf zones from 3 to 9 p.m. Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays. The regulation would have applied to the Tennis Courts, Concessions and Kewalos surf zones, but not within the Ala Moana lagoon.

DLNR Director William Aila had said that "the support would need to be nearly unanimous among all users."

Judging by the feedback, the chance of that happening was virtually zero. Rightly so.

Much of the critique has been hard to assail, logically. The hours proposed were arbitrary, and if an unauthorized craft were to show up when it shouldn’t, who would enforce the rule? Would a lifeguard paddle out to eject the violator, taking eyes away from swimmers?

Of course not. The likeliest deterrent for the unwelcome paddleboarder, even if regulations were adopt-ed, would be withering looks or shouts from the surfers. And that’s precisely the mechanism already in place for deterring discourteous behavior.

Further, such regulation would have given the beginner surfer a false sense of security that it’s safe to venture out to the breaks during reserved hours, when the reality is that the rule is unenforceable.

MacMaster initiated the proposal, but others sharing his view did testify this week. There are legitimate grievances between conventional surfers and the SUP riders, but so far a convincing case hasn’t been made justifying additional regulation.

DLNR took action on a similar case four years ago when user groups asked for a ban on SUPs within Ala Moana lagoon, deciding instead to install buoys to separate activities on a voluntary basis, which Aila said has worked fairly well. However the configuration of the selected surf breaks likely wouldn’t support a similar solution here.

The conflict isn’t unique to Hawaii — the popularity of the stand-up board is evident across California and elsewhere, partly because it’s an accessible sport for a beginner. Nor is this the first time conventional surfers have complained about those they see as interlopers — surf kayakers, for example, or longboarders. Eventually such conflicts die down when newcomers find their spot in the lineup, a rule of etiquette develops and they share the waves.

That’s still the best hope here. Etiquette may be an old-fashioned concept, but sometimes it still works better than government rule.