Last November, the port operations director pointed out at a sailboat anchored in Port Townsend Bay and said: “You get southerly winds blowing a boat that isn’t anchored well, and it will either end up on the beach or on the breakwater.”

Terry Khile, who oversees the operations of the marina and yard at Boat Haven can’t see into the future. But his prediction was right.

Several months later, during a windstorm and a king tide, that sailboat lay on its side the morning of Jan. 12, washed up on the sand of the beach at Boat Haven.

The saying goes, “A boat is a hole in the water you throw money into.” But when the boat’s owner stops throwing money into it, the cost lies on the state to prevent derelict vessels from harming the delicate ecosystem that is the Puget Sound.

According to the state’s Department of Natural Resources, abandoned boats put public safety and the health of marine and fresh waters at risk.

DNR runs a Derelict Vessel Removal Program in order to address the issue. Since the program started in 2002, more than 580 abandoned boats have been removed from Washington waterways, according to the program website.

For the 2017 to 2019 biennium, the Derelict Vessel Removal Program had $2.5 million, which comes from recreational and commercial vessel fees and revenue from state-owned aquatic leases. The money for this budget essentially comes from other boaters, who must pay a fee when they register their recreational or commercial vessels.

DNR keeps an inventory of “vessels of concern,” which include boats such as the sailboat that washed ashore and the famed Ninaa Otakii, which regularly washes ashore in various locations in and around Port Townsend, last year spending six months on the beach at Beckett Point.

The boats on the list are ranked by priority. High priority are vessels that are in danger of sinking, breaking up or blocking navigation channels, or boats that present environmental risks such as leaking fuel or other hazardous substances.

The first thing DNR will do is try to contact the boat’s owner. But if they are not responsive or fail to take action to remove the boat or fix it up, DNR will work with the port to remove the boat. Under the Derelict Vessel Act, once a vessel has been declared derelict, an owner must take action or it will be seized by the port. Once custody is obtained, the port can remove and demolish the boat. DNR will reimburse the port for the costs associated with demolishing a vessel using money from the Derelict Vessel Removal Program’s fund.

As of October 2019, DNR has 192 vessels listed on its “vessels of concern” inventory. Ninaa Otakii is one of them.

According to Troy Wood, the former owner of the Ninaa Otakii, which has washed ashore three times in the past three years, sold the vessel.

“We gave the new owner a Vessel Turn-In Program application in the hopes she will turn it in,” Wood said.

The Vessel Turn-In Program allows DNR to work with boat owners to prevent their boats from becoming derelict or abandoned in the future. Boats that are 45 feet or less can be turned in to DNR, which covers the cost of boat disposal.

The Ninaa Otakii is longer than 45 feet, but DNR is willing to make an exception to work with the boat owner and prevent the boat from sinking or washing ashore again, by removing and demolishing it.

“If we don’t hear from (the new owner) by Tuesday (Jan. 21) we will prepare a vessel posting to take it into custody,” Wood said.