After concerns about the number of people floating on a popular stretch of the Deschutes River, there will be a limit next year on the number of boaters allowed on the northernmost section of the river.

The Bureau of Land Management Prineville District and other agencies decided to restrict the number of boaters after the Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs brought up concerns that more boaters could damage natural resources and ruin the scenic experience. In addition, a 2004 settlement established a limit of 18,300 boaters per year on the stretch of the river. In the past two years, people have exceeded that cap, prompting agencies to settle on a limit.

The BLM and other agencies have set a cap of 325 boaters per day on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays from July 1 to Oct. 15 from Macks Canyon to Heritage Landing, where the Deschutes merges with the Columbia River, said Tom Mottl, district recreation planner with the Prineville BLM.

“We knew we were going to do something, but we didn’t know exactly what we’re going to do and when,” Mottl said. “And now we’re defining that.”

Last summer, Mottl said there were about 19,400 people who bought permits for a section of the Lower Deschutes, also known as Segment 4.

A boater is anyone using a flotation device, including kayaks and inner tubes.

There is also a cap on Segment 1, the section of the Lower Deschutes that runs from Warm Springs to Harpham Flat, south of Maupin, Mottl said.

“The Deschutes is one of the most complex rivers to manage,” Mottl said. “There are four segments of river, and the problems go back to the late ’80s with overuse.”

The cap has not been without controversy.

Some people have said that the cap is not necessary because there are not as many people using the river today as in the ’90s and early 2000s.

Mottl said last month that there were only a few days when people exceeded the cap on Segment 1 in the summer. If the number of people boating falls below the maximum allowable amount on either segment for two consecutive years, the cap will be lifted, according to a news release from the Prineville BLM.

The way people go about getting a permit has not changed.

Mottl encouraged boaters to visit www.boater pass.com to purchase a permit.

The permits cost $2 per person per day from Monday through Friday. The cost increases to $8 on Saturdays and Sundays from Memorial Day through Labor Day weekend.

People can get permits for next year’s high-use period starting Jan. 5, Mottl said. They will be doled out on a first-come, first-served basis.

DETAILS

Prineville BLM, 416-6700