Live Fire on the York

Boaters who sail or motor on the York River will be intrigued to learn that Yorktown Naval Weapons Station Yorktown-Cheatham Annex proposes a permanent danger zone for live fire exercises. I plotted the coordinates to show that the zone forms a triangle emanating from a corner of Cheatham Annex near the mouth of Queens Creek, out to Pages Rock and back along the northwest tip of the pier. Supposedly this is an existing live fire zone that has been in place temporarily but will now be made permanent. According to the official notice, “Recreational and commercial activities may be conducted in this area anytime the range is inactive.” If you see a red flag flying, watch out because that means the range is active. Feel free to comment in writing by Oct. 18 to: US Army Corps of Engineers (Attn: CENAO-TS-G), 803 Front Street, Norfolk VA 23510-1096.