by Lizzie Masseymessengernews@thekmgroup.co.uk

More than 80 boat owners have been caught out in a crackdown on speeding and unregistered vessels on the River Medway.

The Environment Agency and Kent Police Marine Unit targeted 103 boats during an enforcement day.

It resulted in 85 boat owners stopped between Maidstone and Yalding receiving warning notices and fines for breaking the five knot speed limit or not displaying a registration plate.

Out of the 85, 13 may face prosecution for those two offences.

Officials were also checking that powered boats travelling on the non-tidal sections of the Medway, upriver from Allington, have been given a Boat Safety Scheme certificate.

David Eden, environmental crime team leader at the Environment Agency said: “While the majority of boaters are responsible and sensitive to the environment around them, I hope this action will serve as a reminder to everyone using the river that they must do so safely.”

Last year the total income from River Medway boat registration totalled £170,000, while it costs the Environment Agency £500,000 a year to maintain and manage the river.