EPA's Vessel General Permit and Small Vessel General

Integration and Synthesis
The EPA proposes to issue and implement the Vessel General Permit (VGP) and the Small
Vessel General Permit (sVGP), which authorize discharges incidental to the normal operation of
non-recreational and non-military vessels into waters of the U.S. The statutory authority for the
proposed action is the National Pollution Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) of the Clean
Water Act (33 USC 1342 et seq.; CWA). The VGP was first issued by EPA in 2008; the
proposed permit, if issued, will become active in December 2013 and expire in December 2018.
The sVGP is a new permit; if issued, it will become active in December 2013 and expire in
December 2018.
The EPA expects that vessels greater than 79 feet in length or with 8 cubic meters or more of
ballast water capacity will seek coverage under the VGP. Vessels less than 79 feet and with less
than 8 cubic meters of ballast water capacity may be eligible for coverage under the sVGP,
which has less stringent restrictions and fewer reporting requirements. The EPA estimates that
approximately 72,000 vessels may be eligible for coverage under the VGP and approximately
138,000 vessels may be eligible for coverage under the sVGP.
The action will occur throughout the waters of the U.S., i.e., the action area. The proposed
action is likely to adversely affect the following ESA-listed species: Cook Inlet beluga whale,
southern resident killer whale, North Atlantic right whale, humpback whale, green sea turtle (all
populations), hawksbill sea turtle, Kemp’s ridley sea turtle, leatherback sea turtle, loggerhead sea
turtle, olive ridley sea turtle, Gulf of Maine Atlantic salmon, bocaccio, canary rockfish, Pacific
eulachon, yelloweye rockfish, Chinook salmon (all DPS), chum salmon (all DPS), coho salmon
(all DPS), sockeye salmon (all DPS), steelhead (all DPS), Atlantic sturgeon (all DPS), green
sturgeon, gulf sturgeon, shortnose sturgeon, smalltooth sawfish, black abalone, white abalone,
elkhorn coral, staghorn coral, and Johnson’s seagrass.
The proposed action is likely to adversely affect the following designated critical habitat: Cook
Inlet beluga whale, southern resident killer whale, North Atlantic right whale, Gulf of Maine
Atlantic salmon, Chinook salmon (all DPS), chum salmon (all DPS), coho salmon (all DPS),
sockeye salmon (all DPS), steelhead (all DPS), southern green sturgeon, gulf sturgeon,
smalltooth sawfish, black abalone, elkhorn coral, staghorn coral, and Johnson’s seagrass.
In the Opinion, we described the status of each species and the environmental baseline. We also
discussed the effects of the action, i.e., exposure, stressors, response, and risks. Here, we
integrate this information to describe stressors of the greatest concern (i.e., ANS, copper, and
selenium) and the likely consequences of exposing listed resources to these stressors.
Aquatic nuisance species (carried in ballast water, on hulls, and in chain lockers, seachests, and
fish holds of vessels) may be discharged into waters of the U.S. While ANS are themselves
stressors, the mechanisms by which they adversely affect listed resources include: predation,
competition, trophic alteration, ecosystem alteration, disease transmission, and genetic
introgression. Because of the magnitude of these mechanisms, ANS are likely to reduce the
fitness (i.e., survival and/or reproduction) of exposed individuals.
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