U.S. Commission on Ocean Policy - Joint Ocean Commission Initiative

Reducing Vessel PollutionStrengthening commitments to environmental protection,flag state oversight, and port state control willhelp prevent and reduce the impacts of vessel pollution.However, effective reduction of vessel pollutionwill also require the development of new controlmeasures. Of particular concern are vessel waste dischargescontaining pathogens and nutrients, air emissions,and oil releases. (The role of vessels in thespread of invasive species is addressed in Chapter 17.)Waste Stream DischargesEvery day, vessels ranging from large cruise ships tosmall recreational boats discharge wastes into coastalwaters. The waste streams from recreational vesselsprimarily contain sewage, while cruise ships dischargeboth sewage and toxic substances. Thesewastes, if not properly disposed of and treated, canbe a significant source of pathogens and nutrientswith the potential to threaten human health anddamage shellfish beds, coral reefs, and other aquaticlife. According to the U.S. Environmental ProtectionAgency (EPA), the amount of bacterial pollution inthe discharge of untreated sewage from just onerecreational boat is equivalent to the amount in thetreated sewage of 10,000 people during a similartime period. 21The Clean Water Act prohibits the discharge ofuntreated sewage in U.S. internal waters and withinthree miles of the coast. It also allows individualstates to ask EPA to establish special no-dischargezones within which the discharge of even treatedsewage is prohibited. The Clean Water Act alsoCommercial and recreational vessels can be the source of manypollutants in the marine environment including waste discharges,air pollution, and chemical and oil spills. While large spills can leadto environmental catastrophes, smaller spills, like this one from acapsized vessel in the Port of Albany, can also have serious impactson local ecosystems.directs EPA and the Coast Guard to establish discharge and design standards for onboardtoilets, referred to technically as marine sanitation devices (MSDs).Concerns about the impacts of vessel waste and the effectiveness of Clean Water Actcontrols increased in the 1990s, along with the increase in cruise ships and recreationalvessels. An Alaskan study conducted in 2000 found that most cruise ship MSDs failed totreat sewage to levels necessary to meet federal standards, despite claims by the manufacturers.Earlier that year, cruise lines had voluntarily adopted additional restrictions on thedischarge of wastewater in Alaskan waters in response to growing concerns about potentialwastewater impacts. 22Decreasing the detrimental effects of these discharges will require a number of actions,including modifications to current statutes and regulations to strengthen standards,improved public outreach and education, and additional research to better understandwaste stream impacts.Mike Lutz, U.S. Coast Guard Photo LibraryCruise ShipsThe cruise industry has grown rapidly since the 1980s. By the end of 2002, 176 vesselswere operating in the North American cruise industry, and U.S. ports handled 6.5 millioncruise embarkations, an increase of over 10 percent from 2001. 23 While perhaps slowingC HAPTER 16: LIMITING V ESSEL P OLLUTION AND I MPROVING V ESSEL S AFETY241