The Department of Ecology, with support from other state agencies, has formally requested that the federal Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) create a new no-discharge zone for vessel sewage to protect all of Puget Sound. The move would prohibit all vessels, commercial as well as recreational, from releasing any sewage into Puget Sound, whether treated or not.

Puget Sound’s shellfish beds, swimming beaches and protected areas are especially vulnerable to vessel sewage; even treated vessel sewage contains relatively high concentrations of bacteria and viruses, which can remain active hours or days after entering the water.

The proposed no-discharge zone would be the first such zone in the state and in the Northwest, according to a state Department of Ecology (DOE) press release. The EPA has established more than 90 such zones in 26 states.

Federal law currently allows vessels to discharge sewage treated onboard within 3 miles of shore; untreated sewage may only be discharged more than 3 miles from any shoreline. A no-discharge designation would prohibit the discharge of any sewage – treated or untreated – from any vessel in Puget Sound, no matter how far from shore.

With the exception of the Strait of Juan de Fuca, very few places in the waters of Puget Sound are more than 3 miles from any shoreline, so in much of Puget Sound, the new regulation would not change how most recreational boats, which typically use holding tanks rather than on-board treatment devices, handle their sewage.

Today, most of Puget Sound’s estimated 156,600 recreational and commercial vessels with on-board toilets have sewage holding tanks and use pump-out stations to handle their sewage. Only 2 percent of vessels – about 215 commercial and 2,000 recreational – that currently use on-board limited sewage treatment systems would need to add new holding tanks if the no-discharge zone is approved.

Small boats without treatment devices or holding tanks are already prohibited from discharging sewage within 3 miles of shore.

SHELLFISH

A no-discharge zone could allow more shellfish harvest areas to open. “Sewage released from boats puts bacteria and viruses directly into Puget Sound waters, making shellfish in some areas unsafe to harvest,” said John Wiesman, secretary of the Washington Department of Health, which operates the program that ensures Washington’s shellfish are safe to eat.

“Once a no-discharge zone is in effect, we expect to open more than 700 acres of shellfish areas near moorages for commercial and recreational harvesting.”

Washington leads the country in production of farmed clams, oysters and mussels, with an estimated $270 million total economic contribution. The Washington Shellfish Initiative is recommending the no-discharge zone.

The state’s petition follows more than four years of research and discussions with stakeholder organizations representing vessel owners, business and environmental organizations, port districts and other interested groups.

PUMP-OUT FACILITIES

Puget Sound facilities are gearing up to be ready for the change, with 173 pump-out stations at 102 locations for recreational boaters, plus 15 commercial pump-outs, and 21 mobile pump-out boats, and pumper trucks. The Department of Ecology and its partners are using grant funding to add even more commercial pump-outs. The Washington State Parks Commission provided federal Clean Vessel Act funding to establish most of the state’s pump-out facilities. According to Washington State Parks, in 2015, Washington boaters prevented more than 8 million gallons of sewage from contaminating Washington's waters by using Clean Vessel Act pump-out facilities.

FIVE YEARS

Owners of the estimated 215 commercial vessels that use on-board sanitation devices – including tugboats, fishing vessels and small passenger carriers – face significant costs to install holding tanks. The DOE is asking EPA to allow a five-year "phase-in" period for these changeovers to occur. It would be the longest phase-in ever provided for a new no-discharge zone.

Most of these commercial vessels undergo major maintenance at shipyard dry docks every few years. “Our proposal gives this important sector time to dovetail these replacements with their planned major maintenance schedule and to spread out their costs,” said Maia Bellon, DOE director. “Five years should help the 2 percent of Puget Sound vessels that need to make retrofits.”

If approved by EPA, the DOE and other agencies would begin implementing the zone’s no-discharge requirement with education and technical assistance. These efforts would be augmented, as needed, by law enforcement in response to violations.

The zone of protection from vessel sewage would encompass 2,300 square miles and include all marine waters east of New Dungeness on the Strait of Juan de Fuca, plus Lake Washington, Lake Union and the waters that connect them to Puget Sound. For more information, visit
tinyurl.com/bqm9g6d.