[Federal Register Volume 68, Number 196 (Thursday, October 9, 2003)]
[Notices]
[Pages 58345-58346]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 03-25637]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

[FRL-7572-1]


New York State Prohibition on Marine Discharges of Vessel Sewage; 
Final Affirmative Determination

    Notice is hereby given that EPA has made a final affirmative 
determination regarding the petition received from the State of New 
York on April 29, 1999 requesting a determination by the Regional 
Administrator, Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), pursuant to 
Section 312(f)(3) of Public Law 92-500, as amended by Public Law 95-217 
and Public Law 100-4 (the Clean Water Act), that adequate facilities 
for the safe and sanitary removal and treatment of sewage from all 
vessels are reasonably available for the waters of the Hudson River and 
its tributaries including, but not limited to, Rondout Creek, Esopus 
Creek and Catskill Creek. This petition was made by the New York State 
Department of State, in conjunction with the New York State Department 
of Environmental Conservation. New York State certified in the petition 
a need for greater protection and enhancement. The certification states 
that the discharge of vessel waste often contain chemical additives 
such as formaldehyde, phenols and chlorine. These wastes increase 
loadings of nutrients, pathogens and chemical loading particularly in 
shallow, poorly flushed waterbodies, and may adversely affect water 
quality, sensitive and important resources, and uses of these waters. 
The Hudson River provides habitat for fish and wildlife species. 
Congress has designated the Hudson River as a National Heritage Area 
under the purview of the National Park Service, and in 1998, the Hudson 
River was designated an American Heritage River. Upon receipt of this 
final affirmative determination, the State of New York will completely 
prohibit the discharge of sewage, whether treated or not, from any 
vessel, with the exception of commercial vessels that are greater than 
225 feet in overall length or are greater than 20 feet in draft, on the 
Hudson River in the area north of the Battery in Manhattan, New York 
and south of Federal Dam in Troy, New York in accordance with Section 
312(f)(3) of the Clean Water Act and 40 CFR 140.4(a). For vessels that 
are greater than 225 feet in overall length or are greater than 20 feet 
in draft, the prohibition will be applicable one year from the date of 
publication in the Federal Register.
    Previously, EPA established on December 13, 1995 two No Discharge 
Areas (NDAs) to protect drinking water intake zones. Zone 1 is bounded 
by the northern confluence of the Mohawk River on the south and Lock 2 
on the north. It is approximately 8 miles long. Zone 2 is bounded on 
the south by the Village of Roseton on the western shore and bounded on 
the north by the southern end of Houghtaling Island. Zone 2 is 
approximately 60 miles long.
    The southern boundary of the proposed NDA in this application would 
begin at the Battery in Manhattan, New York and the northern boundary 
would be the Federal Dam in Troy, New York. This area includes waters 
up to the New Jersey-New York boundary and does not include waters in 
New Jersey. The area proposed by the State of New York is 153 miles 
long and encompasses approximately 81,000 acres of tidal waters and 
wetlands.
    On October 24, 2000, EPA published a Receipt of Petition and 
Tentative Determination and accepted comments from the public for a 
thirty (30) day period. The comment period was extended until December 
22, 2000 at the request of one of the commenters. EPA received letters 
from the following individuals:

1. Harold Gorman, 2332 Fort Lyon Drive, Stanton, VA
2. Edward V. Weber, 60 Round Hill Road, Poughkeepsie, NY 12603-5125
3. Ned Sullivan, Executive Director, Scenic Hudson, Inc., 9 Vassar 
Street, Poughkeepsie, NY 12601
4. Andrew J. Spano, County Executive, Westchester County, Michaelian 
Office Building, White Plains, NY 10601
5. Manna Jo Greene, Environmental Director, Clearwater, Inc., 112 
Little Market Street, Poughkeepsie, NY 12601
6. Joseph P. Gehegan, Jr., Vice President, Spentonbush/Red Star 
Companies, P.O. Box 392, Brooklyn, NY 11231
7. Joseph Tesoriero, Safety Director, McAllister Towing and 
Transportation Company, Inc., 17 Battery Place, New York, NY 10004-1260
8. Kenneth L. Peterson, Jr., Port Captain, Reinauer Transportation 
Companies, 1983 Richmond Terrace, Staten Island, NY 10302
9. Robert J. Hughes, Jr., Hughes Marine Firms, Raritan Plaza I, Raritan 
Center, Edison, NJ 08837
10. John C. Tobin, New York State Waterways Association, Inc., 174 
Washington Avenue, Albany, NY 12210
11. Kevin A. Nugent, Vice President, Bouchard Transportation Co., Inc., 
77 Newbridge Road, Hicksville, NY 11801
12. Richard M. Larrabee, Director, Port Commerce Dept., The Port 
Authority of New York & New Jersey, One World Trade Center, 34S, New 
York, NY 10048-0682
13. Linda O'Leary, Vice President--Atlantic Coast Region, American 
Waterways Operators, 241 Water Street, New York, NY 10038

    One commenter expressed confusion over the boundaries of the Hudson 
River NDA. His confusion was caused by the statement that some vessel 
operators while docked at the Brooklyn Naval Yard have their holding 
tanks pumped out by waste haulers. Since the Brooklyn Naval Yard is on 
the East River, he asked whether the prohibition included the East 
River. It does not include the East River, but boaters may choose to 
use pumpout facilities located outside of the NDA because the 
facilities are more convenient for them. For example, a boater who 
keeps his boat in a Staten Island marina may choose to use the pumpout 
at his home marina because it is convenient. The southern boundary of 
the proposed No Discharge Area (NDA) in this application would begin at 
the Battery in Manhattan, New York and the northern boundary would be 
the Federal Dam in Troy, New York. This area includes waters up to the 
New Jersey-New York boundary and does not include waters in New Jersey. 
It does not include the East River, the Harlem River, the Long Island 
Sound nor the Raritan Bay. No change to the determination is necessary 
based on this comment.
    Three commenters expressed their support for the complete 
prohibition of the discharge of sewage from vessels. They believe that 
this determination is an important step in maintaining the vitality of 
the Hudson River. No change to the determination is necessary based on 
these comments.
    One commenter compared the prohibition to a ``chamber pot'' 
approach and questioned whether making waste disposal more difficult 
for boaters effectively eliminates sewage. The commenter stated that 
marine sanitation devices (MSDs) must be

[[Page 58346]]

allowed to operate and discharge. In response, EPA notes that the 
pumpout and subsequent treatment of wastes at a sewage treatment plant 
generally results in a higher level of treatment than an MSD can 
provide. A holding tank is a total retention/no discharge alternative. 
A flow through device (Type I or Type II) treats the waste to some 
degree and then discharges into the water. This discharge contains 
pathogens, nutrients and various chemicals. This commenter also 
expressed concern about the capacity of a holding tank capacity (2 days 
of waste), the distance between pumpouts (15.5 miles) and the speed at 
which most vessels travel (5 knots per hour). The capacity of a holding 
tank is determined by several factors, volume, size of the crew, and 
the use of shore bathroom facilities when available. The greatest 
distance between pumpout facilities, based on the charts submitted in 
the application, is 12 miles. The speed at which vessels travel is 
determined by whether the vessel is a sailing or power vessel. These 
are all factors, including fuel, weather, supplies and charts, which 
the operator of the vessel needs to consider when planning his trip. No 
changes to the determination are necessary based on these comments.
    Several commenters expressed concerns regarding the ability of 
large commercial vessels to dispose of sewage due to the lack of 
facilities and the draft restriction at pumpout facilities. These 
vessels may exceed 200 feet in length and have drafts in excess of 20 
feet. The commenters also stated that many, if not all, of these 
commercial vessels have been equipped with Type II marine sanitation 
devices, which are a flow-through type treatment devices as opposed to 
a Type III MSD which are a holding tank. They stated that to retrofit 
tugs and barges with holding tanks would cost several thousand dollars 
and the time in dry dock would cost several thousand dollars in lost 
revenue. Some commenters requested that commercial vessels be exempted 
from the prohibition since no pumpout facilities were available for 
their vessels due to size and draft requirements. The same commenters 
requested that the NDA apply only to recreational boaters. While many 
of the commercial vessels are equipped with Type II MSDs, there are 
several commercial operators that utilize Type III MSDs and have their 
holding tanks pumped out at facilities that are available in their home 
ports or that make arrangements with waste haulers to pumpout their 
holding tanks when they dock to load, unload or take on supplies and 
fuels. EPA concludes that adequate facilities for the safe and sanitary 
removal and treatment of sewage from all vessels are reasonably 
available. One commenter stated that 50% of the petroleum transported 
by tug/barge units was delivered to Albany, 29% of the petroleum was 
delivered to Newburgh and 21% of the petroleum was delivered to various 
terminals along the Hudson River. This commenter contended that the 
imposition of the NDA on all vessels will cause a disruption in the 
petroleum delivery system, unduly harm the tug and barge industry, 
result in hardship to the residents of New York State and serve no 
useful purpose in terms of improving water quality or protecting 
environmental resources. Based on this information, EPA has decided 
that the complete prohibition of discharge of vessel sewage will not 
apply for one year from the date of Federal Register publication of 
this notice to commercial vessels which are greater than 225 feet in 
length or are greater than 20 feet in draft. The prohibition of 
discharge of vessel sewage will apply to all other vessels upon 
publication of this determination in the Federal Register.
    The EPA hereby makes a final affirmative determination that 
adequate facilities for the safe and sanitary removal and treatment of 
sewage from all vessels are reasonably available for the Hudson River, 
New York. A final determination on this matter will result in a New 
York State prohibition of any sewage discharges from vessels, with the 
exception of commercial vessels that are greater than 225 feet in 
length or are greater than 20 feet in draft, on the Hudson River from 
the Battery in Manhattan, New York to the Federal Dam at Troy, New 
York. For vessels that are greater than 225 feet in overall length or 
are greater than 20 feet in draft, the prohibition will be applicable 
on October 8, 2004.
    Any questions regarding this notice should be addressed to Walter 
E. Andrews, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Region 2, Water 
Programs Branch, 290 Broadway, 24th Floor, New York, New York, 10007-
1866. Telephone: (212) 637-3880.

    Dated: September 3, 2003.
Jane M. Kenny,
Regional Administrator, Region 2.
[FR Doc. 03-25637 Filed 10-8-03; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-P