[Federal Register Volume 72, Number 34 (Wednesday, February 21, 2007)]
[Notices]
[Pages 7875-7876]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E7-2877]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

[FRL-8279-1]


Virginia State Prohibition on Discharges of Vessel Sewage; Final 
Affirmative Determination

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Notice of Final Determination.

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SUMMARY: Notice is hereby given that the Regional Administrator, EPA 
Region III has affirmatively determined, pursuant to section 312(f) 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 navigable waters of the Lynnhaven River, 
Virginia Beach, Virginia. Virginia will completely prohibit the 
discharge of sewage, whether treated or not, from any vessel in the 
Lynnhaven River.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Edward Ambrogio, EPA Region III, 
Office of State and Watershed Partnerships, 1650 Arch Street, 
Philadelphia, PA 19103. Telephone: (215) 814-2758. Fax: (215) 814-2301. 
E-mail: [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: An application was made by the Virginia 
Secretary of Natural Resources on behalf of the Virginia Department of 
Environmental Quality (VDEQ) to EPA Region III to approve a no 
discharge zone for the Lynnhaven River. Upon publication of this final 
affirmative determination, VDEQ will completely prohibit the discharge 
of sewage, whether treated or not, from any vessel in the Lynnhaven 
River in accordance with section 312(f)(3) of the Clean Water Act and 
40 CFR 140.4(a). Notice of the Receipt of Application and Tentative 
Determination was published in the Federal Register on November 21, 
2006 (71 FR 67352, Nov. 21, 2006). Comments on the tentative 
determination were accepted during the 30-day comment period which 
closed on December 21, 2006. Comment letters from the Chesapeake Bay 
Foundation and Lynnhaven River 2007 were received endorsing the 
proposed affirmative determination. The remainder of this Notice 
summarizes the location of the no discharge zone, the available pumpout 
facilities and related information.

Lynnhaven River

    The Lynnhaven River is located in the northern part of the city of 
Virginia Beach, Virginia. It is connected to the Chesapeake Bay through 
the Lynnhaven Inlet, just east of the Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel. The 
Lynnhaven River, including the Eastern Branch, the Western Branch, and 
Broad Bay/Linkhorn Bay encompasses an area of land and water of 
approximately 64 square miles with nearly 150 miles of shoreline. The 
upstream portions of the Lynnhaven River system flow either north to 
the Chesapeake Bay or south to North Carolina depending on wind and 
tidal patterns. The Lynnhaven River is oligohaline and subject to the 
action of tides. The majority of the waters outside the bays are 
shallow with maintained channel depths of six to 10 feet.
    Many people enjoy the Lynnhaven River watershed for a variety of 
activities, including boating, fishing, crabbing, water skiing, and 
swimming. The shoreline surrounding the Lynnhaven River includes 4,478 
private waterfront homes, public access areas, marinas, boat launch 
facilities, waterside restaurants, and a state park. Large and small 
boats, personal watercraft, canoes, kayaks, water skiers, and swimmers 
enjoy the river for its recreational benefits. There are several 
waterfront access areas within First Landing State Park for swimming 
during summer months. The Lynnhaven River was also once a prime oyster 
harvesting area known throughout the world for the famous Lynnhaven 
oyster. Oyster habitat restoration projects are presently being 
implemented in the Lynnhaven River. Lynnhaven River 2007, an advocacy 
group, in partnership with the city of Virginia Beach, the Chesapeake 
Bay Foundation, and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers initiated an 
oyster-growing program in the summer of 2004 to assist in repopulating 
the river with this valuable living resource.
    Portions of the Lynnhaven River were listed for bacteriological 
impairments from fecal coliform and enterococci bacteria in Virginia's 
1998 section 303(d) list requiring the development of a total maximum 
daily load (TMDL). Consequently in 2004, EPA Region III and the 
Virginia State Water Control Board approved a TMDL for the shellfish 
harvest use impairments on Lynnhaven, Broad, and Linkhorn Bays prepared 
by the VDEQ. The establishment of a no discharge zone for the Lynnhaven 
River is one component of the TMDL Implementation Plan.
    For the purpose of this Notice, the Lynnhaven River no discharge 
zone is defined as all contiguous waters south of the Lesner Bridge at 
Lynnhaven Inlet (Latitude 36[deg]54'27.90'' N and Longitude 
76[deg]05'30.90''W) and north of the watershed break point defined as 
the intersection of West Neck Creek at Dam Neck Road (Latitude 
36[deg]47'17.60'' N and Longitude 76[deg]04'14.62'' W).
    Information submitted by the Commonwealth of Virginia states that 
there are six waterfront marinas operating sanitary pumpouts in the 
Lynnhaven River. Each of these facilities also provides dump stations, 
restrooms, and informational signage. Details of these facilities' 
location, availability and hours of operation are as follows: Long Bay 
Pointe marina is located on the north side of Long Creek, west of the 
West Great Neck Road Bridge over the creek (2101 West Great Neck Rd., 
Virginia Beach). The marina currently operates a Chesapeake Bay Marine 
pumpout system on the fuel dock accessible to all boaters. There is a 
sign on the pump station. The marina also has a dump station adjacent 
to the dock for portable toilets. The marina's sewage disposal hours of 
operation are 10 am-6 pm, 7 days a week, 12 months per year. Lynnhaven 
Dry Storage marina is located on the north side of Long Creek between 
the West Great Neck Road and North Great Neck Road bridges over the 
creek (2150 West Great Neck Rd., Virginia Beach). The marina currently 
operates a SaniSailor pumpout system on the fuel dock accessible to all 
boaters. A sign for the pumpout is posted on the side of the building 
adjacent to the dock. The marina has a dump station adjacent to the 
dock for

[[Page 7876]]

portable toilets. The marina's sewage disposal hours of operation are 8 
am-5 pm, 7 days a week, 12 months per year. Lynnhaven Municipal marina 
is located along the north side of Long Creek between the West Great 
Neck Road Bridge and the Lesner Bridge (3211 Lynnhaven Drive, Virginia 
Beach). The marina currently operates a Chesapeake Bay Marine pumpout 
system at the building face with a hose that reaches the dock 
accessible to all boaters. There is a sign for the pumpout posted on 
the dock and on the building face. The marina also has a dump station 
at the building face adjacent to the dock for portable toilets. The 
marina's sewage disposal hours of operation are 8 am-4 pm, 7 days a 
week, 12 months per year. Lynnhaven Seafood marina is located along the 
north side of Long Creek between the West Great Neck Road Bridge and 
the Lesner Bridge (3311 Shore Drive, Virginia Beach). The marina 
currently operates a SaniSailor pumpout system on the fuel dock 
accessible to all boaters. There is a sign on the pump station. The 
marina also has a dump station adjacent to the dock for portable 
toilets. The marina's sewage disposal hours of operation are 6:30 am-11 
pm, 7 days a week, 12 months per year. Marina Shores marina is located 
on the north side of Long Creek just east of the North Great Neck Road 
Bridge over the creek (2100 Marina Shores Drive, Virginia Beach). The 
marina currently operates an Edson pumpout system on the fuel dock 
accessible to all boaters. There is a sign posted on the pump station. 
The marina also has a dump station adjacent to the dock for portable 
toilets. The marina's sewage disposal hours of operation are 7 am-8 pm 
weekends, 8 am-7 pm weekdays, May through September, and, 8 am-5 pm 
October through June. Cavalier Golf & Yacht Club marina is located at 
the north end of the Bird Neck Point Neighborhood at Bird Neck Point 
where Little Neck Creek meets Linkhorn Bay (1052 Cardinal Road, 
Virginia Beach). The marina currently operates a KECO diaphragm pumpout 
system on the dock accessible to club members only. They also have a 
dump station adjacent to the dock for portable toilets. The club 
currently serves approximately one hundred-fifty (150) vessels at this 
facility. The marina's sewage disposal hours of operation are 8 am-6 
pm, 7 days a week, 12 months per year.
    There are no draught limitations for vessels at pumpout facilities 
and dump stations in the Lynnhaven River. All vessels using the 
facilities have sufficient water to dock at the marinas. There are two 
bridges within the Lynnhaven River as well as the Lesner Bridge located 
at Lynnhaven Inlet. Pumpout facility locations as well as the bridge 
heights (35 feet) do not restrict accessibility to marinas or pumpout 
facilities. The facilities are generally concentrated near Lynnhaven 
Inlet because the watershed becomes dominated by private residences as 
one travels further away from the inlet. However, transient boats enter 
the watershed at the inlet and most local boats travel to the inlet 
facilities for fuel, so the grouping of facility locations does not 
appear to be an inconvenience.
    The Commonwealth of Virginia Sanitary Regulations for Marinas and 
Boat Moorings specifies requirements for facility design and operation. 
Routine health department inspections and performance tests are 
performed to ensure that facilities are available and functioning 
properly. Broken pumpout stations can be reported to the Virginia 
Department of Health (VDH) by calling 1-800-ASK-FISH. These regulations 
also address treatment of collected vessel sewage from pumpouts and 
dump stations. In compliance with these regulations, all wastes from 
marinas within the Lynnhaven River are collected in and transported 
through the City of Virginia Beach's sanitary sewer collection system 
to the Hampton Roads Sanitation District for ultimate treatment and 
disposal.
    According to Virginia's application there are approximately 11,253 
vessels operating in the Lynnhaven River on any given day based on 
Virginia Beach boater registrations, and estimates of the transient 
boat population, minus the estimated number of registered boats 
operating in other Virginia Beach watersheds. The VDH marina inspection 
slip counts indicate only four out of 535 wet slips at commercial 
marinas with pumpouts in the Lynnhaven River are designated as 
transient vessel slips. Based on this information, it is assumed that 
most transient boats are brought in by trailer. Most of these boats 
would not be of a size expected to have a holding tank. Transient boat 
counts have been estimated based on boat information given by the 
operators of the three public boat ramps in the Lynnhaven River.
    The vessel population based on length is 2,883 vessels less than 16 
feet in length, 7,272 vessels between 16 feet and 26 feet in length, 
899 vessels between 27 feet and 40 feet in length, and 199 vessels 
greater than 40 feet in length. Based on the number and size of vessels 
and EPA guidance for state and local officials to estimate the number 
of vessels with holding tanks, two pumpouts and four dump stations are 
needed for the Lynnhaven River. As described above, there are currently 
six pumpout facilities and six dump stations in the Lynnhaven River.

Finding

    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 Lynnhaven 
River, Virginia Beach, Virginia. This final determination will result 
in a Virginia state prohibition of any sewage discharges, whether 
treated or not, from vessels into the Lynnhaven River.

    Dated: February 12, 2007.
Donald S. Welsh,
Regional Administrator, Region III.
 [FR Doc. E7-2877 Filed 2-20-07; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-P