On May 15, EPA opened a federalism consultation on its second phase of changes to the Uniform National Discharge Standards (UNDS), which regulate discharges incidental to the normal operation of a vessel of the Armed Forces. UNDS, under Section 312 of the Clean Water Act, authorizes EPA and DOW to identify and evaluate which discharges require control for protection of the environment and to establish marine pollution control devices. UNDS also allows states, working with EPA, to establish no-discharge zones for one or more types of vessel discharges.
As part of its joint revisions with DOW, EPA is soliciting early feedback from stakeholders on revisions to three specific types of discharges from vessels of the Armed Forces, including the Navy and Coast Guard. EPA is soliciting information on its revisions to regulations affecting clean ballast, compensated fuel ballast, and dirty ballast discharges from Armed Forces vessels ahead of a formal comment period. According to EPA, there is a universe of over 6,000 Armed Forces vessels, with the largest Naval presence in CA, CT, FL, HI, VA, WA, and the largest Coast Guard presence in AK, AL, CA, CT, FL, HI, MA, MD, ME, NJ, RI, SC, TX, VA, and WA. Ballast discharges have the potential to be a vector for aquatic nuisance species and may contain constituents of concern, like pathogens, pollutants, or metals.
EPA is specifically seeking input on the following:
- Does your state have experience regarding current practices related to Armed Forces ballast water discharges?
- Are there studies or data related to these ballast water discharges that should be considerate when setting performance standards?
- What state regulations, planning initiatives, or state enforceable CZM policies could inform this rulemaking?
AMWA encourages potentially affected utilities to provide input to the Agency by July 14 by submitting comments to the rulemaking docket. Interested individuals should email [email protected] for more information or a copy of EPA’s federalism consultation informational slides.