Treatment systems are chemical injected system that provides automatic onboard treatment and legal discharge of treated waste within the three mile limit. It is the ideal sanitation system for boats used primarily within waters where discharge of treated waste is legal. Please note: Not all locations are legal for the use of treatment systems. Please do your research before use of these system.
URGENT NOTICE TO WASHINGTON STATE WASTE TREATMENT SYSTEM OWNERS
WASHINGTON STATE IS A NO DISCHARGE ZONE -Treatment systems are not legal to use if you are within 3 miles of the coast.
Chapter 173-228 WAC was adopted on April 9, 2018 after a five year public process and EPA approval. The rule is effective as of May 10, 2018.
However, certain commercial vessels have a five year delay before the
rule begins. There is no change for gray water discharges.
Dear
Interested Parties,
The
Department of Ecology, with support from other state agencies, will formally
request today that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency protect Puget Sound
by approving a Clean Water Act
no-discharge zone for vessel sewage. If
approved by EPA, the determination would prohibit commercial and recreational
vessels from releasing any type of sewage into Puget Sound.
Puget
Sound's shellfish beds, swimming beaches and protected areas are vulnerable to
all sources of pollution, including bacteria and viruses in vessel
sewage. Washington has made a tremendous investment in the protection and
restoration of Puget Sound and the proposed no-discharge zone is an important
piece of the strategy. While the EPA has established more than 90 such
zones in 26 states, the no-discharge zone would be the first in Washington and
the Northwest.
The
state's petition follows more than four years of research and discussions with
organizations representing vessel owners, business and environmental
organizations, and other interests. The state examined how pathogens from
vessel sewage can affect Puget Sound's water quality and key resources, such as
shellfish harvesting.
Puget
Sound is ready with 173 pump-out stations at 102 locations for recreational
boaters, plus 15 commercial pump-outs, 21 mobile pump-out boats, and pumper
trucks. This far exceeds the number of pump-out facilities required by EPA to
request a no-discharge zone. 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.
Owners
of some commercial vessels - including tug boats, fishing vessels, and small
passenger carriers - face significant costs to replace sanitation treatment
devices with holding tanks. Ecology is asking EPA to allow five years for these
changeovers to occur. It would be the longest phase-in for these types of
commercial vessels ever provided for in a new no-discharge zone.
While
the current number and location of pumpouts are sufficient to meet the Clean
Water Act criteria to designate all of Puget Sound a no-discharge zone for all
vessels, it is recognized that additional pumpout infrastructure would add more
utility for tug boats, small commercial passenger vessels and commercial
fishing vessels. Therefore, Ecology will collaborate with those sectors to
develop, help fund and implement a five-year pumpout infrastructure program
that is designed to provide additional pumpout options.
If
approved by the EPA, Ecology 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 would encompass 2,300 square miles and
include all marine waters east of New Dungeness on the Strait of Juan de Fuca,
plus lakes Washington, Lake Union and the waters that connect them to Puget
Sound. As an immediate benefit, the Department of Health has estimated that at
least 500 acres of shellfish beds would be upgraded for harvest.
After
receiving the final petition, EPA has 90 days to make an initial decision on
Washington's petition. A proposal by EPA to approve the petition would begin a
30 day public comment period, followed by a final decision. The final
petition and additional information can be found on Ecology's
no-discharge zone website.
If
you have any questions, or if you do not wish to receive further e-mails
regarding the NDZ, please let me know.
Sincerely,
Amy
Amy
Jankowiak
Department of Ecology, Northwest Regional Office
Water Quality Program, NDZ Lead
If You are in need of a sewage holding tank for your vessel please follow the link to out Sewage holding tanks
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