38 §423-D. Graywater and blackwater discharges from commercial passenger vessels
Title 38: WATERS AND NAVIGATION
Chapter 3: PROTECTION AND IMPROVEMENT OF WATERS
Subchapter 1: ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION BOARD
Article 2: POLLUTION CONTROL
§423-D. Graywater and blackwater discharges from commercial passenger vessels
1. Definitions. As used in this section, unless the context otherwise indicates, the following terms have the following meanings.
A. "Blackwater" means human bodily wastes and the wastes from toilets and other receptacles intended to receive or retain human bodily wastes. [2003, c. 650, §2 (NEW).]
B. "Coastal waters" means those portions of the Atlantic Ocean within the jurisdiction of the State and all other waters of the State subject to the rise and fall of the tide. [2003, c. 650, §2 (NEW).]
C. "Commercial passenger vessel" means a large or small commercial passenger vessel. [2003, c. 650, §2 (NEW).]
D. "Graywater" means galley, dishwasher, bath and laundry wastewater. "Graywater" does not include other wastes or waste streams. [2003, c. 650, §2 (NEW).]
E. "Large commercial passenger vessel" means a commercial passenger vessel that provides overnight accommodations for 250 or more passengers for hire, determined with reference to the number of lower berths. [2003, c. 650, §2 (NEW).]
F. "No-discharge zone" means an area within coastal waters that has been designated by the United States Environmental Protection Agency pursuant to 33 United States Code, Section 1322, to be an area in which discharge of blackwater is prohibited. [2003, c. 650, §2 (NEW).]
G. "Small commercial passenger vessel" means a commercial passenger vessel that provides overnight accommodations for fewer than 250 passengers for hire, determined with reference to the number of lower berths. [2003, c. 650, §2 (NEW).]
[ 2003, c. 650, §2 (NEW) .]
2. Licensing exemptions. A license is not required pursuant to section 413 prior to the discharge of graywater to coastal waters from:
A. A small commercial passenger vessel; [2003, c. 650, §2 (NEW).]
B. A commercial passenger vessel operated by the United States or a foreign government; or [2003, c. 650, §2 (NEW).]
C. A commercial passenger vessel if the discharge is made for the purpose of securing the vessel or saving life at sea, and as long as all reasonable precautions have been taken to prevent or minimize the discharge. A discharge as described in this paragraph must be reported in accordance with subsection 3. [2003, c. 650, §2 (NEW).]
[ 2003, c. 650, §2 (NEW) .]
3. Report of unauthorized discharge. Discharges of blackwater or graywater from a large commercial passenger vessel to coastal waters must be reported to the department as provided in this subsection.
A. The owner or operator of a large commercial passenger vessel that discharges blackwater within a no-discharge zone or discharges blackwater in violation of federal law outside a no-discharge zone shall immediately report that discharge to the department. The owner or operator shall submit a written report concerning the discharge to the department within 30 days of the discharge. [2003, c. 650, §2 (NEW).]
B. Beginning January 1, 2006, the owner or operator of a large commercial passenger vessel that discharges graywater without a license or in a manner inconsistent with a license issued pursuant to section 413 shall immediately report that discharge to the department. The owner or operator shall also submit a written report concerning the discharge to the department within 30 days of the discharge. [2003, c. 650, §2 (NEW).]
[ 2003, c. 650, §2 (NEW) .]
4. Prohibited discharges; exemption; general permit requirement. The following provisions govern the discharge of graywater and a mixture of graywater and blackwater from large commercial passenger vessels.
A. The owner or operator of a large commercial passenger vessel may not discharge graywater or a mixture of graywater and blackwater to coastal waters. [2003, c. 650, §2 (NEW).]
B. Notwithstanding paragraph A, beginning January 1, 2006, the owner or operator of a large commercial passenger vessel may discharge graywater or a mixture of graywater and blackwater to coastal waters if:
(1) The discharge is permitted and meets standards for continuous discharge under the federal Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2001, Public Law 106-554, Section 1(a)(4) and Appendix D, Division B, Title XIV, Section 1404(b) or (c), 114 Stat. 2763, 2763A-316;
(2) While operating in coastal waters, the owner or operator of the large commercial passenger vessel maintains a discharge record book as required by 33 Code of Federal Regulations 159.315 (2003);
(3) The owner or operator of the large commercial passenger vessel meets the sampling and reporting requirements of 33 Code of Federal Regulations 159.317 (2003) prior to and while operating in coastal waters, except that instead of meeting the requirements in 33 Code of Federal Regulations 159.317(a)(2) the owner or operator of the large commercial passenger vessel shall, not less than 30 days nor more than 120 days prior to the large commercial passenger vessel's initial entry into the coastal waters during any calendar year, provide a certification to the department that the large commercial passenger vessel's graywater and mixture of graywater and blackwater meets the standards specified in subparagraph (1); and
(4) The department issues the owner or operator of the large commercial passenger vessel a general permit to discharge graywater or a mixture of graywater and blackwater.
For purposes of this paragraph, the department shall adopt rules, which are routine technical rules pursuant to Title 5, chapter 375, subchapter 2-A, to implement the requirements in the federal Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2001, Public Law 106-554, Section 1(a)(4) and Appendix D, Division B, Title XIV, Section 1404(b) or (c), 114 Stat. 2763, 2763A-316 and Code of Federal Regulations 159.315 and 159.317 (2003) with the following changes: "Maine" is substituted for "Alaska," "Department of Environmental Protection" is substituted for "Captain of the Port" and for "Coast Guard," and "graywater or a mixture of graywater and blackwater" is substituted for "treated sewage and/or graywater."
The department shall enter into a memorandum of agreement with the United States Coast Guard to consolidate information requirements of the department and the United States Coast Guard to the extent acceptable to the United States Coast Guard. [2003, c. 650, §2 (NEW).]
[ 2003, c. 650, §2 (NEW) .]
5. Agent for service of process. The owner or operator of a commercial passenger vessel shall continuously maintain a designated agent for service of process whenever the commercial passenger vessel is in coastal waters. The agent must be an individual resident of the State, a domestic corporation or a foreign corporation having a place of business in and authorized to do business in the State. "Agent for service of process" means an agent upon whom process, notice of or demand required or permitted by law to be served upon the owner or operator may be served.
[ 2003, c. 650, §2 (NEW) .]
6. Innocent passage. This section does not apply to a commercial passenger vessel that operates in the coastal waters of the State solely in innocent passage. For purposes of this paragraph, a commercial passenger vessel is engaged in innocent passage if its operation in coastal waters of the State, regardless of whether the vessel is a United States or foreign-flag vessel, would constitute innocent passage under the:
A. Convention on the Territorial Sea and the Contiguous Zone, April 29, 1958, 15 U.S.T. 1606; or [2003, c. 650, §2 (NEW).]
B. United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea 1982, December 10, 1982, United Nations publication No. E.83.V.5, 21 I.L.M. 1261 (1982), were the vessel a foreign-flag vessel. [2003, c. 650, §2 (NEW).]
[ 2003, c. 650, §2 (NEW) .]
SECTION HISTORY
2003, c. 650, §2 (NEW).