EPA s NPDES Vessel Permitting Program and Development of the Next VGP. Robin Danesi US EPA, Office of Water 3/1/2011

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1 EPA s NPDES Vessel Permitting Program and Development of the Next VGP Robin Danesi US EPA, Office of Water 3/1/2011 1

2 Outline Brief review of the Vessel NPDES permitting Program VGP Universe VGP History Brief overview of our plan for developing the next permit EPA led/sponsored studies and research Questions 2

3 Environmental Impact from Vessel Discharges Vessel Discharges have the potential to cause significant environmental impacts Pollutants and constituents of concern include: Non-indigenous organisms (potentially allowing for establishment of an invasive species) Nutrients Oil and Grease Metals Pathogens Toxic and non-conventional pollutants with toxic effects (e.g., aqueous film forming foam, volatile and semi-volatile organic compounds) 3

4 Vessel Universe From a Clean Water Act regulatory perspective, there are four distinct classes of vessels: VGP Vessels - Non-military, non-recreational vessels greater than 79 feet (except commercial fishing vessels) and all non-military, non-commercial vessels which discharge ballast water Moratorium Vessels - Non-military, non-recreational vessels less than 79 feet and all commercial fishing vessels (regardless of size) which do not discharge ballast water (vessels subject to P.L moratorium) 4

5 Vessel Universe (cont.) From a Clean Water Act regulatory perspective, there are four distinct classes of vessels: Recreational Vessels Defined in the Clean Boating Act of 2008 Vessels of the Armed Forces 5

6 Vessel Universe Approximately 70,000 VGP vessels Previously estimated approximately 50,000 must submit NOIs Between 40,000-50,000 active NOIs Approximately 120, ,000 Moratorium Vessels 6

7 VGP Vessel Characteristics Vessels range from Inland Barges and Tugs to Ocean Going Container Ships and Tankers Ballast water capacity ranges from 0 to more than 100,000 m 3 Of the 29,000 NOI entries, which contain both tonnage and ballast water, more than 10,000 vessels have less than 100 cubic meters of ballast water capacity most of these vessels are less than 2,000 Gross Tons (GT), but some as large as 40,000 GT 7

8 VGP Vessel Characteristics (cont.) Of approximately 50,000 vessels having submitted NOIs, approximately 16,500 report leaving the US EEZ and 4,400 report being engaged in Pacific nearshore voyages More than 29,000 total vessels are barges many are unmanned and unpowered and travel either inland or coastal routes 8

9 CWA Implementing Regulations For 35 years... Regulations excluded from NPDES permitting discharges incidental to the normal operation of a vessel while operating as a means of transportation (40 CFR 122.3(a)) 9

10 2003 Lawsuit Northwest Environmental Advocates What has changed... Lawsuit successfully challenged regulatory exclusion 2006 Court decision as of: February 6, 2009*, the permit exclusion for discharges incidental to the normal operation of a vessel is gone *Effective date extended twice first from September 30, 2008 and then from December 19,

11 VGP Finalization EPA issued the final Vessel General Permit on December 18, 2008 (announced in December 29, 2008 Federal Register Notice (73 FR79473)) Except for ballast water (discussed below), permit covers discharges from all commercial vessels 79 feet or longer except commercial fishing vessels For ballast water discharges, permit covers all commercial vessels, including all commercial fishing vessels and vessels less than 79 feet 11

12 Vessel General Permit The current VGP expires on December 19, 2013 The current VGP covers All discharges incidental to normal operation of nonrecreational vessels 79 feet or longer, except commercial fishing vessels For ballast water discharges, permit covers all nonrecreational vessels (including commercial fishing vessels and vessels less than 79 feet) National in scope Pursuant to CWA 401, 28 States, Tribes, and Territories provided additional permit conditions 12

13 Vessel General Permit Covers 26 discharge types including ballast water Has additional vessel class-specific conditions for 8 classes of vessels Jurisdiction of the permit covers inland waters and 3 nautical mile (nm) Territorial Sea 13

14 Vessel General Permit EPA attempted to maximize consistency with USCG requirements where possible, although the permit contains supplemental requirements (e.g., ballast water, gray water bilge water) where EPA deemed necessary 14

15 The Next VGP 15

16 Key Relevant Activity: U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) Ballast Water Discharge Standard Rulemaking Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) issued in August 2009 Proposed two phases of standards Phase I: The IMO Treaty Regulation D-2 standard Phase II: 1,000 times more stringent than the IMO standard Contains type approval requirements for ballast water treatment systems 16

17 Technical development efforts In order to improve the next VGP, EPA is gathering information on discharge characteristics, Best Management Practices (BMPs) and treatment technologies for several discharges and constituents Goal is to have better information to consider for possible VGP improvements 17

18 EPA Ballast Water Research Activities: SAB and NAS EPA s Science Advisory Panel (SAB) on Ballast Water Treatment System Technological Availability SAB s charge is to evaluate the status of existing and potential ballast water treatment technologies and their ability to meet different discharge standards As background for the study, OW staff and USCG staff prepared a white paper presenting key issues and background regarding ballast water regulation and treatment technology 18

19 EPA Ballast Water Research Activities: SAB and NAS National Academy of Science National Research Council (NAS) Study on Methods for Evaluating Risk The NAS study is assessing methods to evaluate the risk of invasive species introductions associated with ballast water discharges ORD and U.S. Geological Survey researchers prepared a background paper, titled Density Matters to assist NAS committee (available from our webpage at May 31, 2011: Target date for completion of reports 19

20 Additional New Information Report to Congress Finalized in August 2010 Study of Moratorium Vessels els/reportcongress.cfm 20

21 EPA Sponsored Research EPA continues to work with the scientific community to determine what are ecologically acceptable endpoints for aquatic invasive species standards and the availability and effectiveness of treatment technologies for ballast water EPA undertaking major ballast water research efforts, including dedicating over 10 million dollars to Ballast Water and Invasive Species research in Fiscal Year 2010 In partnership with the Coast Guard, developing and validating ballast water monitoring approaches ETV Protocol finalized 21

22 Early Public Input EPA received early public input from approximately 4,000 commenters. Currently considering suggestions from stakeholders and examining other key topic areas to identify improvements to the VGP. Where possible, goals are to: Improve environmental protection, and Reduce administrative burden in the existing VGP 22

23 Thank you 23