EPA Finalizes New Vessel Discharge Standards To Replace Vessel General Permit

Originally published in the November 2024 issue of Bench & Bar of Minnesota Environmental Law Update, Minnesota State Bar Association.

On October 9, 2024, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) published a final rule under the 2018 Vessel Incidental Discharge Act (VIDA) governing the release of pollution to U.S. waters incident to the operation of ships, including unique requirements applicable to Great Lakers freighters. Vessel Incidental Discharge National Standards of Performance, 89 Fed. Reg. 82074 (Oct. 9, 2024). Common sources of pollution from the normal operation of ships includes deck runoff, bilge water, water from cooling and fire systems, and gray water. An additional key concern is the transport of aquatic invasive species in ballast water, which ships take on (and discharge) in many different locations. These discharges have been subject to a patchwork of federal and state regulations, including the 2013 National Pollutant Discharge Elimination