Maritime Sewage Ban Considered for California Coast

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency ("EPA") has proposed a new regulation that would ban all sewage discharges to the marine waters along California's coastline from large cruise ships and most other large ocean-going ships. The proposed regulation is aimed at protecting economic and ecological interests associated with California and would establish the largest coastal "no discharge zone" in the United States.

The U.S. Clean Water Act authorizes the EPA to establish vessel sewage no-discharge zones if necessary to protect and restore water quality. The State of California first asked the EPA to establish such a zone in 2006.

Specifically, the discharge ban will prohibit sewage discharges from all 300+ ton vessels that operate in California waters, including all cruise ships and cargo ships that have sufficient sewage holding-tank capacity (defined in the rule as two days' storage capacity). The new ban will apply to all coastal waters out to three miles from