Application to Complete a State-Wide

No Discharge Area

for 

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts

Application Submitted By:

Commonwealth of Massachusetts

Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs

Richard K. Sullivan, Jr, Secretary

Office of Coastal Zone Management

Bruce Carlisle, Director

Contact: Todd Callaghan, NDA Coordinator

Phone: 617-626-1233; email: Todd.Callaghan@state.ma.us
2

TABLE OF CONTENTS

INTRODUCTION 3, 4

PROPOSED NDA BOUNDARIES 4

CERTIFICATION OF NEED 4-6

VESSEL POPULATION 6

PUMPOUT FACILITIES 6-8

PUBLIC EDUCATION 8

ENFORCEMENT 8-9

FIGURES

Figure 1. Map of the proposed Massachusetts statewide NDA.

Figure 2. The area from Manchester-By-The-Sea to Marshfield proposed to be designated as no 

discharge for boat sewage.

Figure 3. Two corridors south of Cape Cod proposed to be designated as no discharge for boat sewage. 

Figure 4. Public and semi-public beaches in Massachusetts. 

Figure 5. Shellfish aquaculture locations in Massachusetts.

Figure 6. The location of boat ramps, marinas, and mooring fields in Massachusetts.

Figure 7. Routes of recreational boaters surveyed by SeaPlan in 2010 and 2012 and the Massachusetts 

Marine Trades Association (MMTA) in 2013.

Figure 8. The frequency of use of Massachusetts and surrounding waters by commercial vessels as 

determined from Automatic Identification System (AIS) tracking devices on each of the vessels.

Appendix A

Pumpouts for recreational vessels adjacent to the proposed NDA.

Appendix B

Pumpouts for commercial vessels adjacent to the proposed NDA. 
3

INTRODUCTION

The Massachusetts Office of Coastal Zone Management (CZM) is requesting that the Secretary of 

Energy and Environmental Affairs designate and the New England Regional Administrator of the 

Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) approve all of the marine waters of the Commonwealth of 

Massachusetts as a No Discharge Area (NDA) pursuant to the Clean Water Act, Section 312(f)(3). 

While most of Massachusetts’ waters have already been designated as “no discharge” for boat sewage, 

there are three areas: a strip near the state-federal boundary spanning from Manchester-By-The-Sea to

Marshfield, a corridor in Vineyard Sound, and a corridor in Nantucket Sound, that have not yet been 

designated. The state-wide NDA will seamlessly integrate the 20 smaller NDAs that have been 

designated in Massachusetts since 1991, while also incorporating the remaining undesignated coastal 

waters into the statewide prohibition on boat sewage disposal. 

An NDA is a body of water in which the discharge of vessel sewage, whether treated or not, is 

prohibited. Sewage discharged from boats contributes to poor water quality that can increase human 

health risks as well as have negative impacts on coastal water quality and resources. Vessel sewage, like 

many other pollutants, can be harmful to the environment when it is not adequately treated. Vessel 

sewage contains a high concentration of nitrogen, a substance that can lead to algal blooms and low 

dissolved oxygen concentrations that can affect the health of fish, shellfish, and eelgrass beds. Sewage 

also contains bacteria and viruses that can make shellfish unsuitable for human consumption and also 

make our beaches and coastal waters unsafe for swimming.

Every boat with an installed marine head (toilet) must have a U.S. Coast Guard approved Marine 

Sanitation Device (MSD). The US Coast Guard tests and certifies MSDs as Type I, Type II, or Type III. 

A Type I MSD is a device that, under the test conditions produces an effluent having a fecal coliform 

bacteria count not greater than 1,000 per 100 milliliters and no visible floating solids. A Type II MSD is

a device that, under the test conditions produces an effluent having a fecal coliform bacteria count not 

greater than 200 per 100 milliliters and suspended solids not greater than 150 milligrams per liter. Type 

III MSDs are holding tanks designed to prevent the overboard discharge of any sewage, treated or 

untreated; although, some Type III MSDs are equipped with a “y” valve that allows the operator to 

legally discharge stored sewage once the vessel is more than three miles offshore. Boats larger than 65 

feet in length must use a Type II or Type III MSD, while boats under 65 feet can use a Type I, II or III 

MSD.

While Type I and Type II MSDs are designed to treat vessel sewage, they do not remove significant 

amounts of nitrogen from the waste before it is discharged. They also cannot remove all of the bacteria 

or viruses. Certain waters of high public and environmental value that require greater environmental 

protection than under existing laws, can be designated NDAs under the federal Clean Water Act. 

Because there is a risk that sewage may negatively impact these sensitive areas, all vessel sewage, even 

if treated by a Type I or Type II MSD, is prohibited from being discharged in NDAs.

This No Discharge Area designation is being requested because the marine waters of Massachusetts 

need additional protection above and beyond existing Clean Water Act protection measures. Clean 

coastal waters are vitally important to Massachusetts communities for the enhancement of the coastal 

economy, public health, recreational opportunities, and marine resources. Massachusetts has been a 

regional leader in addressing nonpoint source pollution, allocating over $8 million to projects in coastal 

communities over 17 years through its Coastal Pollution Remediation Program. Prohibiting the 
4

discharge of boat sewage is one more step toward addressing the full range of nonpoint source pollution 

issues that degrade coastal waters. 

PROPOSED NDA BOUNDARIES

While most of Massachusetts waters have already been designated as “no discharge” for boat sewage, 

there are three areas: a strip near the state-federal boundary spanning from Manchester-By-The-Sea to

Marshfield, a corridor in Vineyard Sound, and a corridor in Nantucket Sound that have not yet been 

designated. One goal of this application is to provide consistency for recreational boaters and 

commercial operators in complying with NDA regulations by making all Commonwealth of 

Massachusetts marine waters no discharge. We also anticipate that the statewide NDA will make it 

easier for enforcement officials to encourage compliance by eliminating any undesignated areas. Thus, 

the boundaries for this statewide NDA encompass all Commonwealth of Massachusetts state waters: 

from mean low water along the coast of Massachusetts, seaward to the state-federal boundary, north to 

the border with New Hampshire, and south to the border with Rhode Island (Figure 1).

The strip of marine waters near the state-federal boundary spanning from Manchester-By-The-Sea to

Marshfield that was previously undesignated is now proposed to be no discharge (Figure 2). This area 

was not previously designated because the local organizations supporting the NDA applications in this 

area believed that designating a seaward NDA boundary using navigational buoys would provide

boaters with visual cues as to where the NDA boundaries are. Now, in order to be consistent with 

adjacent states and to make the NDA boundary more obvious on nautical charts, CZM is proposing that 

the seaward boundary of all previously designated NDAs be moved out to the state-federal boundary. 

The two areas that were previously not designated in the 2012 South Cape Cod and Islands NDA 

(Figure 3) are also now proposed to be no discharge. These areas were not designated in 2012 in order to 

allow passenger ferry operators time to retrofit their vessels, construct the necessary land-side facilities, 

and make arrangements with the local wastewater facilities operators to manage the sanitary waste from 

passenger ferries. The necessary steps have now been taken to retrofit all passenger vessels that are in 

use in Nantucket and Vineyard Sounds and to construct and operate the facilities to manage passenger 

sanitary waste in Falmouth, Barnstable, Nantucket, and Vineyard Haven (ferries traveling to Oak Bluffs 

and Edgartown will discharge waste upon their return to Falmouth, Barnstable, or Nantucket). Thus, 

CZM is proposing that these corridors now become designated as no discharge. 

CERTIFICATION OF NEED

The various beaches, marshes, and harbors and their recreational opportunities attract thousands of 

visitors to Massachusetts every year. Massachusetts has over 500 bathing beaches covering over 727 

miles of sandy coastline (Figure 4). More detailed maps of the locations of these beaches can also be 

found at the Massachusetts Department of Public Health website.

1

Bacterial contamination is the number one reason why beaches become closed to swimming in 

Massachusetts. For example, there were 367 postings of marine beach closures in Massachusetts in 2012 

and 343 of these postings (93%) were due to confirmed bacterial exceedances of the state water quality 

 

1

http://mass.digitalhealthdepartment.com/public_21/beaches.cfm.
5

standard.

2 While none of the exceedances was shown to be due to boat sewage, it stands to reason that 

boat sewage flushed into or adjacent to swimming waters could spoil a recreational experience and 

potentially sicken the public. A boat sewage no discharge area helps to remind boaters to do their part to 

keep beaches safe and clean by using the available pumpout facilities.

Shellfishing

Massachusetts has tens of thousands of acres of shellfish habitat. There are several important 

commercial shellfish species in Massachusetts including: American oyster (Crassostrea virginica), bay 

scallop (Argopecten irradians), blue mussel (Mytilus edulis), European oyster (Ostrea edulis), ocean 

quahog (Artica islandica), quahog (Mercenaria mercenaria), razor clam (Ensis arcuatus), sea scallop 

(Placopecten magellanicus), soft shelled clam (Mya arenaria), and surf clam (Spisula solidissima). The 

shellfish habitat within the boundaries of this proposed NDA supports hundreds of commercial 

shellfishermen with a landings value of over $27 million.

3

Protection of water quality is essential to 

preserving and sustaining shellfish habitat. Shellfish beds are very susceptible to damage from human 

activities, ranging from physical destruction of the beds, to bacterial and viral contamination associated 

with feces. Such contamination poses serious health risks and affected beds must be closed to 

harvesting. The proposed NDA will reduce the amount of pollutants entering coastal waters surrounding 

these shellfish beds and help protect against the inadvertent contamination of shellfish beds.

In addition to wild shellfish beds, the shellfish habitat within the proposed NDA supports hundreds of 

acres of shellfish aquaculture (Figure 5). Shellfish aquaculture includes both public and private 

operations. Municipal aquaculture programs raise clams, oysters, and scallops to an adequate size such 

that they can be released into the wild with a reduced risk of mortality from predation. At the 

appropriate size threshold, the shellfish are seeded into productive fishing areas to support local wild 

harvests, both commercial and recreational. Private aquaculture involves licensing tracts of marine 

intertidal and subtidal areas for private use to grow a variety of commercial shellfish species. Local 

shellfish hatchery and nursery businesses often support public and private aquaculture operations and 

municipal restoration programs.

This proposed NDA will help boaters protect shellfish habitat by keeping boat sewage away from 

nearshore areas and help communities protect the large investments that they have made to promote and 

expand commercial and recreational shellfishing activities.

Recreation

There are 64 marinas and roughly 25,000 permitted public slips and moorings for recreational boating in 

Massachusetts (Figure 6). In addition, there are as many as 10,000 privately maintained slips, moorings, 

and docks.4The extent of the boating infrastructure in Massachusetts is a testament to the value of 

coastal resources to Massachusetts residents and visitors. 

Coastal tourism and recreation employs over 125,000 individuals in Massachusetts and generates over 

$14 billion. The total number of recreational vessels registered in Massachusetts is approximately 

186,000 and as many as 195,000 Massachusetts residents go boating on the weekend (both salt and 

 

2

http://www.mass.gov/eohhs/docs/dph/environmental/exposure/beach-reports/beach-annual-report12.pdf p. 26.

3

http://www.mass-shellfish.dnswh.com/.

4 www.boatma.com/boating_in_ma.html.
6

freshwater combined). Boat owners spend close to $200 million per year on new boats, engines, trailers, 

and accessories. In addition, the Donahue Institute has calculated a 1.37 employment multiplier and a 

1.33 spending multiplier that estimate that the net effect of local communities from peripheral spending 

in Massachusetts is $1.3 billion.5 Clearly, having clean and productive coastal waters to support 

recreational activities is important to the Massachusetts economy. A statewide boat sewage no discharge 

area will help maintain the clean water necessary for the coastal economy to thrive in Massachusetts. 

VESSEL POPULATION

All previous NDA designations included estimates of the number of boats and number of Marine 

Sanitation Devices (MSDs) in each region of interest. Based upon the figures provided in each of the 

applications, there are roughly 60,600 resident and transient recreational vessels that use Massachusetts

coastal waters and there are an estimated 23,080 vessels with MSDs. 

In the previous NDA applications, the number of MSDs was either provided to CZM from the local 

harbormaster or was estimated using data from the Urban Harbors Institute’s South Shore Vessel 

Pumpout Evaluation and Outreach Plan.

6

The UHI data indicated that 16.7% of the vessels < 16 feet, 

11.5% of the vessels between 16 and 25 feet, 85.9% of the vessels between 26 and 40 feet, and 82.6% of 

the vessels greater than 40 feet in their study area had an MSD. When using the UHI methodology, 

CZM multiplied the total number of boats in each size class (values provided by harbormasters) by the 

UHI-determined percent of boats that are expected to have MSDs, in order to estimate the number of 

boats in the area that may have MSDs. 

As part of the Massachusetts ocean management planning process, CZM mapped data on the use of 

Massachusetts waters by recreational boaters (Figure 7), as well as commercial vessels (Figure 8). 

Figure 7 clearly shows that a number of recreational boaters use the span of water from Manchester-ByThe-Sea to Marshfield that is proposed to become a no discharge area. Figure 8 shows that commercial 

vessels also use the span of waters proposed in this NDA, especially ferries going from Provincetown to 

Boston and whalewatch vessels going from Gloucester to Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary.

In addition, one can clearly see that the Steamship Authority (SSA) uses the Martha’s Vineyard corridor 

to travel between Falmouth and Vineyard Haven and both the SSA and Hy-Line ferries use the 

Nantucket Sound corridor to travel between Barnstable and Nantucket (Figure 8). 

PUMPOUT FACILITIES 

The Clean Water Act states that there must be “adequate and reasonably available” pumpout facilities in 

an NDA. At the time of each previous NDA designation, there were adequate pumpout facilities in each 

location, largely due to the success of the state’s Clean Vessel Act (CVA) Program, which allows 

municipal harbormasters as well as private marina owners to purchase, maintain, and operate pumpout 

facilities. In instances where it has been determined that additional pumpout facilities are needed, 

harbormasters and marina owners have the ability to apply to and receive additional funds from the 

CVA Program. Since the CVA Program’s inception in 1994, the state has awarded $20 million to coastal 

communities to provide free boat sewage pumpout services at over 100 locations. In addition, 

 

5

http://www.env.state.ma.us/eea/mop/final-v2/v2-text.pdf.

6 Urban Harbors Institute. 2004. South Shore Vessel Pumpout Evaluation and Outreach Plan. 

http://www.uhi.umb.edu/pdf_files/ss_pumpout_report.pdf. 
7

municipalities may apply to CZM’s Coastal Pollutant Remediation (CPR) grant program for 

reimbursement of the costs of designing, constructing, and installing commercial pumpout facilities. 

CZM has funded commercial pumpouts in Plymouth, Barnstable, and Provincetown and will be funding 

one in Falmouth and another one in Barnstable in summer 2014.

Pumpouts for Recreational Vessels

In each of the previous NDAs designated in Massachusetts, the EPA found that there were adequate and 

reasonably available facilities for the recreational vessel population. There are a total of 122 recreational 

pumpout facilities in coastal Massachusetts. EPA recommends that there should be at least one pumpout 

facility for every 450 boats with marine sanitation devices on board. The ratio of vessels with MSDs to 

pumpouts across coastal Massachusetts is 23,080:122 or 189:1, well within the ratio allowable by EPA. 

To assist boaters in locating pumpouts, the Commonwealth maintains a list of pumpouts available in 

Massachusetts and a link to an interactive map that allows boaters to locate the nearest pumpout 

facility.7

The coastal waters designated through this NDA application cover a span from Manchester-By-The-Sea

to Marshfield, a corridor in Vineyard Sound, and a corridor in Nantucket Sound. As there are no 

pumpout facilities directly in to the Manchester-By-The-Sea to Marshfield span (because it is offshore), 

we are including in Appendix A of this application a list of the pumpout facilities that a boater visiting 

the Manchester-By-The-Sea to Marshfield span of coastal waters could use to pump out. The 

recreational vessel pumpouts in the Vineyard and Nantucket Sound area were listed and mapped 

previously in the 2012 South Cape and Islands NDA application.

Pumpouts for Commercial Vessels

In previous NDA applications, CZM thoroughly described the number of commercial vessels in each of 

the NDAs. These numbers do not change with this proposed NDA. However, for convenience, we list 

and describe the commercial pumpout facilities available in and adjacent to the currently proposed NDA

(Appendix B). 

In the metropolitan Boston area, there are six commercial facilities and there is also a facility in 

Plymouth Harbor. All of these pumpouts were available at the time of the Boston Harbor and Plymouth 

Harbor NDA designations. The Boston Harbor commercial pumpouts are a mix of facilities designed 

and reserved specifically for the paying users of a particular pier and services-for-hire organizations that 

will travel to various locations. The Plymouth commercial pumpout facility, which was funded by 

CZM’s CPR grant program, consists of a 235-gallon vacuum Edson International pump that serves three 

individual hose stand and hydrant pumpout stations. The three pumpout stations have been located on 

the pier to be convenient to local commercial vessel needs (i.e., the Captain John boats). 

The new commercial pumpout facilities that directly support this NDA application are located adjacent 

to Vineyard Sound and Nantucket Sound. The SSA has invested $2,500,000 in infrastructure in the 

towns of Falmouth, Barnstable, Nantucket, and Vineyard Haven to build pumpout facilities to move the 

large volumes of sanitary waste associated with the SSA passenger and freight ferries. The SSA also 

 

7

http://www.mass.gov/eea/agencies/dfg/dmf/programs-and-projects/clean-vessel-act.html.
8

invested $2,000,000 to retrofit its vessels with holding tanks and to remove the old MSDs. In addition, 

the Town of Barnstable is working on a joint project with the Hy-line Ferry to install a public/private 

commercial pumpout facility in Hyannis Inner Harbor. CZM funded the design of this facility in 2013 

through its CPR grant program. The new pumpout will service commercial boats in Hyannis as well as 

part of the Hy-line fleet. Another CPR grant has been awarded to the Town to construct this facility by 

summer 2014.

PUBLIC EDUCATION

CZM believes that an emphasis on education, outreach, and voluntary compliance will attain the goals 

and objectives of this NDA. As part of the outreach in previous NDA applications, harbormasters and 

non-profit organizations have spread the word about the need to use pumpout facilities. In addition, 

several groups have distributed copies of the EPA brochure A New England Boaters Guide to No 

Discharge Areas to area boaters. This brochure outlines health protection, MSD information, waste 

management in an NDA, and state informational web sites. EPA New England also has its own website 

that describes the extent of NDAs.8In addition, the Commonwealth provides boaters with an annuallyupdated pumpout list that describes their locations and contact information.9

To assist in the 

announcement of the statewide NDA, CZM sent an email and map of the new NDA to all of the 

Massachusetts harbormasters, marina operators, yacht clubs, and other individuals and groups that have 

participated in the previous NDA processes. In addition, CZM will be holding a press release in summer 

2014 to formally announce the statewide prohibition on boat sewage discharges in Massachusetts.

Harbormasters have a very visible presence on the water during boating season. This presence provides 

them the opportunity for “face to face” interaction with the boating public. This interaction has been

used as an opportunity to educate that boating public regarding NDA considerations and pump-out 

availability. The harbormasters, boatyards, and marinas in coastal communities are already aware of 

NDA responsibilities due to the outreach efforts related to NDA efforts in the region over the last 23 

years. With the designation of the remaining portions of Massachusetts waters, the New England coast 

will have a continuous no discharge zone from the New York/Connecticut border to the New 

Hampshire/Maine border.

ENFORCEMENT

Enforcement plays an important role in the successful implementation of an NDA. The prohibition on 

discharging boat sewage in an NDA applies to all vessels, commercial and recreational, regardless of the 

Type of MSD on board. Enforcement of federal laws related to MSDs is the responsibility of the US 

Coast Guard. States also have the authority to enforce the prohibition of vessel sewage discharges in 

NDAs, pursuant to 33 USC 26 Section 1322(k).

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts has delegated the enforcement authority of NDAs to the Director 

of Environmental Law Enforcement and by extension, to all those that serve under him. This means that 

environmental police officers, harbormasters and assistant harbormasters, police officers assigned to 

harbor patrol, fish and game wardens, members of the state police, and city and town police officers 

assigned to patrol the waters of the Commonwealth can enforce the provisions of NDAs. This authority 

 

8

http://www.epa.gov/region1/eco/nodiscrg/index.html.

9

http://www.mass.gov/eea/docs/dfg/dmf/publications/2013-cva-pump-out-guide.pdf.
9

is codified in Massachusetts General Law Chapter 90B Sections 5C10 and 1211. On January 13, 2009, the 

Massachusetts Legislature amended MGL 90B to allow harbormasters and others to issue a fine of up to 

$2,000 per infraction for the discharge of sewage, treated or not, into NDAs12. 

In practice, CZM believes that the best enforcement of NDAs occurs through good outreach to the 

boating community. This outreach includes describing where the nearest pumpout facilities are and how 

to contact the operators for service. In addition, education about why the proper disposal of boat sewage 

is important for good water quality may help bolster local economies through increased recreational 

opportunities and overall improved coastal habitat.

 

10 https://malegislature.gov/Laws/GeneralLaws/PartI/TitleXIV/Chapter90B/Section5C.

11 https://malegislature.gov/Laws/GeneralLaws/PartI/TitleXIV/Chapter90B/Section12.

12 http://www.mass.gov/legis/laws/seslaw08/sl080495.htm.
10

Appendix A

Pumpouts for recreational vessels adjacent to the proposed NDA.

Pumpout 

Location

Type of 

pumpout

Contact 

Information

VHF 

Channel Hours of Operation

Mean Low 

Water Depth 

(ft)

Fee

ManchesterManchester 

Marine

Stationary 978-526-7911 72

Mon-Thurs. 

7 AM - 6 PM 

Fri-Sun (+ holidays) 

7 AM - 8 PM

6 Free

Beverly- Ferry 

Way Public 

Landing

Pumpout 

Boat 978-921-6059 9

Fri-Sun (+ holidays) 

8 AM - 4 PM N/A Free

DanversDanversport 

Yacht Club

Stationary 978-774-8644 N/A

Mon-Thurs. 

8 AM - 5 PM 

Fri-Sat 

8 AM - 6 PM 

Sun 

8 AM - 4 PM

6 $10 

Salem- Salem 

Water front 

(Winter Island)

Pumpout 

Boat 978-741-0098 9

Sat-Sun (+ holidays) 

9 AM - 5 PM N/A Free

Marblehead- St. 

Boatyard

Pumpout 

Boat 781-631-2386 16 Mon-Fri 9 AM - 3 PM N/A Free

Marblehead- St. 

Boatyard Stationary 781-631-2386 16 24/7 Self-Service 9 Free

Lynn Harbor At 

Seaport 

Landing Marina

Stationary 781-592-5821 9, 13, 16 15 April - 1 November 

8 AM - 7 PM 20 Free 

Revere 

Harbormaster Boat 9 Radio ahead of time N/A Free

Boston 

Waterboat 

Marina, Boston

Boat & 

Stationary 617-523-1027 9

May-Oct 

Call Ahead 4.5 Free

Boston Yacht 

Haven, Boston Stationary 617-367-5050 9

May-Oct 

8 AM - 7 PM 10

$20 for 

nonmembers

Constitution 

Marina, Boston

Stationary 

& Boat 617-241-9640 69 Summer 9 AM - 8 PM 30 Free

Dorchester 

Yacht Club, 

Boston

Stationary N/A 9

Memorial Day-Labor 

Day 

8 AM - 6 PM

7

Call for 

pricing

Mystic Marine, 

Boston Stationary 617-293-6247 72

April-October 

Mon-Fri 

7 AM - 7 PM

40 Free with 

fuel

Port Norfolk 

Yacht Club, 

Boston

Stationary 617-822-3333 9, 11 May-October 

Call Ahead 7.5 Free

Shipyard 

Quarters 

Marina, Boston

Stationary 

& Boat 617-242-2020 9, 7,16 Summer 8 AM - 8 PM 25 Free
11

The Marina at 

Rowes Wharf, 

Boston

Stationary 617-748-5013 9

May-October 

7 AM - 10 PM 30 Free

Boston Harbor 

Shipyard & 

Marina, Boston

Boat & 

Stationary 617-561-1400 9

Summer 

6 AM - 8 PM 25 Free

Charles River 

Yacht Club, 

Cambridge

Boat 617-354-8681 9

May-November 

8 AM - 8 PM N/A Free

Marina at 

Admiral's Hill, 

Chelsea

Stationary 617-889-4002 9, 10 Year-round 

7 AM - 6 PM 6 Free

Bay Pointe 

Marina, Quincy Stationary 617-471-1777 9 24/7 Call Ahead 8

$15 for 

nonmembers

Captain's Cove 

Marina, Quincy Stationary 617-328-3331 69 May-Oct 24/7 6 Free

Marina Bay on 

Boston Harbor, 

Quincy

Boat 617-847-1800 10 May-Nov 

7:30 AM - 8 PM N/A Free

Town River 

Yacht Club, 

Quincy

Stationary 617-471-2716 71 Apr-Nov 

Call Ahead 35 Free

Wessagussett 

Yacht Club, 

Weymouth

Stationary 781-335-0247 71

June-October Mon-Fri 

6 AM - 8 PM 

Sat-Sun 

9 AM - 9 PM 

8 Free

City of Quincy 

Pumpout Boat, 

Quincy Bay

Boat 617-908-9757 9

June-October 

Mon - Fri 

High Tide 

Weekends 

8 AM - 4 PM

N/A Free

Cohasset 

Harbormaster/ 

Cohasset 

Harbor

Boat 781-383- 0863 10, 16 15 May - 1 November 

9 AM to 9 PM N/A Free

Cole Parkway 

Marina, Scituate 

Harbor

Stationary 781-545-2130 9

15 May - 15 October 

8 AM - 4 PM 6 Free

Harbor Mooring 

Service, North 

and South 

Rivers, 

Marshfield

Boat 781-544-3130 

617-281-4365 (cell) 9

15 April – 1 November 

Service Provided On 

Call

N/A Free

James Landing 

Marina, Herring 

River Scituate

Stationary 781-545-3000 NA

1 May – 15 October 

8 AM - 4:30 PM 6 Free

Waterline 

Mooring, 

Scituate Harbor

Boat 781-545-4154 9, 16

15 May – 15 October 

8 AM - 5 PM 

Or by appointment

N/A Free
12

Green Harbor 

Town Pier, 

Marshfield

Stationary 781-834-5541 9, 16

1 April – 15 November: 

24/7 Self-Service; 

15 May-30 September: 

Attendant Service 

8 AM - 11:30 PM

4 Free

Bridgewaye 

Marina, South 

River, 

Marshfield

Stationary 978-618-2861 9, 11 15 June – 15 October 

9 AM - 5 PM 6 Free

Erickson’s 

Marina, South 

River, 

Marshfield

Stationary N/A 9

15 March – 15 

November 

8 AM - 5 PM

4

Self 

Service 

Free; 

Attendant 

Service 

$15-20

White’s Ferry 

Marina, South 

River, 

Marshfield

Stationary 978-618-2861 9, 11 15 June - 15 October 

9 AM - 5 PM 4

$ Call 

ahead for 

pricing

Mary’s Boat 

Livery, North 

River, 

Marshfield

Stationary 781-837-2322 9, 16 15 May - 1 October 

8 AM - 4 PM 4

$ Call 

ahead for 

pricing

Brewers 

Marine, 

Plymouth 

Harbor

Stationary (508) 746-4500 

bpm@bby.com 9, 72 1 April - 15 December 7 AM - 5 PM 9 Free

Plymouth 

Harbormaster Boat (508) 830-4182 9, 16 1 May - 1 November 10 AM - 6 PM N/A Free

Plymouth Town 

Pier Stationary (508) 830-4182 9, 16 1 May - 1 November 24/7 Self Service 8 Free

South Shore 

Dry Dock, 

Cordage Park, 

Plymouth 

Harbor

Plymouth 

Harbor at 

Cordage 

Park

N/A 9 9 AM – 2 PM N/A

$ Call 

ahead for 

pricing

Duxbury 

Harbormaster, 

Snug Harbor, 

Duxbury

Boat (781) 934- 2866 12, 16

1 May - 1 November 

Spring 9 AM - 5 PM 

Summer 7 AM - 2 PM 

Fall 9 AM - 5 PM 

N/A Free

Kingston 

Harbormaster

Town 

Landing (781) 585-0519 9

1 April – 1 Nov

8 AM - 4 PM 3 Free
13

Appendix B

Pumpouts for commercial vessels adjacent to the proposed NDA. 

Pumpout Location Type of 

pumpout

Contact 

Information

VHF 

Channel

Hours of 

Operation

Mean 

Low 

Water 

Depth 

(ft)

Fee Notes 

Where Does 

the Sewage 

Go? 

Black Falcon Pier 

1 Black Falcon Ave., 

Boston

Stub on 

pier to 

sewer

617-946-

4417 N/A

Year Round 

9 AM - 5 PM 35

Yes $165 

+ $1.30 / 

ton

For pier users only City of Boston

Sewer

Boston Harbor 

Cruises 

1 Long Wharf, 

Boston

Stub on 

pier to 

sewer

617-227-

4321 

617-723-

2011 (fax)

N/A

6:30 AM - 8:30 

PM (Weekday) 

10 AM-6:30 

PM (Weekend)

22 Yes BHC vessels only City of Boston 

Sewer

Charlestown Pier 4 

8th St., Charlestown

Stub on 

pier to 

sewer

617-918-

6201 N/A

By 

Appointment 

Only

30 Yes License w/ BRA 

Required

City of Boston 

Sewer

Constellation Tug 

Corporation 

1 S. Bremen St., 

E. Boston

Tug 

retrofitted 

as 

pumpout 

boat

617-561-

0223 N/A

By 

Appointment 

Only

N/A Yes 80000 gallon 

capacity

City of Boston 

Sewer

Boston Towing & 

Transportation 

36 New St., 

E. Boston

Pumpout 

Barge

617-567-

9100 N/A

24/7 

Self-Service N/A Yes $900 / day

2 Barges (90,000 & 

280,000 gallon 

capacity); Used for 

commercial and 

naval vessels and 

large yachts; Appt. 

only

City of Boston 

Sewer

City of Boston/ 

UMass Pumpout 

Boat

Boat 617-756-

9861 9

By 

Appointment 

Only

N/A Yes City of Boston 

Sewer

Plymouth Pier Stationary 508-830-

4182 9,16 Year Round 9 AM - 5 PM No

For Captain John 

and Whalewatching 

Boats

Town of 

Plymouth 

Sewer

Steamship Authority 

Pier, Woods Hole, 

Falmouth

Stationary N/A N/A

NA/Private 

Facility 9

N/A

Private 

Facility

For Steamship 

Authority Vessels 

Only

Falmouth 

Town Sewer

Steamship Authority 

Pier, Barnstable Stationary N/A N/A

NA/Private 

Facility 10

N/A

Private 

Facility

For Steamship 

Authority Vessels 

Only

Barnstable 

Town Sewer

Hyannis Inner Harbor Stationary 508-790-

6273 9, 16 Year Round 9 AM - 5 PM 6 No

For Hy-Line and 

other commercial 

vessels and 

Harbormaster 

Pumpout Boat

Barnstable 

Town Sewer

Steamship Authority 

Pier, Vineyard Haven Stationary N/A N/A

N/A

Private Facility 23

N/A

Private 

Facility

For Steamship 

Authority Vessels 

Only

Vineyard 

Haven Town 

Sewer

Steamship Authority 

Pier, Nantucket Stationary N/A N/A

NA/Private 

Facility 15

N/A

Private 

Facility

For Steamship 

Authority Vessels 

Only

Nantucket 

Town Sewer
14

Figure 1. Map of the proposed Massachusetts statewide NDA.
15

Figure 2. The area from Manchester-By-The-Sea to Marshfield proposed to be designated as no 

discharge for boat sewage.
16

Figure 3. The two corridors (in green) south of Cape Cod proposed to be designated as no 

discharge for boat sewage
17

Figure 4. Public and semi-public beaches in Massachusetts.
18

Figure 5. Shellfish aquaculture locations in Massachusetts.
19

Figure 6. The location of boat ramps, marinas, and mooring fields in Massachusetts.
20

Figure 7. Routes of recreational boaters surveyed by SeaPlan in 2010 and 2012 and the 

Massachusetts Marine Trades Association (MMTA) in 2013.
21

Figure 8. The frequency of use of Massachusetts and surrounding waters by commercial vessels as 

determined from Automatic Identification System (AIS) tracking devices on each of the vessels. 

High use is depicted as red lines, medium use as yellow lines, and low use as blue lines.