Ryan AlbertUS Environmental Protection Agency1/11/20121Opening RemarksBackground of NPDES permitting ofdischarges incidental to the normal operationof vessels operating in a capacity ofofvesselsoperatinginacapacityoftransportation (DINOVs)Overview of the Draft 2013 VGPOverviewoftheDraft2013VGPOverview of the Draft 2013 sVGPPublic commentsPubliccomments2h f ll t t” ll hibit d“Discharge ofa pollutant”generally prohibitedwithout a permit [CWA section 301(a)]National Pollutant Discharge EliminationSystem(NPDES)Permits[CWA section 402]( ) [ ]◦Individual permits◦General permitsP i d5◦ermit term not to exceed5years◦For EPA-issued permits, State 401 certification andCZMA concurrences required3Effluent limits[CWAsection 301(b)]◦Technology-based [CWAsection 304(b)] (TBEL)section304(b)](TBEL)Generally, Best AvailableTechnology (BAT) establishedon a Best ProfessionalJudgment (BPJ) basis◦Water quality-based [CWAsection 301(b)(1)(c)] (WQBEL)G ll li i iGenerally,limit as stringent asnecessary to comply withapplicable water qualitystandards4Factors EPA uses to establish Best AvailableTechnology (BAT) include:◦cost of achieving BAT effluent reductions,h f i d f ili i i l d◦the age ofequipment andfacilitiesinvolved,◦the process employed,◦potential process changes, andpotentialprocesschanges,and◦non-water quality environmental impacts, includingenergy requirements5Exclusions from NPDES requirementsExclusionsfromNPDESrequirementsinclude:◦Vessels operatingas a means of transportationVesselsoperatingasameansoftransportationbeyond 3 mile limit [CWA Section 502(12)(B)]◦Sewage from vessels or discharges incidental to thenormal operation of vessels of the Armed ForcesnormaloperationofvesselsoftheArmedForces,within the meaning of Section 312 [CWA Section502(6)(A)]6September 18 2006 a U S District CourtSeptember18,2006,aU.SDistrictCourtissued an order revoking regulation (40C.F.R. 122.3(a)) effective in 2008◦Incidental discharges from vessels requiredpermits as of Dec. 19, 2008Summer 2008: Congresspasses two billsp◦P.L. 110-288 exempts recreational vessels fromNPDES permitting and develops regulatoryregime under Section 312 of the Clean Water Act◦P.L. 110-299 creates a temporary moratoriumfor vessels less than 79 feet and commercialfishing vessels regardless of size (except ballastdh )waterischarges)December 18, 2008: EPA finalizes firstVessel General Permit(2008 VGP)7( )2009EPA develops technical-2011:EPAdevelopstechnicalinformation for next VGPDecember 15, 2010: EPA hosts listeningi ll ddi i l i f isession to collect additionalinformationfor next VGP. EPA opens a docket tocollect informationNovember 30, 2011: EPA proposes2013 VGP and Small Vessel GeneralPermit (sVGP)Permit(sVGP)February 21, 2012: Close of publiccomment periodBy November 30 2012: Finalize 2013ByNovember30,2012:Finalize2013VGP and sVGPDecember 19, 2013: 2013 VGP and8sVGP effective dateUse the best available science to inform ourt i ti f i t t h ldeterminations ofappropriatetechnologybased and water-quality based limitationsImprove administrative efficiency whereImproveadministrativeefficiencywherefeasible◦Reduce permittee confusionProduce a permit for nonrecreational nonProduceapermitfornon-recreational,non-military vessels less than 79 feet in caseNPDES moratorium not extended beyondDecember 18, 2013◦Effluent limits generally Best Management Practices(BMPs)9Vessel General Permit (VGP):non-recreational, non-militaryhfvessels greater than 79feet◦Military vessels, including Navyand Coast Guard vessels, are notcovered and not impactedcoveredandnotimpacted◦Approximately 70,000 existingVGP vessels plus ~2,200commercial fishing vessels greaterthan 79 feetthan79feetSmall Vessel General Permit(sVGP): non-recreational, nonmilitaryvessels less than 79feet◦Approximately 118,000 to138,000 vessels eligible forcoverage10Ballast WaterExhaust Gas Scrubber EffluentExhaustGasScrubberEffluentOil to Sea Interfaces (product substitutionrequirement)Administrative Changes and EfficiencyImprovements◦Combined Reporting◦Reducing Redundancy◦Changes to InspectionsChangestoInspections11EPA’s Science Advisory Board (SAB) PanelCharge:evaluatestatus of existing andthestatusofexistingandpotential shipboard ballast water treatmenttechnologies and their ability to meet differentdischarge standards(Report finalized July 12dischargestandards(ReportfinalizedJuly12,2011)SAB Report Key Conclusions: InternationalMaritime Organization (IMO) standard isMaritimeOrganization(IMO)standardisachievable from a technology and testingstandpoint◦The state of technology does not support aThestateoftechnologydoesnotsupportaTBEL limit more stringent than IMO forshipboard treatment systems◦Issue of Detection/Quantification below IMOIssueofDetection/QuantificationbelowIMO12National Academy of Sciences NationalResearch Council (NAS) Charge:ResearchCouncil(NAS)Charge:◦The NAS study panel assessed methods toevaluate the risk of invasive speciesintroductions associated with ballast waterintroductionsassociatedwithballastwaterdischarges (report finalized June 2, 2011)NASReportKeyConclusions:epo t ey Co c us o s◦Found our ability to adequately quantify risksuffers from a “profound lack of data”◦Concluded that the IMO standard is “clearlyafirst step forward” and that it “represents asignificant reduction in concentrations beyondballast water exchange”13Establish numeric limits set at a range equivalent toproposed USCG Phase I limit as Technology-BasedEffluent Limit (same as International MaritimeEffluentLimit(sameasInternationalMaritimeOrganization (IMO) limits)◦Expressed as instantaneous maximumLargeOrganisms(> 50μm)SmallOrganisms(>10μandToxigenicVibriocholeraeEschericialiIntestinalt i(>50μm)(μ≤50μm)(O1 &O139)colienterococci< 10 perm3< 10 perml<1 cfu per100 ml<250 cfu per100 ml<100 cfu per100 mlFound numeric Water Quality-Based Effluent Limit(WQBEL)infeasibletocalculatemml100ml100ml100ml( Q ) eas b e to ca cu ate14Vessels for which thenumeric TBEL does notnumericTBELdoesnotapply; hence, limits areBMPs:◦Unmanned, unpowered barges◦Confined Lakers◦Short distance voyage vesselsShortdistancevoyagevessels◦Seagoing/Inland vessels withless than 8 cubic meters ofballast waterballastwater◦Shipboard TechnologyEvaluation Program (STEP)vessels15Four possible options to meet limits:◦a treatment deviceUseatreatmentdevice◦Use onshore treatment◦Use potable water (from US and Canada only)N di h◦oscargeIMO-equivalent implementation scheduleV l’B ll tV l’ C liessesaasWater CapacityDate ConstructedVessel’sComplianceDateNewvesselsAfter January 1,2012On deliveryExistingLess than1500 m3Before January 1,2012First scheduleddrydocking afterJanuary 1, 20161500-5000 m3Before January 1,2012First scheduled drydocking afterJanuary1 2014vessels1,2014Greater than5000 m3Before January 1,2012First scheduled drydocking afterJanuary 1, 201616Monitoring requirements if using a treatment device◦FunctionalGoal is to test if the system functioning as designed (e.g.,applying chlorine dose, filtering water)◦Biological 

# E colienterococci and total heterotrophic bacteria 

# . ,enterococci,andtotalheterotrophicbacteria◦Active substance and residuals (for systems that use them)Numeric limits for systems using chlorine, chlorine dioxide,ozone andperaceticacidozone,andperaceticOther parameters set at Gold Book values (if such systems weredeveloped)◦Reduced frequencymonitoringschedule available if systemy g yis one for which US government has high qualityefficacy/toxicity type approval data from flag administrationor vendor17Certain vessels enteringCertainvesselsenteringthe Great Lakes mustconduct ballast waterexchange/saltwaterflushing in addition totreatment if they havetreatmentiftheyhavetaken on ballast fromfreshwater or brackishi hiwater ecosystems wtnthe previous month18Interim requirements must be met (Part 2.2.3.6)i li i luntilnumericlimits apply◦Requirements fundamentally the same as the 2008 VGPInterim requirements include:Interimrequirementsinclude:◦Incorporating existing Coast Guard mandatorymanagement and exchange requirements◦Mandatory saltwater flushing for all vessels with residualMandatorysaltwaterflushingforallvesselswithresidualballast water and sediment (NOBOBs) coming fromoutside the USEEZ and 200 nm from shoreMandatory exchange and flushing for vessels engaged in◦MandatoryexchangeandflushingforvesselsengagedinPacific nearshore voyages◦Conducting exchange as early as practicable19Exhaust gas scrubber effluent is waste water that hasbeen used in cleaning vessel exhaust gasesMake IMO voluntary guidelines mandatoryMakeIMOvoluntaryguidelinesmandatory◦Guidelines include limits for pH, turbidity, nitrates, and onePAH compoundRequire monitoringRequiremonitoring◦Assure systems capable of meeting limits◦IMO guidelines do not currently contain total PAH and metallimits: maylater find that limits mayneed to be addedyCurrently applicable to a handful of vessels◦EPA trying to establish clear limits to provide certainty forsystem operators and assure that discharges are not leftp guncontrolled20Oil to Sea interfaces include stern tubes,thrusters hydraulic pitch propellers wirethrusters,hydraulicpitchpropellers,wirerope lubrication, etc.Stern tubes alone have been estimated to leakbetween 4.6 to 28.6 million liters of oilbetween4.6to28.6millionlitersofoilannually into ports worldwideIncreasing mandate for use of“environmentallyacceptable lubricants”(EALs)( bl l hy p ()in US waters(vegetable oils, synthetic esters,and polyalkylene glycols)◦For existing vessels, owner/operators must useenvironmentally acceptable lubricants in all oil toenvironmentallyacceptablelubricantsinalloiltosea interfaces unless technologically infeasible.◦New build vessels must use EALs in oil to seainterfaces21Among other things, EPA is seeking commenton potential changes to the bilgewaterdischarge limits (primarily for new buildvessels)◦For Existing Oceangoing Vessels:Same requirements as the 2008 VGP, with additional option forvessels greater than 400 GT to discharge within 1 nm if lessvesselsgreaterthan400GTtodischargewithin1nmiflessthan 5 ppm (whether or not technologically infeasible to hold)◦New VesselsDischarge within 3 nm if <5 ppm for all new build vessels >Dischargewithin3nmif<5ppmforallnewbuildvessels>400 GT, otherwise may pump onshore or discharge outside 3nm at a concentration less than 15 ppmSee Pages 58-70 of the VGP fact sheetSeePages5870oftheVGPfactsheet22Annual Report◦Eliminate One-Time Report and Annual Non-Compliance Report and consolidate into AnnualReportEPA found that thousands of permittees were confusedby the annual noncompliance reportbytheannualnoncompliancereport◦Report all analytical monitoring as part of AnnualReportReduce frequency of when they must submitReducefrequencyofwhentheymustsubmitinformation to EPA to one time per year◦Allow unmanned, unpowered barges meetingcertain requirements to submit consolidated annualtreporsReduce duplicative reporting◦Where immediate notification is reported to theNRC l d t l t t EPA iNRC, nolonger needto also reporttoEPAregions23Eliminate quarterly visualmonitoringd i ddi i l◦Instead, require additionalanalytical monitoring from selectvessel discharges from certainvessels (ballast water exhaust gasvessels(ballastwater,exhaustgasscrubber, graywater)Allow “Extended UnmannedVessel”inspections in lieu ofinspectionsinlieuofroutine vessel inspections forunmanned vessels◦Reduced routine visual inspectionReducedroutinevisualinspectionfrequency requested by permitteeswith “fleeted” vessels to reduceburden24Reducing NOI processing time from 30to 7 days (for electronic filers only)Developing electronic tools to submitDevelopingelectronictoolstosubmitall information/data◦Requiring e-reporting unless specifiedexemptions applyM ki d b i d hMakingdata submittedto the agencyin electronic form available to thepublic in electronic formClearly allow for and specify electronicClearlyallowforandspecifyelectronicrecordkeeping requirements◦Requested by permittees as a way to reduceburdenFor vessels who need not submit anNOI, sign and maintain a copy of thesVGP Permit Authorization and Recordf I i (PARI) fofInspection(PARI)form252627•Senate Bill S. 3298 (P.L. 110-299)◦Signed on July 29, 2008 P.L. 110-299 placed a moratoriumon NPDES permitting of non-BW discharges from (1)commercial fishing vessels regardless of size; (2) <79 footcommercialfishingvesselsregardlessofsize;(2)<79footnon-recreational vessels.◦Moratorium extended to December 18, 2013 by P.L. 111-215.◦Among other things, P.L. 110-299 required EPA to assessdischarges from commercial fishing vessels and nonrecreational vessels less than 79 feet that were subject tothe NPDES exemption EPA conducted this study andtheNPDESexemption.EPAconductedthisstudyanddelivered the Report to Congress in August 2010.28•EPA was requested to examine 6 elements forindividual vessels and classes of vessels, including:◦Concentration ofpollutants in discharges◦Volume of discharges◦Location of dischargesI t t th i t d h h lth f th◦Impacttothe environmentandhumanhealthfromthosedischarges◦Benefits from reducing the concentration/loading ofpollutants in those discharges to the environment and humanpollutantsinthosedischargestotheenvironmentandhumanhealth◦Evaluation of existing U.S. laws and regulations applicable todischarges29•Literature reviews•Sampling•Screening level modeling•Data interpretationl d•Legasummaries andinterpretation/ d / l/ f30www.epa.gov/npdes/vessels/reportcongress.cfmCommercial Fishing Vesselsf h b ( l d )◦Groundfisheryboats(trawlers/draggers)◦Shrimpers◦Longliners, Trollers, Gillnetters, Purse Seiners, and TendersTugboatsSupply BoatsTow Salvage BoatsTour Boats/Water TaxisTourBoats/WaterTaxisFireboatsRecreational BoatsRlik bec-eboats(EPA boats in Gulf Breeze)31•Fish hold/ice slurry•Cleaning of fish holdsDeckwashdown/runoff••Bilgewater•Shaft packing gland dischargeG tit•raywater composes•Propulsion engine effluent•Generator engine effluent•Firemain•Source water and ambient samples fromeveryarea samples are taken (to determinebk d i )y pbackgroundconcentrations)32Interpretative TextSummary Statistics◦More than 22,000dt itaa pointsgenerated bysampling.Box PlotsPotential HazardQuotients (PHQs)Quotients(Screening ModelSummary33•Certain pollutants from vessel discharges subject to themoratorium are in elevated concentrations.•Generally discharges are in low or lower volumes.•Unlikely to ‘solely’ cause exceedance of WQS in largewaterbodies. However, cumulative impacts of unregulateddischarges maysignificantlycontribute to exceedances foryg ylimited pollutants (e.g., copper) in large waterbodies.Some pollutants/discharges more likely to cause localized•Somepollutants/dischargesmorelikelytocauselocalizedimpacts or impacts in small water bodies, particularly inwater bodies with poor flushing, with other pollutantsources or with many vesselssources,orwithmanyvessels.34Part 1 - Overview ofEligible for coverage if less than79 feet and have less than 8PermitPart 2 – EffluentLimitations andRl dcubic meters of ballast waterSlightly different structure thanVGPRelatedRequirementsPart 3 – Monitoringand RecordkeepingVGP◦Draft Permit is less than 20 pageslong◦Most important information up frontandRecordkeepingPart 4 – AdditionalRequirementsPart 5–State SpecificMostimportantinformationupfront◦Discharge limits in the middle◦Standard Permit Conditions and OtherRequirements toward the endPart5StateSpecificRequirementsPart 6 – DefinitionsPart 7 – sVGP contactsRequirementstowardtheendOrganized by managementgroups rather than by dischargetypesAppendix A– PermitAuthorization andRecord ofI ti F35InspectionFormManagement Area Highlighted management practicesinclude:2.1 General Requirements Oil, including oily mixtures, may not bedischarged in quantities that may beharmful or cause a visible sheen2.2 Fuel Management Regularly inspect the fuel and hydraulicsystems for any damage or leaks,repair if found.2.3 Engine and Oil Control Preference for environmentallyacceptable lubricants2.4 Solid and Liquid WasteManagementPrevent monofilament line, fishingnets, lines, lures, rope, bait boxes, andhooks from entering any waste streamcovered by this permit36Management Area Highlighted management practicesinclude:2.5 Deck Washdown and Runoff Minimize the introduction of on deckdebris, garbage, residue and spill intodeck washdown and runoff discharges.2.6 Vessel Hull Maintenance Must use phosphate free, non-toxicsoaps2.7GraywaterMinimize graywater discharges in areasMinimizegraywaterdischargesinareasthat have heavy vessel traffic orrecreational use and in marinesanctuaries, national wildlife refuges,national wild and scenic rivers, andnationalwildandscenicrivers,andnational wilderness areas.2.8 Fish Hold Effluent Minimize discharge of fish hold or dirtyice while in port. If onshore treatmenta ailablem st se itavailable,mustuseit.37Management Area Highlighted management practicesinclude:2.9 Ballast Water When feasible, use one of the followingmeasures to reduce the potentialf i di f itransfer orintroduction oforganismsto waters of the U.S.:•Use potable water for ballasting•Utilize onshore treatment or disposalh d f b llmethodsforballast water•For vessels that conduct fixed routes,capture and reuse ballast water in eachport.2.10 Seawater Cooling OverboardDischargeMinimize thermal impacts to thereceiving waters by dischargingseawater coolingoverboard while thevessel is underway.38Vessel owner/operator must:◦Read and follow the sVGP by implementing allapplicable permit requirements◦Sign and maintain a copy of the sVGP PermitAuthorization and Record of Inspection (PARI) formAcknowledgement and Certification statementsCorrective action and annual non-compliance forms◦Conduct quarterly visual inspections each yeardocument on PARI form39d P blid db 2175dayPublic comment periodendsFebruary21,2012Submit yourVGPcomments, identified by Docket IDNEPAHQOW20110141VGPto.----,orscommens,identified by Docket ID No.EPA-HQ-OW-2011-0150by one of the following methods:◦www regulations gov: Follow the online instructions forwww.regulations.gov:Followtheon-lineinstructionsforsubmitting comments.◦Email:ow-docket@epa.gov.◦Mail: Original and three copies to: Water Docket,pEnvironmental Protection Agency, Mail Code: 2822T, 1200Pennsylvania Ave., NW, Washington, DC 20460.◦Hand Delivery: EPA Docket Center, Public Reading Room,EPA Headquarters West Building Room 3334 1301EPAHeadquartersWestBuilding,Room3334,1301Constitution Ave., NW, Washington, DC 20460. Suchdeliveries are only accepted during the Docket’s normalhours of operation, and special arrangements should bed f d li i f b d i f ti40madefordeliveries ofboxedinformation.EPA is specifically seeking comment on theprovisions discussed above, in addition to otherspecific questions posed (see Dec 8 2011 FRspecificquestionsposed(seeDec.8,2011FRnotice for list)Permits, fact sheets, and additional informationil bl tare available at:www.epa.gov/npdes/vesselsQuestions?41