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[Federal Register Volume 65, Number 200 (Monday, October 16, 2000)]
[Notices]
[Pages 61166-61168]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 00-26508]

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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

[FRL-6884-9]

Virginia State Prohibition on Discharges of Vessel Sewage; Final 
Affirmative Determination

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: Notification is hereby given that the Regional Administrator, 
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Region III has affirmatively 
determined, pursuant to section 312(f) of Public Law 92-500, as amended 
by Public Law 95-217 and Public Law 100-4 (the Clean Water Act), that 
adequate facilities for the safe and sanitary removal and treatment of 
sewage from all vessels are reasonably available for the navigable 
waters of Smith Mountain Lake, Bedford, Franklin and Pittsylvania 
Counties, Virginia.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Edward Ambrogio, U.S. Environmental 
Protection Agency, Region III, Office of Ecological Assessment and 
Management, 1650 Arch Street, Philadelphia, PA 19103. Telephone: (215) 
814-2758. Fax: (215) 814-2782. Email: [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This petition was made by the Office of the 
Secretary of Natural Resources on behalf of the Virginia Department of 
Environmental Quality (VADEQ). Upon receipt of this affirmative 
determination, Virginia will completely prohibit the discharge of 
sewage, whether treated or not, from any vessel in Smith Mountain Lake 
in accordance with section 312(f)(3) of the Clean Water Act and 40 CFR 
140.4(a). Notice of the Receipt of Petition and Tentative Determination 
was published in the Federal Register on August 22, 2000 (65 FR 50988, 
Aug. 22, 2000). Comments on the tentative determination were accepted 
during the comment period which closed on September 21, 2000. No 
comments were received. The remainder of this Notice summarizes the 
location of the no discharge zone (NDZ), the available pumpout 
facilities and related information.
    Smith Mountain Lake, named after the mountain located at its 
southeastern edge, is an inland reservoir located in the Piedmont 
physiographic province of west central Virginia. The lake is situated 
in the Roanoke River Basin and fed by two main tributaries, the Roanoke 
River and the Blackwater River, as well as other minor tributaries. It 
was formed in 1965 after the completion of the Smith Mountain 
Hydroelectric Dam by Appalachian Power Company and reached full pond in 
1966. The lake is approximately 20,000 acres in area, forms 500 miles 
of shoreline, and is bordered by the three counties of Bedford, 
Franklin and Pittsylvania. It flows into another large reservoir, 
Leesville Lake. The two lakes form a pumped storage facility for 
hydroelectric power generation during peak demand periods. Bedford 
County has been using the lake as a drinking water source since March 
31, 1999. The water treatment plant is now withdrawing an annual 
average of approximately 20,000 gallons per day. The water intake for 
this facility is located on the north side of the Roanoke River arm of 
the lake, approximately two miles east of the Hales Ford Bridge, 
directly across the lake from Becky's Creek. The NDZ includes Smith 
Mountain Lake, from Smith Mountain Dam (Gap of Smith Mountain) upstream 
to the 795.0 foot contour (normal pool elevation) in all tributaries, 
including waters to above the confluence with Back Creek in the Roanoke 
River arm, and to the Brooks Mill Bridge (Route 834) on the Blackwater 
River arm.
    Information submitted by the Commonwealth of Virginia states that 
there are 17 waterfront facilities that operate pumpout facilities in 
the Smith Mountain Lake NDZ. Twelve of these 17 also provide dump 
stations, and there

[[Page 61167]]

are 15 additional dump stations located at 14 other marinas for a total 
of 27 dump stations. There is one proposed pumpout and a mobile pumpout 
operated by Ferrum College. Also, funding is being sought by the 
Virginia Department of Health to provide a mobile ``floating'' pumpout 
facility to operate on the lake. Details of these facilities' location, 
availability and hours of operation are as follows:

Virginia Dare Marina is located on State Route 853 in Bedford County. 
The marina currently operates one stationary pumpout facility 
accessible to all boaters. The pumpout facility is also a reception 
facility for portable toilet sanitary wastes. The marina has received 
approval of Clean Vessel Act funding for a pumpout facility upgrade. 
The marina's sewage disposal hours of operation are 10 am-4 pm, April 
through October.
Campers Paradise Marina is located off State Route 122, one mile north 
of Hales Ford Bridge that connects Bedford County and Franklin County. 
The marina currently operates one stationary pumpout facility 
accessible to all boaters. A drive by dump station on-site acts as a 
receptacle for sanitary waste from portable toilets. The marina's 
sewage disposal hours of operation are 7 am-7 pm, 11 months per year.
Lake Haven Marina is located off State Route 626 in southeast Bedford 
County. The marina currently operates one stationary pumpout facility 
located in the middle of a dock allowing equal access to all boaters. 
The dump station is located on land next to the septic tank and 
drainfield. The marina's sewage disposal hours of operation are 8 am-4 
pm, April through October.
Mitchell Point Marina is located at the end of State Route 734 in 
southeast Bedford County. The marina currently operates a mobile 
pumpout unit attached to a trailer mechanism accessible to all boaters. 
The dump station is located next to the septic tank and drainfield. The 
marina's sewage disposal hours of operation are 7 am-4 pm, May through 
October.
Saunders Parkway Marina is located off State Route 626 in southeast 
Bedford County. The marina currently operates one stationary pumpout 
facility located on a fixed pier allowing equal access to all boaters. 
The dump station is located on land next to the boat repair facility. 
The marina's sewage disposal hours of operation are 9 am-5 pm, June 
through September.
Smith Mountain Lake Yacht Club is located off State Route 823 in 
Bedford County. The yacht club has recently completed construction of a 
new, state-of the-art pumpout system accessible to all boaters. The 
marina's sewage disposal hours of operation are 9 am-5 pm, 12 months 
per year.
Waterwheel Marina is located off State Route 821 in Bedford County. The 
marina operates a mobile unit attached to a trailer mechanism 
accessible to all boaters. The marina's sewage disposal hours of 
operation are 9 am-3 pm, 5 months per year.
Webster Marine Center is located off State Route 122 in Bedford County. 
The marina operates one stationary pumpout facility located on a 
floating pier allowing equal access to all boaters. The dump station is 
located next to the septic tank. The marina has received approval of 
Clean Vessel Act funding for a pumpout facility upgrade. The marina's 
sewage disposal hours of operation are 8 am-3 pm, 8 months per year.
Smith Mountain Lake State Park facility is owned by the State of 
Virginia and operated by the Department of Conservation and Recreation. 
The Department applied for and was awarded Clean Vessel Act funds for 
the installation of a sanitary waste pumpout unit and dump station. The 
facility is expected to be functional in 2001. A drive by dump station 
on-site currently acts as a receptacle for sanitary waste from portable 
toilets.
Bay Roc Marina is located off State Route 634 in Franklin County. The 
marina operates one stationary pumpout facility located on land near 
the mooring pier accessible to all boaters. The dump station is located 
behind the marina restroom facilities. The marina is open all year.
Boats at Smith Mountain Lake, Inc. is located off State Route 122 in 
Franklin County. The marina operates one stationary pumpout facility 
located on a mooring pier accessible to all boaters. The dump station 
is located between the pumpout facility and marina store. The marina's 
sewage disposal hours of operation are 8 am-4 pm, 7 months per year.
Bridgewater Plaza Marina is located off State Route 122 in Franklin 
County. The marina operates one stationary pumpout facility located on 
the fuel dock accessible to all boaters. The marina's sewage disposal 
hours of operation are 7 am-11 pm, March through November.
Crazy Horse Marina is located off State Route 616 in Franklin County. 
The marina operates one stationary pumpout facility located on the fuel 
dock accessible to all boaters. The marina's sewage disposal hours of 
operation are 8 am-8 pm, April through October.
Pelican Point Yacht Club located off State Route 957 in Union Hall in 
Franklin County. The marina operates a mobile pumpout unit attached to 
a trailer mechanism accessible to all boaters. A recreation vehicle 
dump station on-site acts as a receiving facility for sanitary waste 
from portable toilets. The marina's sewage disposal hours of operation 
are 9 am-4 pm, 10 months per year.
Shoreline Marina is located off State Route 949 in Franklin County. The 
marina operates a stationary pumpout unit located on the fuel dock 
accessible to all boaters. The dump station is located next to the 
marina store. This marina has utilized Clean Vessel Act funding to 
upgrade its sanitary waste handling capacity. The marina's sewage 
disposal hours of operation are 9 am-5 pm, year round.
Lakeside Marina is located off State Route 626 in Pittsylvania County. 
The marina operates a stationary pumpout unit located on the fuel dock 
accessible to all boaters. The dump station is located on land near the 
septic tank and drainfield. The marina's sewage disposal hours of 
operation are 8 am-4 pm, 6 months per year.
Lumpkin Marina is located off State Route 626 in Pittsylvania County. 
The marina completed construction of a new pumpout system accessible to 
all boaters in the 1999 season using Clean Vessel Act funding. It 
provides a dump station facility for portable toilets at the septic 
tank behind the boathouse. The marina's sewage disposal hours of 
operation are 8 am-7 pm, May through October.
Smith Mountain Dock & Lodge is located off State Route 626 in 
Pittsylvania County. The marina operates a stationary pumpout unit 
located on the fuel dock accessible to all boaters. The marina uses 
existing sanitary facilities as a dump station. These facilities are 
located on a fixed pier next to the boating facility. The marina's 
sewage disposal hours of operation are 8 am-9 pm, April through 
October.

    The Virginia Department of Health Marina Regulations address 
treatment of collected vessel sewage from pumpouts and dump stations 
(found at 12 VAC 5-570-180 C.5 and 12 VAC 5-570-190 C, respectively). 
No public sewer systems are available to service the above described 
marina facilities. All wastes from these marinas are treated by on-site 
septic systems and the treatment of collected sewage is in compliance 
with federal, state and local regulations.

[[Page 61168]]

    According to the State's petition, there are a total of 18,840 
vessels registered in Virginia where the principal area of usage is in 
one of the three counties surrounding Smith Mountain Lake. This assumes 
that (1) when boats are used in one of the three counties they are used 
on Smith Mountain Lake and that, (2) the boats may be stored anywhere 
in Virginia but are principally used on Smith Mountain Lake, so a good 
number of regular transient vessels are included in the figure. Most of 
the recreational vessel population is limited to the season from April 
to October. Transient boats from other states and Virginia registered 
boats that are principally used elsewhere, but may at times be brought 
to Smith Mountain Lake, are not included in this number. An assumption 
can be made that the majority of such boats would be trailerable. This 
is supported by Health Department marina inspection slip counts which 
indicate only 53 out of 2,417 slips or moorings at commercial marinas 
are designated as transient vessel slips. Low demand for transient 
slips probably indicates boats are trailered and ramp launched. Most of 
the trailerable boats would not be of a size expected to have a holding 
tank. All 18,840 vessels would not occupy the lake at the same time. 
The information suggests that as far as simultaneous occupancy of the 
lake this number is high, or more likely, it is very high for the 
smaller, easily trailered boats, and somewhat more accurate for the 
larger, site-committed boats. The vessel population based on length is 
4,705 vessels less than 16 feet in length, 13,309 vessels between 16 
feet and 26 feet in length, 749 vessels between 26 feet and 40 feet in 
length, and 77 vessels greater than 40 feet in length. Based on number 
and size of boats, and using various methods to estimate the number of 
holding tanks, it is estimated that six pumpouts and seven dump 
stations are needed for Smith Mountain Lake. As described above, there 
are currently 17 operational pumpout facilities and 27 operational dump 
stations in Smith Mountain Lake.
    The EPA hereby makes a final affirmative determination that 
adequate facilities for the safe and sanitary removal and treatment of 
sewage from all vessels are reasonably available for Smith Mountain 
Lake, Bedford, Franklin and Pittsylvania Counties, Virginia. This final 
determination will result in a Virginia State prohibition of any sewage 
discharges from vessels in Smith Mountain Lake.

    Dated: September 29, 2000.
Bradley M. Campbell,
Regional Administrator, Region III.
[FR Doc. 00-26508 Filed 10-13-00; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-U
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