There was even a report of a ban on commercial shellfish harvesting in a place call Drayton Harbor in Washington state for the same reason. The states with the most closings were New Jersey, California, and Florida. Apparently, there are so many potential sources of this kind of contamination that it's hard to be precise in determining the sources. All we are told is that it is untreated sewage from leaky sewer lines, urban run off, agricultural run off, birds, sea mammals and of course boat wastes, always a favorite potential source. Now this is what puzzles me the most.
Most boats use either portable toilets or holding tanks, which contain untreated waste.
So, all boats with toilets are required by law to have equipment, which prevent untreated boat wastes from entering our waters. Boats with holding tanks and portable toilets must by law have their waste emptied out at a local facility for that purpose which is by law supposed to be treated at an approved facility before being discharged into our waters. One could say that with all these laws and system requirements for boats that they must be removed from the equation or that there are so many that violate all of these laws that they simply must be included as a potential source. The U.S.E.P.A. is even promoting states to create what is referred to as No Discharge Zones. These are areas where once designated as such another boat law kicks in.