Notice2022-13657
Draft Guidance for Vessel Sewage No-Discharge Zones
Primary source
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Published
June 27, 2022
Issuing agencies
Environmental Protection Agency
Abstract
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) requests comments on draft updated guidance for state officials submitting applications to EPA to establish vessel sewage no-discharge zones under the Clean Water Act (CWA). The draft updated guidance is intended to clarify, simplify, and (once finalized) supersede EPA's existing vessel sewage no- discharge zone guidance. The draft updated guidance explains the information that a state must submit to EPA in an application to meet the regulatory requirements and provides greater insight into EPA's process for evaluating applications. Updates made to the guidance do not purport to impose any new requirements for state applications.
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 87 Issue 122 (Monday, June 27, 2022)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 87, Number 122 (Monday, June 27, 2022)]
[Notices]
[Pages 38151-38153]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2022-13657]
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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
[EPA-HQ-OW-2020-0392; FRL 8323.1-01-OW]
Draft Guidance for Vessel Sewage No-Discharge Zones
AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
ACTION: Notice of availability; request for comment.
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SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) requests comments on
draft updated guidance for state officials submitting applications to
EPA to establish vessel sewage no-discharge zones under the Clean Water
Act (CWA). The draft updated guidance is intended to clarify, simplify,
and (once finalized) supersede EPA's existing vessel sewage no-
discharge zone guidance. The draft updated guidance explains the
information that a state must submit to EPA in an application to meet
the regulatory requirements and provides greater insight into EPA's
process for evaluating applications. Updates made to the guidance do
not purport to impose any new requirements for state applications.
DATES: Comments must be received on or before August 26, 2022.
ADDRESSES: You may send comments, identified by Docket ID No. EPA-HQ-
OW-2020-0392, by any of the following methods:
<bullet> Federal eRulemaking Portal: <a href="https://www.regulations.gov/">https://www.regulations.gov/</a>
(our preferred method). Follow the online instructions for submitting
comments.
<bullet> Mail: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, EPA Docket
Center, Office of Water Docket, Mail Code 28221T, 1200 Pennsylvania
Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20460.
<bullet> Hand Delivery or Courier: EPA Docket Center, WJC West
Building, Room 3334, 1301 Constitution Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20004.
The Docket Center's hours of operations are 8:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m.,
Monday-Friday (except Federal Holidays).
Instructions: All submissions received must include the Docket ID
No. for this rulemaking. Comments received may be posted without change
to <a href="https://www.regulations.gov/">https://www.regulations.gov/</a>, including any personal information
provided. For detailed instructions on sending comments and additional
information on the rulemaking process, see the ``Public Participation''
heading of the SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section of this document.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Kelsey Watts-FitzGerald, Oceans,
Wetlands, and Communities Division, Office of Water (4504T),
Environmental Protection Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania Avenue NW,
Washington, DC 20460; telephone number: 202-566-0232; email address:
<a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#f58294818186d8939c818f929087949991db9e909986908cb5908594db929a83"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="1067716464633d7679646a777562717c743e7b757c637569507560713e777f66">[email protected]</span></a>.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Public Participation
A. Written Comments
Submit your comments, identified by Docket ID No. EPA-HQ-OW-2020-
0392, at <a href="https://www.regulations.gov">https://www.regulations.gov</a> (our preferred method), or the
other methods identified in the ADDRESSES section. Once submitted,
comments cannot be edited or removed from the docket. EPA may publish
any comment received to its public docket. Do not submit to EPA's
docket at
[[Page 38152]]
<a href="https://www.regulations.gov">https://www.regulations.gov</a> any information you consider to be
Confidential Business Information (CBI), Proprietary Business
Information (PBI), or other information whose disclosure is restricted
by statute. Multimedia submissions (audio, video, etc.) must be
accompanied by a written comment. The written comment is considered the
official comment and should include discussion of all points you wish
to make. EPA will generally not consider comments or comment contents
located outside of the primary submission (i.e., on the web, cloud, or
other file sharing system). Please visit <a href="https://www.epa.gov/dockets/commenting-epa-dockets">https://www.epa.gov/dockets/commenting-epa-dockets</a> for additional submission methods; the full EPA
public comment policy; information about CBI, PBI, or multimedia
submissions; and general guidance on making effective comments.
II. General Information
A. Does this action apply to me?
EPA has developed an updated draft of existing guidance for the
development of applications for vessel sewage no-discharge zones and
seeks comment and technical input on issues associated with the
guidance. The draft updated guidance will be of interest to state
officials seeking to establish vessel sewage no-discharge zones, as
well as the owners and operators of commercial and recreational vessels
with installed toilets that may be impacted by vessel sewage no-
discharge zone designations.
III. Background
CWA Section 312 establishes the statutory framework through which
EPA and the U.S. Coast Guard regulate the discharge of sewage from
vessels with installed toilets operating in U.S. navigable waters. EPA
is responsible for establishing national standards of performance for
marine sanitation devices (MSDs) to prevent inadequately treated sewage
from polluting U.S. waters, while the U.S. Coast Guard is responsible
for issuing regulations governing the design, construction,
certification, installation, and operation of MSDs, consistent with
EPA's standards. MSDs are equipment installed onboard vessels that
either treat sewage prior to discharge or store sewage onboard for
later disposal. If a state determines that some or all of the state's
waters require greater protection, the CWA allows the state to apply to
EPA for the establishment of a vessel sewage no-discharge zone.
Sewage no-discharge zones are designated areas where the discharge
of both treated and untreated sewage from vessels is prohibited. There
are three different types of vessel sewage no-discharge zones under CWA
Section 312. For each type, the state must submit an application to EPA
pursuant to the regulatory requirements detailed in 40 CFR 140.4. The
first type of designation (CWA Section 312(f)(3)) requires the state to
obtain a determination from EPA that ``adequate facilities for the safe
and sanitary removal and treatment of sewage from all vessels are
reasonably available for the waters proposed for designation.''
Following an affirmative determination from EPA, the state may then
proceed with the designation of the no-discharge zone through state
regulations. The other two types of sewage no-discharge zones are
established for the protection and enhancement of the quality of
specified waters and drinking water intakes (under CWA Sections
312(f)(4)(A) and (f)(4)(B), respectively). These designations are
applied for by a state but designated by EPA and promulgated through
federal regulations.
In 1994, EPA published guidance, ``Protecting Coastal Waters from
Vessel and Marina Discharges: A Guide for State and Local Officials,
Volume 1. Establishing No-Discharge Areas under Sec. 312 of the Clean
Water Act'' (EPA 842-B-94-004, August 1994), to assist states in
preparing applications based on the regulatory requirements. EPA is
updating the 1994 guidance and, through this Notice, soliciting
feedback from the public on the new draft, titled, ``Guidance for
Vessel Sewage No-Discharge Zone Applications (Clean Water Act Section
312(f)).'' The draft updated guidance will supersede the 1994 guidance
once public comments have been considered and a notice of availability
for the updated guidance is published in the Federal Register.
In developing the draft updated guidance, EPA sought to streamline
the guidance, better clarify the required versus recommended
information for inclusion in a state's application, and further
describe the agency's processes for evaluating an application. Key
updates related to the development of state applications include the
addition of new guidance and sample applications for the two CWA
Section 312(f)(4) designations, as well as updated introductory
sections on the impact of sewage discharges and the regulatory
framework in place to mitigate these impacts. The draft updated
guidance also clarifies how to account for mobile pumpout facilities,
such as boats and trucks, and provides additional information on how to
demonstrate that sewage removed from vessels is being treated in
conformance with federal law. Finally, in the sections pertaining to
CWA Section 312(f)(3) applications, the draft updated guidance
distinguishes between recreational and commercial vessels in
acknowledgement of differing vessel profiles and pumpout facility
needs.
Other updates were made to the 1994 guidance to explain EPA's
process for evaluating state applications. The most substantial update
to EPA's review process is the novel inclusion of a cost analysis for
applications submitted under CWA Section 312(f)(3). The agency's
statutory responsibility to determine whether adequate facilities are
``reasonably available'' speaks to the cost of that availability, as
affirmed by the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia (see
Memorandum Opinion and Order, American Waterways Operators v. EPA, case
no. 18-cv-2933 (APM), November 30, 2020). Because EPA must consider
costs, the draft updated guidance contains new sections that propose
how EPA would conduct cost analyses for CWA Section 312(f)(3)
applications. These new sections are accompanied by a spreadsheet-based
tool, the ``No-Discharge Zone Cost Analysis Tool,'' that EPA could use
in future determinations to help standardize the agency's approach to
evaluating the costs associated with applications submitted under CWA
Section 312(f)(3). The draft cost tool also incorporates a screening
analysis to estimate if sewage generation may exceed reception
capabilities. While the statute requires that EPA consider costs during
the review of CWA Section 312(f)(3) applications, the agency welcomes
comments on the proposed approach to the cost analysis. Another change
is the removal of the ``Boater Sanitary Waste Reception Facility
Requirements Worksheet,'' which aggregated all vessel types, in favor
of the new screening analysis described above for commercial vessels
and a new ``Recreational Vessel Worksheet'' for recreational vessels.
IV. Paperwork Reduction Act
The information collections associated with the vessel sewage no-
discharge zone program have been approved by the Office of Management
and Budget (OMB) under the Paperwork Reduction Act through August 2022.
The approved Information Collection Request (OMB control number 2040-
0187) estimates both the burden to state respondents to apply for
vessel sewage no-discharge zones and the burden to EPA to review state
applications. Finalization of this draft updated guidance is not
expected to result in
[[Page 38153]]
increased burden to state applicants, since the required elements of a
state's application are defined by regulation and have not been
changed. However, increased burden is anticipated for EPA due to the
inclusion of a cost analysis for applications submitted under CWA
Section 312(f)(3). EPA does not anticipate that the expected number of
applications will change if this draft updated guidance is finalized,
since preparation and submission of an application is entirely
voluntary and driven by the state applicant's need to protect some or
all of the state's waters from vessel sewage discharges.
EPA is currently in the process of requesting a renewal for this
information collection. If finalization of this draft updated guidance
results in a change to paperwork burden, EPA will revise the
Information Collection Request.
V. Request for Comment
EPA is seeking public comment on both the draft updated guidance
document and the associated draft cost tool. While EPA welcomes
information and comments on all issues related to the guidance, this
Notice requests specific comment, relevant information, or data on the
following topics, as appropriate: (1) the types and availability of
data and information being requested from state applicants, (2) whether
additional clarifications are needed in any of the state application
sections, (3) the appropriateness, use, and accuracy of default values
and assumptions used in the draft cost tool, and (4) how frequently the
agency should update the default values used in the draft cost tool.
The draft updated guidance document and draft cost tool are
available for review in EPA's docket and on EPA's website at <a href="https://www.epa.gov/vessels-marinas-and-ports/guidance-vessel-sewage-no-discharge-zone-applications">https://www.epa.gov/vessels-marinas-and-ports/guidance-vessel-sewage-no-discharge-zone-applications</a>.
Benita Best-Wong,
Deputy Assistant Administrator.
[FR Doc. 2022-13657 Filed 6-24-22; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-P
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