Cruise Ships Allowed to Dump Pollution a Mile from U.S. Shores
For Immediate Release
Contact:
Nick Berning: 202-222-0748
Marcie Keever: 415-544-0790, ext. 23
EPA Allows Cruise Ships to Dump Polluted Graywater One Nautical Mile from U.S. Shores
WASHINGTON, D.C.—The Environmental Protection Agency today published a permit that will allow cruise ships to dump unlimited quantities of untreated graywater—a harmful pollutant—into the ocean just a mile from U.S. shores.
“The Bush EPA is ignoring its own scientific findings by issuing this permit, which will allow harmful pollution near U.S. shores,” said Marcie Keever, Clean Vessels Campaign Director at Friends of the Earth. “The Environmental Protection Agency knows that pollution from cruise ships and other vessels is out of control and getting worse. This permit will not protect the health of our oceans or the people who use them.”
The permit issued today was a final Clean Water Act General Permit for vessel pollution discharges. The permit allows ships to dump untreated graywater one nautical mile from U.S. shores if they are travelling at speeds above six knots. The permit also requires ships to monitor their graywater discharges only once every three months, leaving them free to ignore malfunctioning systems the other 361 days of the year.
Cruise ship graywater contains contaminants such as oil and grease, metals, pesticides, viruses, fecal coliform bacteria from human sewage, medical and dental waste, detergents, and cleaners. A large cruise ship on a one-week voyage can generate one million gallons—which would fill 33 large swimming pools—of graywater.
The EPA finds in an assessment report to be finalized this month that untreated graywater from cruise ships is above safe levels. Despite this finding, the permit issued today continues to allow cruise ships to discharge such graywater. Significantly, the EPA has also found that it would cost cruise ships only $7.09 per passenger to treat graywater using the best water treatment technology, and yet the permit fails to require treatment of polluted discharges beyond one nautical mile.
The EPA developed the permit in response to litigation from environmental groups. Their lawsuit overturned an erroneous EPA regulation that for the past 35 years exempted all vessels from the permitting requirements of the Clean Water Act.
The EPA permit is available online at http://cfpub.epa.gov/npdes/home.cfm?program_id=350.
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Friends of the Earth (www.foe.org) is the U.S. voice of the world’s largest grassroots environmental network, with member groups in 77 countries. Since 1969, Friends of the Earth has fought to create a more healthy, just world.