Compliance with U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Vessel General Permit laws below the Clean Water Act can get sophisticated. Failure to conform can get costly.
The EPA has settled with two transport firms over claims of violations of EPA’s Vessel General Permit issued below the Clean Water Act. Under the phrases of the settlements, Swire Shipping Pte. Ltd. can pay $137,000 in penalties and MMS Co. Ltd. can pay $200,000 in penalties for claims of ballast water discharge, inspection, monitoring, and reporting violations.
“EPA takes compliance with the Vessel General Permit – a key element under the Clean Water Act – seriously. It is vitally important that vessel owners and operators properly manage what they discharge into our oceans, and that they meet their monitoring and reporting requirements,” stated EPA Pacific Southwest Regional Administrator Martha Guzman. “Noncompliance with the permit can seriously impact the quality of our nation’s waters, which are already challenged by port operations.”
SWIRE SHIPPING
According to the EPA, two of Singapore-headquartered Swire Shipping’s vessels cited, the Papuan Chief and the New Guinea Chief, completely visited the Port of Pago Pago in American Samoa. The third vessel, Lintan, has visited the Ports of San Francisco and Long Beach in California in addition to different U.S. ports. The EPA says that Swire Shipping did not: deal with ballast water previous to discharging it into the ocean in a fashion in line with the compliance deadline; conduct annual complete inspections; conduct annual calibrations of a ballast water therapy system; monitor and pattern discharges from ballast water therapy techniques; and report full and correct data in annual studies. The settlement contains penalties of $67,075 for the Papuan Chief, $19,906 for the New Guinea Chief, and $50,019 for the Lintan.
MMS CO
According to the EPA, Tokyo headquartered MMS Co. did not: meet ballast water limitations for organic indicators and biocide residuals in discharges at U.S. ports, together with the Port of Richmond in California; conduct annual calibrations of ballast water therapy techniques; monitor and pattern discharges from ballast water therapy techniques; and report full and correct data in annual studies.
The settlement contains penalties of $110,509 for the St. Pauli and $89,491 for the Centennial Misumi.
The EPA says that vessel self-inspections are required as a way of figuring out, for instance, potential sources of spills, damaged air pollution prevention tools, or different points that may result in allow violations. Self-inspections empower the proprietor or operator to diagnose and repair issues in a well timed method to stay compliant with the allow, and with U.S. federal regulation. Because the Clean Water Act depends on self-reporting of permittees, failures or delays in inspection, monitoring, and reporting violations are severe and undermine the allow program.
In addition, says the EPA, it is crucial that such discharges by ships be monitored to make sure that aquatic ecosystems are protected against discharges that include pollution. Invasive species are a persistent downside in U.S. coastal and inland waters. Improper administration of ballast water can introduce invasive species or injury native species by disrupting habitats and rising aggressive strain. Discharges of different waste streams regulated by the Vessel General Permit (e.g., graywater, exhaust gasoline scrubber water, lubricants, and so forth.) could cause poisonous impacts to native species or include pathogenic organisms.
EPA’s settlements with the 2 transport firms resolves claims of Clean Water Act violations and are topic to a 30-day public remark interval previous to last approval.
