According to the NMMA, the unexpected impact of a court ruling brought by environmental groups to prevent the introduction of aquatic invasive species through commercial shipping ballast water may have a serious impact on all of recreational boating. The ruling struck down a 34-year old EPA regulation exempting effluent discharges in the normal operation of a (recreational) vessel. NMMA and most of the boating industry feels that Congress needs to pass a legislative fix codifying the exemption for recreational boats before the September 2008 deadline when boaters will be required to file for any effluent discharge such as engine cooling water, bilge water, gray water, deck wash, and even deck runoff.
If left unfixed, however, the section of the Clean Water Act that regulates ballast water on big ships would now apply to all recreational boats with or without ballast - from a small bass boat to a cabin cruiser. The EPA and 50 states will have to figure out how to regulate more than 18 million recreational boats, likely through burdensome permitting, which may lead to:
- New yearly fees for family boaters
- Bureaucratic red tape-different in each state-associated with getting a permit
- An increased burden for the taxpayer because federal and state governments will be required to develop new government programs and entities to implement these regulations
- New enforcement regimes.
The EPA recognized 34 years ago that there is no current bureaucratic infrastructure in place that can handle the permitting process (testing, enforcement, etc.) for recreational boats, nor any need for such requirements or structure. According to the NMMA, Congress can act quickly by simply making the exemption for recreational boats that had been in regulation part of the statutory language of the Clean Water Act. This involves a necessary, uncomplicated legislative fix that will keep boating simple, safe and fun for American families.
A bill introduced in Congress in late May by Representatives Gene Taylor (D-Miss) and Candice Miller (R-Mich.) would exempt recreational boats from complex Clean Water Act permitting requirements. According to an article in the 5/29/2007 edition of Soundings Trade Only Today, "the newly introduced legislation, the Recreational Boating Act of 2007, would enshrine into law the 34-year-old exemption for recreational boats." For more information and to take action, please contact Dylan Jones (djones@nmma.org or 202-737-9776).
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