1998 Year of the Ocean The U.S. Marine Transportation System 



The CWA generally prohibits discharges of oil and hazardous substances into coastal or ocean 

 waters except where permitted under the Protocol of 1978 Relating to the International Convention 

 for the Prevention of Pollution from Ships. The U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) investigates and 

 responds to discharges of oil and hazardous substances into coastal or ocean waters in accordance 

 with the National Contingency Plan (NCP). The USCG, with the cooperation of EPA, generally 

 administers the NCP when oil or a hazardous substance is discharged into coastal or ocean waters. 

 Regional contingency plans and area contingency plans are developed to implement the NCP. 



The CWA (section 312) requires vessels with installed toilet facilities and operating on the 

 navigable waters of the U.S. to contain operable marine sanitation devices certified as meeting 

 standards and regulations promulgated under section 312. Section 312 also allows establishment of 

 zones where discharge of sewage from vessels is completely prohibited. Amendments made to 

 section 3 12 in 1996 will require, where appropriate, the use of marine pollution control devices for 

 operational, non-sewage, discharges from vessels of the Armed Forces. 



Publicly owned sewage treatment facilities must, at a minimum, meet effluent reductions by 

 secondary treatment, except for certain facilities discharging to coastal waters for which EPA has 

 approved a waiver under section 301(h). 



The Army Corps of Engineers (COE) implements the section 404 permit program. Under section 

 404, a permh is required for the discharge of dredged or fill materials into the waters of the U.S. 

 that lie inside of the baseline for the territorial seas and fill materials into the territorial seas within 

 three miles of shore. Although COE has responsibility for the section 404 program, EPA is 

 authorized to review and comment on the impact of proposed dredge and fill activities and to 

 prohibit discharges that would have an unacceptable impact on municipal water supplies, shellfish 

 beds and fishery areas, wildlife and recreational areas. EPA, in consultation with COE, is charged 

 with developing guidelines to be used in evaluating discharges subject to section 404. (See 40 

 C..F.R. Part 230.) The section 404 permit requirement is the cornerstone for the current wetlands 

 regulatory program. If COE or EPA determines that a certain property is a jurisdictional wetlands, 

 no one can discharge dredged or fill materials into it without a section 404 permit. COE and EPA 

 also have cooperative agreements with the Natural Resources Conservation Service and rely on its 

 determinations as to the presence of wetlands on agricultural lands. 



Section 320 of the CWA establishes the National Estuary Program, which uses a consensus-based 

 approach for protecting and restoring the estuary. There are currently 28 NEPs. 



Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary Act (FKNMSA) , PL. 101-605 



On November 16, 1990, Congress designated an area of the marine environment surrounding the 

 Florida Keys as a National Marine Sanctuary in order to protect its unique, nationally significant 

 natural resources including seagrass meadows, mangrove islands, and coral reefs. The FKNMSA 

 expressly prohibits operating a tank vessel or a vessel greater than 50 meters in registered length in 

 designated Areas to be Avoided, except if such vessel is a public vessel and its operation is 



A-32 



