HOUSE BILL REPORT
E2SHB 1415
As Passed House:
March 10, 2005
Title: An act relating to impacts of commercial passenger vessels on the marine waters of Washington.
Brief Description: Managing impacts of commercial passenger vessels on marine waters.
Sponsors: By House Committee on Appropriations (originally sponsored by Representatives Dickerson, B. Sullivan, Dunshee, Williams, Hunt, Eickmeyer, Chase, Sells and Hasegawa).
Brief History:
Natural Resources, Ecology & Parks: 2/4/05, 2/15/05 [DPS];
Appropriations: 2/23/05, 3/3/05 [DP2S(w/o sub NREP)].
Floor Activity:
Passed House: 3/10/05, 94-0.
Brief Summary of Engrossed Second Substitute Bill |
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HOUSE COMMITTEE ON NATURAL RESOURCES, ECOLOGY & PARKS
Majority Report: The substitute bill be substituted therefor and the substitute bill do pass. Signed by 6 members: Representatives B. Sullivan, Chair; Upthegrove, Vice Chair; Dickerson, Eickmeyer, Hunt and Williams.
Minority Report: Do not pass. Signed by 5 members: Representatives Buck, Ranking Minority Member; Kretz, Assistant Ranking Minority Member; Blake, DeBolt and Orcutt.
Staff: Jason Callahan (786-7117).
HOUSE COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS
Majority Report: The second substitute bill be substituted therefor and the second substitute bill do pass and do not pass the substitute bill by Committee on Natural Resources, Ecology & Parks. Signed by 23 members: Representatives Sommers, Chair; Fromhold, Vice Chair; Alexander, Ranking Minority Member; Anderson, Assistant Ranking Minority Member; McDonald, Assistant Ranking Minority Member; Bailey, Cody, Conway, Darneille, Dunshee, Grant, Haigh, Hunter, Kagi, Kenney, Linville, McDermott, McIntire, Miloscia, Priest, Schual-Berke, Talcott and Walsh.
Minority Report: Do not pass. Signed by 5 members: Representatives Armstrong, Buri, Clements, Hinkle and Pearson.
Staff: Alicia Paatsch (786-7178).
Background:
Water quality laws
The Department of Ecology (Department) is the primary state entity responsible for
regulating discharges into state waters. This regulation includes a requirement that any
person disposing of liquid or solid waste into state waters is required to first obtain a permit
from the Department, for which the Department is authorized to charge an annual fee.
A violation of the state water pollution laws can be enforced both by the Attorney General,
and by the Department. The Attorney General is authorized to bring any appropriate action,
including an action for injunctive relief. The Department has the authority to levy fines of up
to $10,000 per day for each violation. In addition, criminal charges can be brought against a
person found guilty of violating the state's water quality laws. Civil penalties assessed by the
Department may be appealed to the Pollution Control Hearings Board.
The Department is required to first notify a person violating the state's water quality laws in
writing if the situation does not require immediate action. Once the notice is received, the
violator has 30 days to file a report with the Department outlining the control measures that
will be taken. If immediate action is deemed necessary by the Department, then an order or
directive may be issued.
Memorandum of understanding
Prior to the 2004 cruise ship season, the Department entered into a memorandum of
understanding (MOU) with the Port of Seattle, and the Northwest Cruise Ship Association.
The latter signatory is a private organization that counts as members various cruise ship
operators. The 2004 cruise season was the first year that the MOU was in effect, and it
applied to cruise ship traffic calling on Washington ports from April 21 until October 3. The
MOU applies anytime a vessel that is operated by a member of the Northwest Cruise Ship
Association is physically located in certain agreed-to waterways.
The MOU establishes industry oversight in three areas: wastewater management, solid waste
management, and hazardous waste management. The bulk of the document, however, deals
with wastewater management. Cruise ship operators have agreed in the MOU to not
discharge any untreated wastewater or solid waste within waters subject to the MOU. In
addition, the operators are prohibited from discharging sludge, which is the term given to
residual solids that result from wastewater treatment, anywhere inside Puget Sound, along the
American side of the Strait of Juan de Fuca, within 12 miles of the Pacific coast, or within a
specified area to be avoided along the Olympic Coast National Marine Sanctuary. Cruise
ships are allowed to discharge both blackwater and graywater in Washington waters as long
as it is treated by an Advanced Wastewater Treatment System (AWTS), and certain
conditions are met.
Some of the conditions that must be satisfied in order to discharge wastewater treated by an
AWTS apply to all discharges in Washington waters, while other conditions depend on where
the ship is located in relation to its port of call. Vessels not satisfying these requirements are
expected to hold all graywater and blackwater in on-board tanks until the vessel leaves the
waters subject to the MOU.
The MOU does not have an established expiration or sunset date. The current MOU was in
place for the 2004 cruise season, and will remain in place for future cruise seasons unless
either the State of Washington or the Northwest Cruise Ship Association decides to cancel its
participation, and amendments to the MOU must be agreed to by all parties. The MOU
signatories have agreed to meet at least once annually to discuss potential changes and to
review the effectiveness of the MOU.
Summary of Engrossed Second Substitute Bill:
Prohibited discharges
Commercial passenger vessels, which are defined as vessels capable of providing overnight
accommodations for at least 50 passengers for hire, are prohibited from releasing the
following substances into the waters of the state:
Treated wastewater-state approval for release
The operator of a commercial passenger vessel may release treated blackwater and treated
graywater into waters where the activity would be otherwise prohibited if the vessel has been
approved for the release by the Department. The Department is required to approve
wastewater releases from commercial passenger vessels if the vessel has paid a mandatory
annual operating fee and can demonstrate that the released blackwater will receive an
adequate level of treatment prior to release. Each commercial passenger vessel is required to
be re-approved for wastewater releases annually.
The operators of commercial passenger vessels that are certified by the United States Coast
Guard (USCG) for the continuous discharge of blackwater in Alaska are presumed to treat
the wastewater released from the vessel at adequate levels if certain steps are taken by the
vessel operator. If the Department does not notify the owner of a commercial passenger
vessel certified for discharge in Alaska that their approval for discharge is not permitted in
Washington within 60 days of the vessel operator submitting documentation, then the
operator may presume permission to release treated wastewater in Washington.
Treated wastewater-requirements to be presumed adequate for release away from port
In order for commercial passenger vessels to be presumed adequate for wastewater releases
by the Department, the owner or operator of the vessel is required to satisfy a number of
conditions. These conditions vary depending on the vessel's proximity to its port. Operators
of commercial passenger vessels that are moving at least six knots and are located at least one
nautical mile from port may only release treated wastewater when complying with the
following requirements:
Treated wastewater-requirements to be presumed adequate for release while berthed at port
When a commercial passenger vessel is at berth in port, or within one mile of its port,
additional requirements must be satisfied before adequate wastewater treatment can be
presumed. In addition to satisfying the requirements for release away from port, the operator
of the vessel must also comply with the following:
Emergency situations
Commercial passenger vessels are permitted to release any substances, including untreated
graywater and blackwater, if the release is done to secure the safety of the vessel or to protect
a life at sea.
Annual operating fee
The operator of a commercial passenger vessel is required to pay an annual operating fee
prior to releasing treated wastewater. The amount of the fee is established each year by the
Department, and may not exceed $4,000 per vessel per year. The fee set by the Department
must be based on the number of overnight accommodations available on the vessel. All fees
are deposited into the newly created Commercial Passenger Vessel Enforcement Account.
Exemptions
Commercial passenger vessels with less than 250 passengers can apply for an exemption
from the Department until December 31, 2009. In 2008, the Department must investigate
wastewater technologies and recommend whether the exemption should be extended or
modified.
Required reports
The Department is required to submit annual reports from 2005 until 2010 that summarizes,
in lay terms, completed analyses on all water quality data collected from commercial
passenger vessels and study the impacts of released blackwater on shellfish. In addition, the
Department must submit a report in 2007 that concludes if the limitations on blackwater
releases by commercial passenger vessels are adequate to protect water quality.
Appropriation: None.
Fiscal Note: Available.
Effective Date: The bill takes effect January 1, 2006.
Testimony For: (Natural Resources, Ecology & Parks) (In support) The MOU between the
cruise industry and the state has been in effect for one season now, and the results have been
satisfactory. However, by codifying the MOU the state gains three main benefits: certainty
over future changes, expanded coverage over vessels that are not covered by the MOU, and
enforceability.
This bill will protect marine resources and protect the economy. Cruise lines bring economic
benefits, but so do fishers, the shellfish industry, and the aquaculture industry. These
economic benefits are at risk from water pollution. The federal standards for blackwater are
not strong enough to protect water quality, and tests in Alaska have shown that on-board
wastewater treatment often does not work correctly.
The MOU is a preferred route, but many in the industry can accept legislation, and this
approach is reasonable. The various interests have worked over the summer and fall to
produce a bill that is close to one that everyone can accept.
The fees in the bill are appropriate because the general taxpayers should not have to pay to
ensure that a few actors are not polluting the waters of the state.
(With concerns) Oily bilge water is regulated under strict guidelines through both
international and federal law, so it should not be included in the state's regulations. Also, the
definitions should be cleared up so that treated graywater can be released. Some provisions
in the bill are too prescriptive. Giving rulemaking discretion to the Department may be a
better way to go.
The industry would prefer a federal law instead of port-to-port differences in regulations.
There are concerns that elements in the bill may conflict with federal law, but where those
distinctions lie are unknown.
The machinery for treating blackwater works, but does not fit on smaller vessels like the ones
that take tourists up and down the Columbia River. These small vessels cannot comply with
the bill as proposed, and Washington should follow Alaska's lead in making provisions for
the smaller vessels.
Testimony For: (Appropriations) The states of Alaska and California have passed
significant cruise ship legislation and as you know Washington is experiencing an expanding
cruise ship industry. Last year the cruise ship industry entered into a memorandum of
understanding (MOU) with Ecology and this bill just codified that MOU. We want to do this
so the MOU is enforceable. The amendment will lower the cost of the fiscal note and cruise
ships will cover the costs of the program. There is an exemption for small vessels and we
may also streamline to process to reduce the cost to Ecology. There was some sticker shock
to the fiscal note as we were expecting it to be closer to $50,000, which was the cost to
Ecology under the MOU. Thanks to the cruise industry for coming back to the table to protect
marine waters. Alaska has a fee schedule to cover the cost of their program that is nearly
identical to this one.
(With concerns) I represent small cruise ships with 250 passengers or less and we believe that
this bill will probably throw small cruise ships out of the state. Our vessels are Seattle based
and cruise the Puget Sound and the Columbia and Snake rivers. The problem is that the bill
sets environmental standards that we cannot meet and this will put us out of business. We
were not part of the memorandum of understanding between large cruise ships and Ecology.
The bill says that we may get an exemption but the director of the Department of Ecology
may get rid of that exemption any day. Alaska gave us an exemption and so should
Washington. The fees in the bill have a $4,000 cap for large vessels but we would pay the
rest.
Testimony Against: (Natural Resources, Ecology & Parks) None.
Testimony Against: (Appropriations) None.
Persons Testifying: (Natural Resources, Ecology & Parks) (In support) Representative
Dickerson, prime sponsor; Chris Wells, Washington Public Interest Research Group; and
Bruce Wishart, People for Puget Sound.
(With concerns) Terry Finn, Port of Seattle; Joe Daniels and Nick Schowengerdt, Holland
America Lines; Melodie Selby, Washington State Department of Ecology; and Eric Johnson,
Washington Public Ports Association.
Persons Testifying: (Appropriations) (In support) Representative Dickerson, prime sponsor;
and Chris Wells, Washington Public Interest Research Group.
(With concerns) Joe Daniels, Holland America Lines; Randy Ray, Lindblad Expeditions; and
Melodie Selby, Department of Ecology.