Most boat owners know that it’s illegal to flush a toilet directly overboard in all U.S. waters. It actually has been for the last 37 years—since the effective date of the Federal Water Pollution Act (“Clean Water Act”) of 1977, although not enforced by many states until the mid 1980s. But how many boat owners know that a holding tank may not be the only option? How many know that “illegal to flush the toilet directly overboard” does not mean the same thing as “no discharge?”…that in most coastal waters, the discharge of treated waste from a Coast Guard Certified Type I (legal on boats under 66’) or Type II (for boats 66’+) MSD is legal? That Type I and II MSDs even exist?
Even if you do know they exist, so much misinformation and outright lies are being circulated by environmental extremists and the politicians who pander to them that many owners are unwilling to install them—afraid they will be banned, or convinced that they’re harmful to the environment. Or that they cost too much, or consume too much power. Boat owners been deliberately and methodically brainwashed into believing that holding tanks are the only affordable, practical, environmentally safe way to manage onboard waste.
The discharge from treatment devices is cleaner than that from most sewage treatment plants...cleaner than most coastal water...cleaner than the water in any marina. However, because of cost and power requirements, fewer than 5% of boats have ever had or are likely to have treatment devices, which means that the other 95% of boats with toilets should already have holding tanks. All of which makes 99.999% of NDZs unnecessary. They exist only because environmental extremists think they should and politician pander to special interest groups.
In the early 90s Representative James Saxton (R-NJ) now retired, introduced a bill every year for five consecutive years that would have lowered the legal standard for bacteria count in the discharge from treatment devices from a max of 1000/100 mil to a max of 10--which the Raritan and Groco treatment devices meet...(fwiw, the federal water quality standard for swimming waters is a max of 200) and allow boats equipped with devices that meet that standard to use them in all waters, even in NDZs. The environmental lobbies never let any of 'em even make it out of committee, much less make to the House floor for a vote. He finally gave up. Had it passed, equipment mfrs would have had reason to invest in the R&D to develop more affordable, less power hungry treatment devices, keeping onboard waste out of sewage treatment plants.
"Class" isn't in short supply here, Mike...but fortunately people who jump to conclusions without the knowledge on which to base them are.
