How about Long Island Sound?

[Mark Johnson]

Peggy...Most of my boating is done on LIS. The question is...If I am OVER 3 miles from the Long Island coast and OVER 3 miles from the Connecticut coast (basically the middle of LIS), is it leagal to empty my holding tanks.

 

[Peggie Hall/HeadMistress]

No, it's not...

The law doesn't read "3 miles from the nearest shore"...you must be 3 miles from the US coast....in your case, that means 3 miles from the east side of Long Island, not three miles from shore in the Sound. The same would be true in the Chesapeake Bay...doesn't matter how far apart the shores are, you're still in the Bay, not out to sea. And of course, the same thing applies to any inland lake.Something else worth remembering (and Catalina Island in CA is a good example): it's 26 miles from the coast of CA. There are 20 miles between the mainland and the island in which it would be legal to discharge a toilet directly overboard or dump a holding tank, but you can't do it within 3 miles of Catalina...or any other island that's considered part of the US. The Great Lakes are a totally separate issue. In any of 'em, you're either in US waters or Canadian waters...doesn't matter how far from any shore you are. Tthe Great Lakes have been "no discharge" in both US and Canadian waters for more than 30 years under an agreement with Canada...so there's no place in the Great Lakes where you can legally even use a treatment device, much less discharge overboard or dump a tank.

 

[Bob Zolczer]

Long Island Sound Info

My understanding is that all of Long Island Sound has been designated a no discharge area, regardless of distance from shore.

 

[Claude McKernan]

LineOfDemarcation

On nautical charts, you'll see a dashed purple line between points of land located at inlets and other entrances to bays and rivers. This line is the Colregs (Collision Regulations) Line of Demarcation. It indicates where we switch from Inland to International Rules of the Road. Not only must you be three miles offshore, but you must also be "seaward of the line of demarcation" to discharge untreated waste.

 

[Peggie Hall/HeadMistress]

LI Sound not "no discharge"

But it is necessary to have either a holding tank or a CG Certified Type I or II MSD (treatment device). You just can't discharge the toilet directly overboard--in LI Sound or any other US waters. And since that's true, for boats that don't have the resources--power or budget (which is about 90% of boats with toilets)--to support a treatment device, that effectively means "no discharge" for them. And that's what makes statewide "no discharge" for all vessels so ridiculous...it only punishes those who've installed--or would install--treatment devices, which is a miniscule percentage of the boat population. Everyone else has been required to have a holding tank for more than 20 years. Furthermore, treatment devices put out a much cleaner discharge than what runs off the shore every time it rains. We don't need NEW laws...only enforcement of the laws we already have.