Author: Mary L. Wenzel

Publisher:

Published: 2001-03

Total Pages: 185

ISBN-13: 9781423524953

Section 325 of the 1996 National Defense Authorization Act, "Discharges from Vessels of the Armed Forces," requires the Navy to comply with Uniform National Discharge Standards (UNDS) to control the overboard discharge of incidental wastewaters from ships of the Armed Forces. The regulatory development process is organized into three phases: During Phase I of the UNDS rulemaking process, all discharges incidental to the normal operation of an Armed Forces vessel were identified. The discharges were characterized as requiring or not requiring control based on the discharges potential to cause an adverse environmental impact. During the current phase, Phase l the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Department of Defense (DoD), in consultation with the U. S. Coast Guard (USOG), the Secretary of State, the Secretary of Commerce, other interested federal agencies and interested states, are jointly promulgating Marine Pollution Control Device (MPCD) performance standards for each discharge determined to require control in Phase During Phase III, DoD, in consultation with EPA and USCG will promulgate regulations governing the design, construction, installation, and use of MPCDs onboard vessels of the Armed Forces to meet the performance standards promulgated in Phase II. It was determined, during Phase I of the UNDS rulemaking process, that weather deck runoff requires a marine pollution control device to control the discharge. At the direction of Naval Sea Systems Command (NAVSEA OSLI 3), representatives from Naval Surface Warfare Center Carderock Division, Puget Sound Naval Shipyard, and AMSEC LLC conducted shipboard assessments aboard 13 U. S. Navy and U. S. Coast Guard ships representing 9 ship classes to identify constituents that have the potential to contribute to weather deck runoff. The data obtained during the assessments will be used to develop the MPCD for weather deck runoff.