The Environmental Protection Agency [last week declared] California’s coastline, bays and estuaries as a no-dumping zone for large commercial cruise and cargo ships.
Discharging raw sewage has been prohibited under international law for years. Most large vessels now have onboard treatment systems, but today’s rule will prohibit dumping even that treated wastewater.
A spokesman with the San Francisco-based Pacific Merchant Shipping Association said cargo ships should be able to comply if the federal rules in fact mirror the state regulations.