WASHINGTON — February 12, 2014 — The following was released by the office of New Jersey Congressman Frank LoBiondo:
U.S. Congressman Frank A. LoBiondo (NJ-02), a senior member of the House Transportation & Infrastructure Committee, today applauded passage by the Committee of his language to place a permanent moratorium from Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), state regulations and fines governing incidental discharges on commercial fishing vessels and all other commercial vessels less than 79 feet. The “Commercial Vessel Discharges Reform Act of 2013” as introduced by LoBiondo in November was included in H.R. 4005, the “Coast Guard and Maritime Transportation Act.”
“Starting this December, commercial fishermen, charter and tour boat operators, and owners of other commercial vessels less than 79 feet will have to apply for and receive individual permits from the EPA to discharge from their vessels such things as deck wash, bilge water, and the condensation from air conditioning units. Vessels that operate without these permits could be subject to citizen lawsuits and daily fines that exceed $32,000 per violation,” said LoBiondo. “South Jersey has the second biggest fishing port on the East Coast with the Port of Cape May, supporting thousands of jobs up and down the Jersey Shore. The fines that are scheduled to be levied against our commercial fishermen for incidental charges will be devastating to local South Jersey businesses and our economy.”
In 2006, a federal court in California ruled that the EPA had to regulate the release of ballast water, bilge water, deck wash, rain water runoff and other incidental discharges from vessels under the Clean Water Act. Over 28 states have added additional and often contradictory regulations on top of the federal standard.
Read the full press release here