Mass. to designate ´no discharge´ area in North Shore

Mass. to designate ´no discharge´ area in North Shore

May 24

All of the coastal waters of the North Shore area of Massachusetts would be designated "no discharge" areas for boat sewage, according to a proposal before the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

The proposal was submitted by the Massachusetts Coastal Zone with the support of the towns of Gloucester, Rockport, Essex, Ipswich, Rowley, Newbury, Newburyport, Salisbury, Amesbury, West Newbury, Merrimac, Groveland, North Andover, Haverhill, Methuen, and Lawrence. All other waters in the North Shore area have previously been designated "no discharge" areas.

If passed, boats will have to discharge their treated and untreated sewage at one of 13 coastal pump-out stations instead of directly into the water, the EPA said.

Public comments on the proposal will be accepted until June 20.

Other "no discharge" zones in New England include all state marine waters of Connecticut, Rhode Island, and New Hampshire; Massachusetts´ Waquoit Bay, Nantucket Harbor, Salem Sound, Boston Harbor and Cape Cod Bay; and several areas in Maine.

To comment on the proposal visit www.regulations.gov/search/Regs/home.html#documentDetail?R=0900006480ae8ada.

Contact Waste & Recycling News reporter Amanda Smith-Teutsch at 330-865-6166 or asmith-teutsch@crain.com

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