CSSSHB 22(RES): "An Act requiring the owners or operators of certain passenger vessels operating in the marine waters of the state to register the vessels; establishing information-gathering, record keeping, and reporting requirements relating to the vessels' graywater and the offloading or release of pollutants from the vessels; prohibiting the discharge of untreated sewage from the vessels; placing limits on discharges of treated sewage and graywater from the vessels; establishing penalties for failure to comply with certain laws relating to the vessels; requiring a report from the Department of Environmental Conservation concerning matters relating to the vessels; and providing for an effective date."
00 CS FOR SPONSOR SUBSTITUTE FOR HOUSE BILL NO. 22(RES) 01 "An Act requiring the owners or operators of certain passenger vessels operating in the 02 marine waters of the state to register the vessels; establishing information-gathering, 03 record keeping, and reporting requirements relating to the vessels' graywater and the 04 offloading or release of pollutants from the vessels; prohibiting the discharge of 05 untreated sewage from the vessels; placing limits on discharges of treated sewage and 06 graywater from the vessels; establishing penalties for failure to comply with certain laws 07 relating to the vessels; requiring a report from the Department of Environmental 08 Conservation concerning matters relating to the vessels; and providing for an effective 09 date." 10 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF ALASKA: 11 * Section 1. AS 46.03 is amended by adding new sections to read: 12 Article 6A. Large Passenger Vessels.
01 Sec. 46.03.460. Registration requirements. (a) Except as provided in 02 AS 46.03.484, each calendar year in which the owner or operator of a large passenger 03 vessel intends to operate, or cause or allow to be operated, the vessel in the marine 04 waters of the state, the owner or operator of the vessel shall register with the 05 department. The registration shall be completed no later than 72 hours after any large 06 passenger vessel of the owner or operator calls upon a port in the state. The 07 registration must include the following information: 08 (1) the vessel owner's business name and, if different, the vessel 09 operator's business name for each large passenger vessel of the owner that is 10 scheduled to be in the marine waters of the state during the calendar year; 11 (2) the postal address, electronic mail address, telephone number, and 12 facsimile number for the principal place of each business identified under (1) of this 13 subsection; 14 (3) the name and address of an agent for service of process for each 15 business identified under (1) of this subsection; the owner and operator shall 16 continuously maintain a designated agent for service of process whenever a large 17 passenger vessel of the owner or operator is in the marine waters of the state, and the 18 agent must be an individual resident of this state, a domestic corporation, or a foreign 19 corporation having a place of business in and authorized to do business in this state; 20 and 21 (4) the name or call sign of and Port of Registry for each of the owner's 22 or operator's vessels that is scheduled either to call upon a port in this state or 23 otherwise to be in the marine waters of the state during the calendar year occurring 24 after the date of registration. 25 (b) Registration under (a) of this section shall be signed under oath by the 26 owner or operator. 27 (c) Upon request of the department, the registrant shall submit registration 28 information required under this section electronically. 29 Sec. 46.03.463. Prohibited discharges; limitations on discharges. (a) 30 Except as provided in (f) of this section, a person may not discharge untreated sewage 31 from a large passenger vessel into the marine waters of the state.
01 (b) Except as provided in (f) of this section, a person may not discharge 02 treated sewage from a large passenger vessel into the marine waters of the state that 03 fails to meet the effluent standards for treated sewage established by the Administrator 04 of the United States Environmental Protection Agency under sec. 1407 of the federal 05 cruise ship legislation. Until the Administrator promulgates the effluent standards, a 06 person may not discharge treated sewage from a large passenger vessel into the marine 07 waters of the state that has a fecal coliform bacterial count greater than 200 colonies 08 per 100 milliliters or suspended solids greater than 150 milligrams per liter. 09 (c) Beginning January 1, 2003, or, if earlier, the date on which the 10 Administrator of the United States Environmental Protection Agency establishes 11 effluent standards for graywater under sec. 1407 of the federal cruise ship legislation, 12 a person may not, except as provided in (f) of this section, discharge graywater from a 13 large passenger vessel into the marine waters of the state that 14 (1) fails to meet the effluent standards; or 15 (2) in any event, has a fecal coliform bacterial count greater than 200 16 colonies per 100 milliliters or suspended solids greater than 150 milligrams per liter. 17 (d) Except as provided in (e) and (f) of this section, a person may not 18 discharge treated sewage or graywater from a large passenger vessel into the marine 19 waters of the state unless 20 (1) the vessel is underway and proceeding at a speed of not less than 21 six knots; 22 (2) the vessel is not less than one nautical mile from the nearest shore, 23 except in areas designated by the department; 24 (3) the discharge complies with all applicable vessel effluent standards 25 established under the federal cruise ship legislation and any other applicable law; and 26 (4) the vessel is not in an area where the discharge of treated sewage or 27 graywater is prohibited. 28 (e) The provisions of (d)(1) and (2) of this section do not apply to a discharge 29 permitted under sec. 1404(b) or (c) of the federal cruise ship legislation. 30 (f) The provisions of (a) - (d) of this section do not apply to discharges made 31 for the purpose of securing the safety of the large passenger vessel or saving life at
01 sea, provided that all reasonable precautions have been taken for the purpose of 02 preventing or minimizing the discharge. 03 (g) In this section, "federal cruise ship legislation" means secs. 1401 - 1414 of 04 H.R. 5666, as incorporated by reference into P.L. 106-554. 05 Sec. 46.03.465. Information-gathering requirements. (a) Owners and 06 operators of large passenger vessels shall, for the time during any calendar month in 07 which they operate, or cause or allow to be operated, a large passenger vessel in the 08 marine waters of the state, record or cause to be recorded all information necessary to 09 completely report as required by AS 46.03.475. 10 (b) While a large passenger vessel is present in the marine waters of the state, 11 the owner or operator of the vessel shall collect samples of the vessel's graywater 12 (1) with a sampling technique approved by the department before the 13 sample is collected; 14 (2) at least twice during the time period consisting of May, June, July, 15 August, and September each year; if the vessel is in the marine waters of the state 16 during more than one of the months specified in this paragraph, the samples required 17 by this subsection shall be collected in two different months; the samples shall be 18 collected at least 15 days apart unless the vessel is in the marine waters of the state for 19 less than 15 days during the time period described in this paragraph, in which case the 20 samples shall be collected on the first and last day that the vessel is in the marine 21 waters of the state during that time period; and 22 (3) no less frequently than samples are required to be collected under 23 federal laws and regulations for treated sewage discharges. 24 (c) The owner or operator of a vessel required to collect graywater samples 25 under (b) of this section shall have the samples tested 26 (1) with an analytical testing method that was approved by the 27 department before the testing is conducted; 28 (2) to measure fecal coliform, ammonia, residual chlorine, pH, total 29 suspended solids, and biochemical oxygen demand (BOD) in the sample. 30 (d) If the owner or operator of a large passenger vessel has, when complying 31 with another state or federal law that requires substantially equivalent information
01 gathering, gathered the type of information required under this section, the owner or 02 operator shall be considered to be in compliance with this section. 03 Sec. 46.03.470. Record keeping requirements. An owner or operator 04 subject to AS 46.03.465 shall record the information required to be gathered under that 05 section and shall maintain the records for three years after the date the information 06 was gathered. 07 Sec. 46.03.475. Monthly reporting requirements. (a) An owner or operator 08 of a large passenger vessel shall, within 21 days after the end of a calendar month in 09 which the owner or operator has operated, or caused or allowed to be operated, a large 10 passenger vessel in the marine waters of the state, submit to the department a report 11 concerning the offloading or release of pollutants from that vessel that occurred during 12 the previous calendar month. The report must 13 (1) include the information required for releases by (c) of this section; 14 (2) include the information required for offloading by (d) - (f) of this 15 section; and 16 (3) be limited to releases and offloading that occurred while the vessel 17 was in the marine waters of the state. 18 (b) The information in the report required under this section may be provided 19 by referring to, and including copies of, other reports concerning pollutants that are 20 required by substantially equivalent state or federal reporting requirements. 21 (c) For each release of a pollutant, the report required under this section must 22 describe the 23 (1) location of the release, including latitude and longitude; 24 (2) date and time of the release; 25 (3) volume, flow rate, or weight, and the type and source of the 26 pollutant released; 27 (4) processing or treatment used on the pollutant before the release; 28 (5) circumstances surrounding and cause of the release, including a 29 statement as to whether the release was intentional or accidental; 30 (6) environmental damage caused by the release, to the extent the 31 damage can be reasonably identified; and
01 (7) remedial efforts taken to prevent accidental recurrence of the 02 release. 03 (d) For pollutants that were offloaded, the report required under this section 04 must describe the 05 (1) location of offloading; 06 (2) date of offloading; 07 (3) volume, flow rate, or weight, and the type and source of the 08 offloaded material; 09 (4) ultimate destination of the offloaded material; and 10 (5) processing or treatment received by the offloaded material before 11 or during the offloading. 12 (e) If hazardous waste was offloaded from the vessel and the hazardous waste 13 was manifested in accordance with 42 U.S.C. 6921 - 6939a (Subtitle C of the Solid 14 Waste Disposal Act), the report required under this section may, instead of the 15 information described in (d) of this section, include a copy of the manifest. If 16 hazardous waste was offloaded from the vessel without a manifest, the report required 17 under this section must, in addition to the information described in (d) of this section, 18 describe the reasons why the waste was offloaded without a manifest. 19 (f) For graywater, treated sewage, and other wastewater, the report required 20 under this section must state whether the graywater, treated sewage, and other 21 wastewater were mixed with one another or with other pollutants before or during 22 release or offloading. If mixing of pollutants occurred before or during offloading, the 23 report must identify the specific pollutants involved in the mixing, if feasible. If 24 identification of the specific pollutants is not feasible, the report must identify the 25 waste streams in the mixture. 26 (g) A record or report submitted under this section shall be signed under 27 penalty of unsworn falsification by the owner, operator, or a responsible official of the 28 reporting vessel and must include the following statement: "Based on information and 29 belief formed after reasonable inquiry, I certify that the statements and information in 30 and attached to this document are true, accurate, and complete and that the offloading, 31 releases, treatment, and processing described in this document were in compliance
01 with applicable laws and regulations." 02 (h) Upon request of the department, the report required under this section shall 03 be submitted electronically. 04 (i) This section does not relieve the owner or operator of a large passenger 05 vessel from other applicable reporting requirements of state or federal law. 06 Sec. 46.03.477. Other reporting requirements (a) If the owner or operator 07 of a large passenger vessel operating in the marine waters of the state is required by 08 the administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency or the secretary of the 09 federal department in which the United States Coast Guard is operating to collect 10 samples and test sewage or graywater and keep records of the sampling and testing, 11 the owner or operator shall, within 21 days after the sewage or graywater is tested, 12 submit to the department a copy of the records. 13 (b) Within 21 days after the testing required under AS 46.03.465(c), the owner 14 or operator shall submit a written report to the department that contains the 15 measurements required under AS 46.03.465(c)(2) and describes the sampling 16 technique and analytical testing methods used. 17 Sec. 46.03.480. Penalties. (a) An owner or operator who fails to comply with 18 AS 46.03.460 may not bring a claim, cross claim, or counterclaim in a court of this 19 state for a cause of action that arose during the time that the owner or operator was out 20 of compliance with AS 46.03.460. 21 (b) An owner or operator who fails to comply with AS 46.03.460 or a 22 reporting requirement of AS 46.03.475, 46.03.477, or 46.03.485 is subject to an 23 administrative penalty of not more than $50 a day for each day of noncompliance with 24 each requirement as determined by the commissioner subject to right of appeal to the 25 superior court. 26 Sec. 46.03.484. Exemption for vessels in innocent passage. AS 46.03.460 - 27 46.03.490 do not apply to a large passenger vessel that operates in the marine waters 28 of the state solely in innocent passage. For the purpose of this section, a vessel is 29 engaged in innocent passage if its operation in state waters would constitute innocent 30 passage under the 31 (1) Convention on the Territorial Sea and the Contiguous Zone,
01 April 29, 1958, 15 U.S.T. 1606; or 02 (2) United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea 1982, 03 December 10, 1982, United Nations Publication No. E.83.V.5., 21 I.L.M. 1261 04 (1982). 05 Sec. 46.03.485. Regulations. The department may adopt regulations that are 06 necessary for the implementation of and exemptions to AS 46.03.460 - 46.03.490. 07 Sec. 46.03.490. Definitions. In AS 46.03.460 - 46.03.490, 08 (1) "agent for service of process" means an agent upon whom process, 09 notice, or demand required or permitted by law to be served upon the owner or 10 operator may be served; 11 (2) "graywater" means galley, dishwasher, bath, and laundry 12 wastewater; 13 (3) "hazardous substance" has the meaning given in AS 46.03.826; 14 (4) "hazardous waste" has the meaning given in AS 46.03.900 and 15 includes wastes that meet that definition and have been collected from staterooms, 16 crew quarters, and other passenger or crew accommodations; 17 (5) "large passenger vessel" means a vessel that is authorized to carry 18 500 or more passengers for hire, excluding noncommercial vessels, warships, and 19 vessels operated by the state, the United States, or a foreign government; 20 (6) "marine waters of the state" has the meaning given to "waters" in 21 AS 46.03.900 except that it includes only marine waters; 22 (7) "medical waste" includes each of the types of solid waste listed in 23 42 U.S.C. 6992a (Demonstration Medical Waste Tracking Program, sec. 11002 of the 24 Solid Waste Disposal Act); 25 (8) "offloading" means the removal of pollutants from a large 26 passenger vessel onto or into a controlled storage, processing, or disposal facility or 27 treatment works; 28 (9) "oil" has the meaning given in AS 46.04.900; 29 (10) "pollutant" means biological materials, chemical wastes, 30 graywater, hazardous substances, hazardous waste, industrial waste, incinerator 31 residue, medical waste, munitions, oil, radioactive materials, treated or untreated
01 sewage, sewage sludge, solid waste, toxic waste, and wrecked or discarded equipment, 02 except that "pollutant" does not include an air contaminant, ballast water, a consumer 03 product in consumer use, or, with respect to offloading, a product that remains capable 04 of being put to the beneficial use for which the product was intended; 05 (11) "release" means spilling, leaking, pumping, pouring, emitting, 06 emptying, discharging, injecting, escaping, leaching, dumping, placing, or disposing 07 of pollutants into the environment, including the abandonment or discarding of bags, 08 containers, and other receptacles containing a pollutant, and without regard to whether 09 the pollutants left the vessel through a discrete conveyance or a nonpoint source; 10 (12) "responsible official" means 11 (A) for a corporation, a president, secretary, treasurer, or vice- 12 president of the corporation in charge of a principal business function, or any 13 other person who performs similar policy or decision-making functions for the 14 corporation, or a duly authorized representative of that person if the delegation 15 of authority to the representative is approved in advance by the department; 16 (B) for a partnership, sole proprietorship, or limited liability 17 company, a general partner, the proprietor, or the manager or managing 18 member, respectively; 19 (13) "sewage" means human body wastes and the wastes from toilets 20 and other receptacles intended to receive or retain human body waste; 21 (14) "treated sewage" means sewage that meets all applicable effluent 22 limitation standards and processing requirements of 33 U. S. C. 1251 - 1376 (Federal 23 Water Pollution Control Act), as amended, secs. 1401 - 1414 of H.R. 5666, as 24 incorporated by reference into P.L. 106 - 554, and regulations adopted under 33 U. S. 25 C. 1251 - 1376 or under secs. 1401 - 1414 of H.R. 5666, as incorporated by reference 26 into P.L. 106 - 554; 27 (15) "untreated sewage" means sewage that is not treated sewage; 28 (16) "vessel" means any form or manner of watercraft, other than a 29 seaplane on the water, whether or not capable of self-propulsion. 30 * Sec. 2. AS 46.03.760(e) is amended to read: 31 (e) A person who falsifies a registration or report required under
01 AS 46.03.460, 46.03.475, 46.03.477, or 46.03.485 or who violates or causes or 02 permits to be violated a provision of AS 46.03.250 - 46.03.314, 46.03.460 - 46.03.490, 03 AS 46.14, or a regulation, a lawful order of the department, or a permit, approval, or 04 acceptance, or term or condition of a permit, approval, or acceptance issued under 05 AS 46.03.250 - 46.03.314, 46.03.460 - 46.03.490, or AS 46.14 is liable, in a civil 06 action, to the state for a sum to be assessed by the court of not less than $500 nor more 07 than $100,000 for the initial violation, nor more than $10,000 for each day after that 08 on which the violation continues, and that shall reflect, when applicable, 09 (1) reasonable compensation in the nature of liquidated damages for 10 any adverse environmental effects caused by the violation, that shall be determined by 11 the court according to the toxicity, degradability and dispersal characteristics of the 12 substance discharged, the sensitivity of the receiving environment, and the degree to 13 which the discharge degrades existing environmental quality; for a violation relating to 14 AS 46.14, the court, in making its determination under this paragraph, shall also 15 consider the degree to which the discharge causes harm to persons or property; this 16 paragraph may not be construed to limit the right of parties other than the state to 17 recover for personal injuries or damage to their property; 18 (2) reasonable costs incurred by the state in detection, investigation, 19 and attempted correction of the violation; 20 (3) the economic savings realized by the person in not complying with 21 the requirement for which a violation is charged; and 22 (4) the need for an enhanced civil penalty to deter future 23 noncompliance. 24 * Sec. 3. The uncodified law of the State of Alaska is amended by adding a new section to 25 read: 26 APPLICABILITY OF REPORTING REQUIREMENTS. (a) Notwithstanding 27 AS 46.03.460(a), enacted by sec. 1 of this Act, the first registration required under 28 AS 46.03.460(a) for the owner or operator of a large passenger vessel that is in the marine 29 waters of the state on June 1, 2001, is 11:59 p.m., Alaska Daylight Time, on June 3, 2001, 30 regardless of whether the vessel has called upon or will call upon a port in the state on or after 31 June 1, 2001.
01 (b) The information-gathering and record keeping requirements of AS 46.03.465 and 02 46.03.470, enacted by sec. 1 of this Act, apply on and after June 1, 2001. The first report that 03 is due under AS 46.03.475, enacted by sec. 1 of this Act, is due July 21, 2001. 04 * Sec. 4. The uncodified law of the State of Alaska is amended by adding a new section to 05 read: 06 ASSESSMENT REPORT. (a) By January 15, 2004, the Department of 07 Environmental Conservation shall submit to the governor a report that assesses the 08 information received by the department under AS 46.03.475 - 46.03.485 for the cruise ship 09 seasons of 2001, 2002, and 2003 and information received by the department for the cruise 10 ship season of 2000. The report must include 11 (1) a characterization, to the extent possible, of the risks to the marine and 12 human environments posed by releases and offloadings from large passenger vessels; 13 (2) evaluation of the pollution control and abatement technologies on the 14 vessels; and 15 (3) recommendations for future action by the state in relation to the matters 16 discussed in the report. 17 (b) While producing the assessment required under this section, the department shall 18 consult appropriate federal agencies, owners and operators of passenger vessels, and other 19 interested parties. 20 (c) The department shall notify the legislature when the report required under this 21 section has been submitted to the governor. 22 (d) In this section, "department" means the Department of Environmental 23 Conservation. 24 * Sec. 5. This Act takes effect June 1, 2001.