US Boat Yard Fined for Dumping Wastewater

Billings Diesel and Marine Services, Inc. has reached a settlement with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) after the boat yard allegedly violated the Clean Water Act by discharging wastewater without authorization.

 

According to the EPA’s allegations, the company dumped wastewater from boat-washing operations into the Deer Isle Thorofare, a major shipping channel connecting Penobscot Bay to the waters around Mount Desert Island and the open Atlantic Ocean to the east. Such discharges can contain, among other things, sediments (such as rock, sand, and dirt), metals and associated industrial waste, all of which can affect water quality and harm the marine environment.

 

Under the terms of the settlement, the boat yard pay a $41,000 fine and take appropriate steps to protect water quality in Stonington, Maine. 

 

The Clean Water Act requires that certain industrial facilities, such as shipyards and marinas, have controls in place to prevent process wastewater discharges from polluting nearby waters as well as to take actions to minimize pollutants from being discharged with stormwater into such waterways.

 

The EPA said that Billings Diesel and Marine Services has taken steps to address the noncompliance, and in-line with "Next Gen" principles, send videos of its new bottom wash capture process so as to confirm it efficiency at capturing the discharge.