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Water: Marine Debris

Fact Sheet: Uniform National Discharge Standards (UNDS) for armed forces vessels

 

 

PDF version of the Fact Sheet (2 pp, 327K, about PDF)

air craft carrier and its pollutants

 

Introduction

Section 312(n) of the Clean Water Act (CWA) was added in 1996 to require establishment of the Uniform National Discharge Standards (UNDS).

Section 312(n) of the Clean Water Act requires EPA and the Department of Defense (DOD) to identify and evaluate discharges of armed forces vessels to determine which discharges require control for protection of the environment and to set standards for those discharges.

UNDS is being implemented in three phases through a partnership between EPA and DOD:

  • Phase I identified and characterized 39 discharges; 25 were determined to require control.

  • Phase II will promulgate performance standards for marine pollution control devices (MPCDs) in different batches to control these 25 discharges.

  • Phase III, which is a DOD-only rule, will establish regulations governing the design, construction, installation, and use of MPCDs to meet the performance standards established in Phase II.

 

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Coast Guard cutter

What does UNDS do? 

  • UNDS will set national standards that will require the use of MPCDs to control discharges incidental to the normal operation of armed forces vessels.


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Why is this program needed?

Navy Ship at Sunset

  • EPA and DOD anticipate that the standards will enhance environmental protection of U.S. waters by creating nationally protective standards for previously unregulated discharges from vessels of the armed forces.

  • Other benefits include stimulating the development of innovative vessel pollution control technologies, and the development of advanced technologies for managing discharges from vessels.


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What has been done?

  • Phase I of UNDS was completed in May 1999.

  • Phase II is currently underway; EPA and DOD, in consultation with the U.S. Coast Guard, are working together to propose MPCD performance standards for the first set of discharges. EPA and DOD anticipate promulgating standards for all 25 discharges in five separate rulemakings.

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How will UNDS affect states?

Uniform National Discharge Standards (UNDS) map of the United States

  • Clean Water Act Section 312(n) preempts states from regulating discharges that are subject to UNDS provisions. EPA and the U.S. Navy continue to communicate with state regulatory and coastal program representatives, and Native American tribes.

  • The statute allows states to petition EPA and DOD to review the determinations made under Phase I and the MPCD performance standards established under Phase II.

  • The statute also enables a state to petition EPA to establish no-discharge zones for discharges incidental to the normal operation of armed forces vessels.


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What is a marine pollution control device (MPCD)?

  • Air Craft CarrierAn MPCD is any equipment, material substitution, or management practice designed to treat, retain, or control discharges from vessels of the armed forces.

  • The seven statutory factors considered in establishing performance standards for MPCDs are: the nature of the discharge; the environmental effects of the discharge; the practicability of using the MPCD; the effect that installation or use of the MPCD would have on the operation or operational capability of the vessel; applicable United States law; applicable international standards; and the economic costs of the installation and use of the MPCD.


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What vessels are regulated?

  • UNDS is applicable to armed forces vessels (i.e., Army, Navy, Marine Corps, Air Force, Military Sealift Command, and U.S. Coast Guard vessels).

  • UNDS is not applicable to vessels of the Army Corps of Engineers, Maritime Administration vessels, memorial and museum vessels, time- and voyage-chartered vessels, vessels under construction, vessels in dry dock, vessels owned and operated by state or tribal entities, commercial vessels, private vessels and amphibious vehicles.

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Seawolf Class SubmarineWhen will vessels have to comply?

  • Vessels of the armed forces will have to comply when Phase III requirements are promulgated by DOD.

  • Those regulations are expected to be established by DOD following the promulgation of the Phase II standards.


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Which waterbodies are covered?

  • UNDS is applicable to vessels in the navigable waters of the United States and the contiguous zone (i.e., out to 12 nautical miles from the coastline).

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How can I obtain more information?

Office of Water
Office of Wetlands, Oceans, and Watersheds
1200 Pennsylvania Ave., N.W. (Mail Code 4504T), Washington, D.C. 20460
EPA-842-F-05-001c
October 2005

First photo: Naval destroyer backlit by setting sun, Courtesy of U.S. Navy

Second photo: U.S. Coast Guard cutter in calm water, Courtesy of the U.S. Coast Guard

Third photo: Aircraft carrier leaving harbor, rows of airplanes lined up on deck, Courtesy of U.S. Navy

Fourth photo: Surfacing Seawolf-class submarine, Courtesy of U.S. Navy

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