Cruise Ships -- Draft Ch. 532, Large Commercial Passenger Vessels

What do the draft rules do?

By section:

(1) Applicability. States the types of discharges to which the chapter applies.

(2) Provide necessary definitions.

The department anticipates also providing a list of needed definitions, from various sources, to applicants when it provides copies of Chapter 832. List of definitions.

Note that definitions specified in Chapter 650 (the statute) are not incorporated into draft Chapter 532 (the rules). The department tries to avoid repeating statutory definitions in rules (and putting the same definition in multiple chapters), in order to avoid the otherwise inevitable development of inconsistencies when a definition is changed in a statute or another chapter. Fixing such inconsistencies through rulemaking is slow and expensive. A handout of current, related definitions can be supplied to interested persons with other materials.

(3) Effluent quality. Specifies effluent standards, including BOD 5 (biochemical oxygen demand with a 5-day incubation period), SS (suspended solids), pH, fecal coliform, and chlorine. Describes testing.

(4) Sewage and graywater Discharge Record Book. Specifies standards for maintaining a record book, such as content and frequency of entries, maintenance, etc.

(5) Sampling and reporting. Specifies sampling and reporting standards, including requirement for Quality Assurance/Quality Control Plan (QA/QCP), and a Vessel Specific Sampling Plan (VSSP).