The Impact of One Boater’s Untreated Sewage
Our coastal resources are a national treasure, providing recreation, income, and beauty. We all know that the health of our coastal waters is constantly threatened by pollution from agriculture, industry, and urbanization. But did you know that the amount of bacterial pollution (fecal coliforms) from one weekend boater’s discharge of untreated sewage is equal to the amount from the treated sewage of 10,000 people during the same time period? Pathogens found in untreated sewage can cause extreme illness and even death when ingested by humans. Untreated sewage discharge from vessels can suffocate animals and plants living in the aquatic environment.
Delicate coral reef communities and shellfish beds are particularly sensitive to untreated sewage. Improper discharge can cause illness and loss of income to others!
More than 33,000 square miles (24 million acres) of U.S. coastal and estuarine waters are classified as shellfish (clam, mussel, and oyster) growing waters. Annual commercial harvests yield about 77 million pounds of shellfish, worth an estimated $200 million.
Shellfish often accumulate contaminants from the environment. Eating contaminated shellfish, especially when raw or partially cooked, poses considerable health risk to humans.
Since the early 1920s the U.S. Public Health Service has been monitoring the nation’s shellfish harvest for bacterial contamination. Today the harvest of shellfish is restricted or prohibited in approximately 30 percent of all shellfish growing waters because of poor water quality.
Untreated sewage discharge from boats accounts for about 13 percent of those restrictions. Improper discharge can also destroy the most beautiful resources on earth!
For all those recreational boaters who think they can't make a difference … they should think again. The facts speak for themselves. Remember to "Pump, Don't Dump" and make on-board waste management a priority in 2003.
Reprinted with permission of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency - EPA 842-F-00-02, April 2001
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