CONTROL OF POLLUTION BY OIL AND HAZARDOUS SUBSTANCES, DISCHARGE REMOVAL

• Citation: 33 CFR Part 153
• Sections: 11

§ 153.101 Purpose.

The purpose of this part is to prescribe regulations concerning notification to the Coast Guard of the discharge of oil or hazardous substances as required by the Federal Water Pollution Control Act, as amended (FWPCA); the procedures for the removal of a discharge of oil; and the costs that may be imposed or reimbursed for the removal of a discharge of oil or hazardous substances under the FWPCA.

§ 153.103 Definitions.

As used in this part:

(a) Act means the Federal Water Pollution Control Act, as amended (33 U.S.C. 1251 et seq. ).

(b) CERCLA means the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act of 1980 (42 U.S.C. 9601 et seq. ).

(c) Chemical agents means those elements, compounds, or mixtures that coagulate, disperse, dissolve, emulsify, foam, neutralize, precipitate, reduce, solubilize, oxidize, concentrate, congeal, entrap, fix, make the pollutant mass more rigid or viscous, or otherwise facilitate the mitigation of deleterious effects or removal of the pollutant from the water. The term “chemical agents” as used in this part includes dispersants, surface collecting agents, biological additives, burning agents, and sinking agents as defined in Subpart H of the National Contingency Plan.

(d) Assistant Commandant for Marine Safety, Security and Environmental Protection means the Coast Guard Officer designated by the Commandant to assist and advise the Commandant on matters related to marine environmental response, port and environmental safety, and waterways management.

(e) Coastal waters means all U.S. waters subject to the tide, U.S. waters of the Great Lakes, specified ports and harbors on the inland rivers, waters of the contiguous zone, or other waters of the high seas subject to discharges in connection with activities under the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act (43 U.S.C. 1331 et seq. ) or the Deepwater Port Act of 1974 (33 U.S.C. 1501 et seq. ), or which may affect natural resources belonging to, appertaining to, or under the exclusive management authority of the United States (including resources under the Magnuson Fishery Conservation and Management Act (16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq. )). These waters include those contained within the Exclusive Economic Zone declared by Presidential Proclamation 5030 on March 10, 1983 (43 FR 10605).

Note:

Coastal waters are those waters where the Coast Guard has the responsibility for providing On-Scene Coordinators under the National Contingency Plan. Specific dividing lines between coastal and inland waters, and the identification of specified ports and harbors on inland rivers, are contained in Regional Contingency Plans prepared pursuant to the National Contingency Plan.

(f) Contiguous zone means the entire zone established by the United States under Article 24 of the Convention on the Territorial Sea and the Contiguous Zone, as published in the June 1, 1972 issue of the Federal Register (37 FR 11906).

(g) Discharge includes, but is not limited to, any spilling, leaking, pumping, pouring, emitting, emptying, or dumping, but excludes (A) discharges in compliance with a permit under Section 402 of the Act, (B) discharges resulting from circumstances identified and reviewed and made part of the public record with respect to a permit issued or modified under Section 402 of the Act, and subject to a condition in such permit, and (C) continuous or anticipated intermittent discharges from a point source, identified in a permit or permit application under section 402 of the Act, which are caused by events occurring within the scope of relevant operating or treatment systems.

(h) Hazardous substance means any substance designated by the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency pursuant to section 311(b)(2) of the Act.

(i) Inland waters means all other waters of the U.S. not included in the definition of coastal waters.

Note:

Inland waters are those waters where the Environmental Protection Agency has the responsibility for providing On-Scene Coordinators under the National Contingency Plan. Specific dividing lines between coastal and inland waters are contained in Regional Contingency Plans prepared pursuant to the National Contingency Plan.

(j) Mechanical removal means the use of pumps, skimmers, booms, earthmoving equipment, and other mechanical devices to contain the discharge of oil and to recover the discharge from the water or adjoining shorelines.

(k) Navigable waters means the waters of the United States as defined in paragraph 2.36(b) of this Chapter.

(l) Offshore facility means any facility of any kind located in, on, or under, any of the navigable waters of the United States, and any facility of any kind which is subject to the jurisdiction of the United States and is located in, on, or under any other waters, other than a vessel or a public vessel.

(m) Oil means oil of any kind or in any form, including but not limited to petroleum, fuel oil, sludge, oil refuse, and oil mixed with wastes other than dredged spoil.

(n) On-Scene Coordinator or OSC is the Federal official predesignated by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) or Coast Guard to coordinate and direct Federal removal efforts at the scene of an oil or hazardous substance discharge as prescribed in the National Oil and Hazardous Substances Pollution Contingency Plan (National Contingency Plan) as published in 40 CFR part 300.

(o) Onshore facility means any facility (including, but not limited to, motor vehicles and rolling stock) of any kind located in, on, or under, any land within the United States other than submerged land.

(p) Person includes an individual, firm, corporation, association, and a partnership.

(q) Pollution Fund and Fund means the revolving fund established in the Treasury under the authority in section 311(k) of the Act to carry out the provisions of section 311 (c), (d), (i), and (l) of the Act.

(r) Public vessel means a vessel owned or bare-boat chartered and operated by the United States, or by a State or political subdivision thereof, or by a foreign nation, except when such vessel is engaged in commerce.

(s) Remove or Removal refers to removal of oil or hazardous substances from the waters and shorelines or the taking of such other actions as may be necessary to minimize or mitigate damage to the public health or welfare, including, but not limited to, fish, shellfish, wildlife, and public and private property, shorelines, and beaches.

(t) Sorbent means materials essentially inert and insoluble used to remove oil from water through a variety of sorption mechanisms. Examples include straw, expanded perlite, polyurethane foam, reclaimed paper fibers, and peat moss.

(u) Such quantities as may be harmful means those quantities of oil and any hazardous substances determined in accordance with the provisions of section 311(b)(4) of the Act.

Note:

Regulations that relate to such quantities as may be harmful of oil are published in 40 CFR part 110. Regulations that relate to such quantities as may be harmful (reportable quantities) of hazardous substances are published in 40 CFR part 117 and also listed in 40 CFR part 302.

(v) United States means the States, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, Guam, American Samoa, the Virgin Islands, and the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands.

(w) Vessel means every description of watercraft or other artificial contrivance used, or capable of being used, as a means of transportation on water other than a public vessel.

§ 153.105 FWPCA delegations and redelegation.

The delegations and redelegations under the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (FWPCA) [33 U.S.C. 1321 et seq. ] are published in § 1.01-80 and § 1.01-85, respectively, of this chapter.

§ 153.109 CERCLA delegations.

The delegations under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act of 1980 (CERCLA) are published in § 1.01-70 of this chapter.

§ 153.201 Purpose.

The purpose of this subpart is to prescribe the manner in which the notice required in section 311(b)(5) of the Act is to be given and to list the government officials to receive that notice.

§ 153.203 Procedure for the notice of discharge.

Any person in charge of a vessel or of an onshore or offshore facility shall, as soon as they have knowledge of any discharge of oil or a hazardous substance from such vessel or facility in violation of section 311(b)(3) of the Act, immediately notify the Commandant (CG-MER-3), Attn: Industry and Interagency Coordination Division, U.S. Coast Guard Stop 7516, 2703 Martin Luther King Jr. Avenue SE., Washington, DC 20593-7516, toll free telephone number : 800-424-8802, direct telephone: [phone], or Fax: [phone]. If direct reporting to the NRC is not practicable, reports may be made to the Coast Guard or EPA predesignated OSC for the geographic area where the discharge occurs. All such reports shall be promptly relayed to the NRC. If it is not possible to notify the NRC or the predesignated OSC immediately, reports may be made immediately to the nearest Coast Guard unit, provided that the person in charge of the vessel or onshore or offshore facility notifies the NRC as soon as possible. A report made under this section satisfies the reporting requirements of § 151.15 of this chapter and of 46 CFR 4.05-1, if required under that provision.

Note:

Geographical jurisdiction of Coast Guard and EPA OSC's are specified in the applicable Regional Contingency Plan. Regional Contingency Plans are available at Coast Guard District Offices and EPA Regional Offices as indicated in Table 2. Addresses and telephone numbers for these offices are listed in Table 1.

§ 153.205 Fines.

Section 311(b)(5) of the Act prescribes that any person who fails to notify the appropriate agency of the United States Government immediately of a discharge is, upon conviction, fined in accordance with Title 18, U.S. Code, or imprisoned for not more than 5 years, or both.

Table 1—Addresses and Telephone Numbers of Coast Guard District Offices and EPA Regional Offices

Address

Telephone

EPA Regional Offices

Region:

1

1 Congress St., Suite 1100, Boston, MA 02114-2023

617-918-1111

2

290 Broadway, New York, NY 10007-1866

212-637-3000

3

1650 Arch St., Philadelphia, PA 19103-2029

215-814-5000

4

Atlanta Federal Center, 61 Forsyth St., SW, Atlanta, GA 30303-3104

404-562-9900

5

77 West Jackson Boulevard, Chicago, IL 60604-3507

312-353-2000

6

Fountain Place 12th Floor, Suite 1200, 1445 Ross Avenue, Dallas, TX 75202-2733

214-665-2200

7

901 North 5th St., Kansas City, KS 66101

913-551-7003

8

999 18th St., Suite 500, Denver, CO 80202-2466

303-312-6312

9

75 Hawthorne St., San Francisco, CA 94105

415-744-1305

10

1200 Sixth Avenue, Seattle, WA 98101

206-553-1200

Coast Guard District Offices

District:

USCG Northeast District

408 Atlantic Avenue, Boston, MA 02210-3350

617-223-8480

USCG East District

Federal Building, 431 Crawford St., Portsmouth, VA 23704-5004

757-398-6638

USCG Southeast District

909 S.E. First Avenue, Miami, FL 33131-3050

305-536-5651

USCG Heartland District

Hale Boggs Federal Bldg., 500 Camp Street, New Orleans, LA 70130-3396

504-589-6901

USCG Great Lakes District

1240 E. 9th St., Cleveland, OH 44199-2060

216-902-6045

USCG Southwest District

Coast Guard Island, Building 50-6, Alameda, CA 94501-5100

510-437-2940

USCG Northwest District

Jackson Federal Bldg., 915 Second Avenue, Seattle, WA 98174-1067

206-220-7090

USCG Oceania District

Prince PJKK Federal Bldg., Room 9212, 300 Ala Moana Blvd., Honolulu, HI 96850-4982

808-541-2114

USCG Arctic District

P.O. Box 25517, Juneau, AK 99802-5517

907-463-2199

Table 2—Standard Administrative Regions of States and Corresponding Coast Guard Districts and EPA Regions

States and EPA region

Coast Guard district

Region I:

Maine

USCG Northeast District

New Hampshire

USCG Northeast District

Vermont:

All except Northwestern portion

USCG Northeast District

Northwestern portion

USCG Northeast District

Massachusetts

USCG Northeast District

Connecticut

USCG Northeast District

Rhode Island

USCG Northeast District

Region II:

New York:

Coastal area and Eastern portion

USCG Northeast District

Great Lakes area and other portions

USCG Great Lakes District

New Jersey:

Upper portion

USCG Northeast District

Lower portion

USCG East District

Puerto Rico

USCG Southeast District

Virgin Islands

USCG Southeast District

Region III:

Pennsylvania:

Eastern portion

USCG East District

Great Lakes area

USCG Great Lakes District

Southwestern portion

USCG Heartland District

Maryland

USCG East District

Delaware

USCG East District

West Virginia

USCG Heartland District

Virginia

USCG East District

District of Columbia

USCG East District

Region IV:

Kentucky

USCG Heartland District

Tennessee

USCG Heartland District

North Carolina

USCG East District

South Carolina

USCG Southeast District

Georgia

USCG Southeast District

Florida:

Atlantic and Gulf coasts

USCG Southeast District

Panhandle area

USCG Heartland District

Alabama

USCG Heartland District

Mississippi

USCG Heartland District

Region V:

Minnesota:

Great Lakes area

USCG Great Lakes District

Inland rivers area

USCG Heartland District

Wisconsin:

Great Lakes area

USCG Great Lakes District

Inland rivers area

USCG Heartland District

Michigan

USCG Great Lakes District

Illinois:

Great Lakes area

USCG Great Lakes District

Inland rivers area

USCG Heartland District

Indiana:

Great Lakes area

USCG Great Lakes District

Inland rivers area

USCG Heartland District

Ohio:

Great Lakes area

USCG Great Lakes District

Inland rivers area

USCG Heartland District

Region VI:

New Mexico

USCG Heartland District

Texas

USCG Heartland District

Oklahoma

USCG Heartland District

Arkansas

USCG Heartland District

Louisiana

USCG Heartland District

Region VII:

Nebraska

USCG Heartland District

Iowa

USCG Heartland District

Kansas

USCG Heartland District

Missouri

USCG Heartland District

Region VIII:

Montana

USCG Northwest District

Wyoming

USCG Heartland District

Utah

USCG Southwest District

Colorado

USCG Heartland District

North Dakota

USCG Heartland District

South Dakota

USCG Heartland District

Region IX:

California

USCG Southwest District

Nevada

USCG Southwest District

Arizona

USCG Southwest District

Hawaii

USCG Oceania District

Guam

USCG Oceania District

American Samoa

USCG Oceania District

Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands

USCG Oceania District

Northern Mariana Islands

USCG Oceania District

Region X:

Washington

USCG Northwest District

Oregon

USCG Northwest District

Idaho

USCG Northwest District

Alaska

USCG Arctic District

§ 153.301 Purpose.

The purpose of this subpart is to prescribe methods and procedures to be used to remove discharges of oil from coastal waters.

§ 153.303 Applicability.

The provisions of this subpart apply to any owner or operator of a vessel or onshore or offshore facility from which a discharge of oil into coastal waters occurs who acts to remove or arranges for the removal of such discharges.

§ 153.305 Methods and procedures for the removal of discharged oil.

Each person who removes or arranges for the removal of a discharge of oil from coastal waters shall:

(a) Use to the maximum extent possible mechanical methods and sorbents that:

(1) Most effectively expedite removal of the discharged oil; and

(2) Minimize secondary pollution from the removal operations;

Note:

The Federal OSC is authorized by the provisions of the National Contingency Plan to require or deny the use of specific mechanical methods and sorbents. Sorbent selection considerations of the OSC include hydrographic and meteorological conditions, characteristics of the sorbent, and availability of a mechanical method for containment and recovery.

(b) Control the source of discharge, prevent further discharges, and halt or slow the spread of the discharge by mechanical methods or sorbents or both to the maximum extent possible;

(c) Recover the discharged oil from the water or adjoining shorelines by mechanical or manual methods or both to the maximum extent possible;

(d) Use chemical agents only in accordance with the provisions of Subpart H of the National Contingency Plan and with the prior approval of the Federal OSC; and

(e) Dispose of recovered oil and oil contaminated materials in accordance with applicable State and local government procedures.

§ 153.307 Penalties.

Any person who fails or refuses to comply with the provisions of this part, or to comply with an order issued by the Federal On-Scene Coordinator under 33 U.S.C. § 1321(c) or (e)(1)(B), is liable for a civil penalty per day of violation or an amount equal to three times the costs incurred by the Oil Spill Liability Trust Fund as a result of such failure.