Lloyd's Maritime and Commercial Law Quarterly
THE WATER POLLUTION CONTROL ACT—UNITED STATES RESPONSE TO WATER POLLUTION CAUSED BY SHIPS
Alfred J. Kuffler
Messrs. Rawle & Henderson, Philadelphia.*
The Water Pollution Control Act, as amended in 1972, represents the most significant and comprehensive legislative response of the United States to the environmental damage being caused by pollutants escaping from ships. This article will outline the major provisions of the Water Pollution Control Act as amended in 1972 in so far as it bears on pollution caused by ships and review some of the significant litigation which has developed since the passage of the Act in 1972 and its predecessor, the Water Quality Improvement Act of 1970. The article will also review various international agreements presently in force which affect shipowners concerned with pollution matters in the U.S.1
Definitions under the WPCA
The WPCA applies to every vessel calling in U.S. ports except public vessels which are defined as vessels owned or bareboat chartered and operated by the U.S. or by an individual State or political subdivision or foreign nation except when such vessel is engaged in commerce (33 U.S.C., s. 1321(a) (3), (4)).
Congress, in the WPCA, clearly stated the U.S. Government’s intention to eliminate water pollution. The Act provides:
“The Congress hereby declares that it is the policy of the United States that there shall be no discharges of oil or hazardous substances into or upon the navigable waters of the United States, adjoining shorelines, or into or upon the waters of the contiguous zone”. 33 U.S.C., s. 1321(b) (1)2.
The WPCA seeks to implement the foregoing policy by (1) establishing liability to the Federal Government for the cost of cleaning up a prohibited discharge; (2) establishing a mechanism for security so that funds are available to pay for the clean-up; (3) requiring the Coast Guard to establish and enforce regulations concerning vessel operation and particularly the transfer of oil and hazardous substances; (4) setting forth penalties for violation of the WPCA and the regulations issued thereunder.
Although the WPCA has declared that there should be no discharges whatsoever (33 U.S.C., s. 1321(b) (1)), it only prohibits:
“The discharge of oil or hazardous substances into or upon the waters of the contiguous zone in harmful quantities”. 33 U.S.C., s. 1321(b) (3). (emphasis added).
Oil is defined as:
* The opinions expressed herein are solely those of the author.
1 Hereafter, the Water Pollution Control Act is referred to as the WPCA and the Water Quality Improvement Act as the WQIA.
2 The Refuse Act, dating from 1889 imposes criminal penalties of $500 to $2,500 and prohibits the discharge of refuse in navigable waterways of the U.S. 33 U.S.C., s. 407. Oil is considered refuse within the meaning of this statute. La Merced, 84 F. 2d 444. The statute still has been on occasion utilised by Federal authorities in pursuit of oil spillers despite the much more recently enacted WPCA. See U.S.A. v. T/B CTCO 186-20, [1974] A.M.C. 1044 (S.D. Texas 1974), Reversed 537 F. 2d 149 (5th Cir. 1976); U.S.A. v. M/V Kythnos, 331 F. Supp. 311 (N.D. Cal. 1970).
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