Rec boating act update, serious stuff
 

I copied this from BoatPI on HB. I didn't see the info here & this is important.

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Read.


July 23, 2007

Dear BoatUS Member,
For 34 years the federal Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has exempted discharges from recreational boats from the Clean Water Act permit system. Regretfully, a recent court ruling cancelled this permit exemption. EPA is required by the court decision to develop and implement by September 30, 2008 a national permit system for ALL vessels in the United States for a variety of normal operational discharges.

We have been working behind the scenes with other boating organizations to get the exemption reinstated for recreational boats. Fortunately, the Recreational Boating Act of 2007 (H.R. 2550) has been introduced by Representatives Gene Taylor (D-Miss) and Candice Miller (R-Mich) which would protect recreational boats from being swept into this unnecessary and expensive permitting system.

It is critically important that H.R. 2550 be passed and your support is essential. Please contact your Congressman and Senators TODAY and ask that they co-sponsor or support H.R. 2550.

If the permit system becomes a reality, you will be required to pay for a state permit for each of your boats. EPA will be monitoring your deck runoff, grey water, bilge water, engine cooling water, and the use of copper bottom paints.

The original lawsuit that led to this court decision sought to address ballast water discharges from large ocean-going ships, which can introduce damaging aquatic invasive species into U.S. waters. Keeping our waterways clean and preventing the spread of invasive species is of utmost importance to the future of boating. But taking a complex permitting system designed for industrial dischargers and applying it to recreational boats will not yield significant environmental benefits and it will come at a very high cost. Requiring recreational boaters to purchase a permit would not prevent the spread of invasive species.

BoatUS has been a leader in educating boaters about Clean Boating practices for more than a decade. Our nonprofit Foundation has funded local education projects on invasive species prevention, helped develop voluntary Clean Marina programs, and authored much of the country's Clean Boating outreach. These positive education efforts are making a difference.

Please ask your elected federal representatives to support H.R. 2550. It is common-sense legislation. As you send your emails to your Members of Congress, please copy BoatUS at [email protected]. We’d also like to ask you to send a copy of your correspondence to the EPA, so they can see how this will affect citizens. However, please know that if you choose to send it to EPA, it will become a part of the public record. EPA’s email is [email protected], and your email needs to have a subject line with Docket ID No. OW-2007-0483.

For More Information:

Click here for Frequently Asked Questions


Thank you for your help.

Sincerely,

Margaret Podlich

BoatUS Government Affairs
[email protected]
703-461-2864 or 703-461-2878 x8363

*****


© 2007 Boat Owners Association of The United States
880 S. Pickett St.

Ya, this is serious. The impact from this could be huge to recreational boaters! We all need to get involved in this!!!

The EPA is going to "monitor" every recreational boat registered in the US? Yeah, RIGHT.

Oh, I forgot: "We're from the government, and we're here to help you." Yeah, RIGHT

Here's some links that should help...

For More Information:

Click here for Frequently Asked Questions:
http://www.boatus.com/gov/HR2550FAQ.pdf

Click here for a sample email letter
http://www.boatus.com/gov/epa_letter.asp

Click here to easily send an email to your Members of Congress. http://www.boatus.com/gov/contact.asp

Forward this Action Alert to your friends, your fishing and boat club, your marina neighbors, and your local press!
http://smtpbulk.boatus.net/bin/ftaf?...3C0EE4E20A8734

ttt

Yes, this needs to stay at the top.

Can we make this a sticky?

You took the words out of my mouth..
What a joke !
And the money for the added manpower and equipment will come straight from our pockets..
Liberals suck !

Not trying to stifle good political activism, but for once the EPA is actually on the side of the recreational boaters on this one guys. They don't want this any more than we do and are actually working on getting the ignorant court that originally overturned the exemption to amend their ruling.

Since the EPA is on the boaters side. All boaters should Boston Tea Party and not comply with this nonsense! Show these F'in liberal that they cant legislate from the bench!