Navigable waters

Rivers and Harbors Act, 1899 Passed in 1899, the Rivers and Harbor Act directed the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to regulate the dumping of debris in navigable waters and adjacent lands. 

The Oil Pollution Act, wliich prohibits the discluirge of oil from any vessel into navigable waters, was passed in 1924. The penalties for violators were the same is those for the Refuse Act of 1899 with one addition tlie Coast Guard had the authority to suspend or revoke licenses held by the officers of vessels found to be in viohition of the act. 

Any non-transportation-rcl itcd onshore and offshore fiicility tlmt has die potential to discharge oil into navigable waters is subject to SPCC pl ms. This includes not only facilities that produce oil, but also industrial, commercial, agricultural, and public facilities that use or store oil. An SPCC plan must have die full approval of maimgemcnt at a level with authority to commit the necessary resources. A complete SPCC plan would follow the sequence outlined below for the minimal prevention requirements. 

The expected continued use of famphur in the environment and its vehicular transport along roads that border navigable waters suggest a need for aquatic toxicity data. Famphur data — like those on other organophosphorus insecticides — should reflect the influence of dose, exposure duration, formulation, and other biological and abiotic variables on growth, survival, and metabolism of representative species of aquatic organisms. 

Spill Prevention, Control, and Countermeasures (SPCC) 1974 Encourages pollution prevention and cleanup of waters by requiring plans from onshore facilities that can potentially discharge oil and other pollutants in harmful quantities into or on U.S. navigable waters... 

The federal clean water statute makes a distinction between conventional and toxic pollutants. As a result, two standards of treatment are required prior to then-discharge into the navigable waters of the nation. For conventional pollutants... 

The Oil Pollution Act of 1924 was the first federal statute prohibiting pollution of waters strictly by oil. As indicated earlier, the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (FWPCA) of 1972 provided a comprehensive plan for the cleanup of waters polluted by oil spills and intentional or accidental release of oil into the water. The subsequent laws, including the Clean Water Act of 1977 and with its later amendments, provide for regulation of pollution of waters by oil spills and other forms of discharges. These legislations also incorporate certain provisions of the Rivers and Harbors Act of 1899, which was intended to prevent any obstruction to the use of navigable waters for interstate commerce. 

Because onshore oil and gas facilities are not allowed to discharge wastes to navigable waters, surface discharge is only practiced at coastal facilities. In some states indirect surface discharge is practiced by simple dilution through an existing municipal or industrial wastewater treatment facility [23]. 

Effluent quality—KPA (Environmental Protection Agrnty) establishes the maximum oil and grease content in water that can be discharged into U.S. navigable waters Local governments establish this criteria lor oilier locations. 

Aquatic disposal/placement of dredged material in water bodies including navigable and non-navigable waters, small lakes, lagoons and rivers (PIANC, 2000). Volume 2(9). 

Water for unrestricted use Non-contact use in a closed system Water discharged to a treatment works or to navigable waters Organic and non-aqueous inorganic liquids <0.5 /ig/1 < 200 /ig/1 < 3 /ig/1 <2mg/kg... 

Langhorne, D.N. (1977) Consideration of meteorological conditions when determining the navigational water depth over a sand wave field. Inti. Hydrogr. Rev. LIV, 17-30. 

Federal Water Pollution Control Act In 1948, the original Federal Water Pollution Control Act (FWPCA) was passed. This act and its various amendments are often referred to as the Clean Water Act (CWA). It provided loans for treatment plant construction and temporary authority for federal control of interstate water pollution. The enforcement powers were so heavily dependent on the states as to make the act almost unworkable. In 1956, several amendments to the FWPCA were passed that made federal enforcement procedures less cumbersome. The provision for state consent was removed by amendments passed in 1961, which also extended federal authority to include navigable waters in the United States. 

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