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Following are some of Surfrider Foundation?s major legislative and policy efforts:
Beach Protection Act of 2007
(S.1506 & HR2537)
Since its passage in 2000, the BEACH Act has been funding beach water quality monitoring programs in coastal states across the nation. Congress is now considering much needed amendments to increase the amount of money spent on monitoring and to modernize the technology we rely on to protect the health of the beach-going public. The BEACH Protection Act of 2007 requires the Environmental Protection Agency to adopt rapid testing methods that will provide water quality data within hours of sampling and forces states to issue swimming advisories or beach closures within 24 hours. These amendments also propose taking action to identify and clean up the sources of beach water pollution.
Oil Spill Legislation
The goal of Surfrider's efforts is to pass federal legislation under the Coast Guard Authorization Act that will strengthen oil spill prevention policies. Oil spills along our coasts result from accidents from tankers and other shipping vessels, from transferring oil to vessels, and when pipelines break. Catastrophic spills, such as the Exxon Valdez that dumped 11 million gallons in Prince William Sound have a devastating impact to the marine environment, are harmful to human health and are essentially impossible to cleanup. Researchers at Woods Hole are still finding oil in nearby sediments from a spill that happened in the 1970s. In addition, smaller and chronic oil spills and seeps occur regularly. These spills contaminate coasts and estuaries, and they can cause human health problems. The more recent November 2007 San Francisco Cosco Buscan oil spill exemplifies the need for stricter regulations on carriers, more research on resultant environmental harms, and coordinated oil spill response plans.
Surfrider endorses the following oil spill legislation in an effort to protect our oceans from the potentially detrimental harm caused by oil spills:
- Oil Pollution Prevention and Response Act (S.1620) OPPRA establishes requirements for the promulgation of safety standards for towing vessels; requires a number of measures to reduce risk of oil spills; amends the Oil Pollution Act of 1990 and codifies the establishment of the Oil Spill Advisory Council
- Coast Guard Authorization Act of 2008 (S.1892, HR 2830) CGRA authorizes appropriations for coast guard to continue deployment of web based risk management system to reduce accidents; requires certain measures to reduce risks related to oil spills and improve response.
Oceans 21
(HR 21)
The purpose of this bill is to establish a national policy for our oceans, to strengthen the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, and to establish a national and regional ocean governance structure. This bill addresses the management of ocean and coastal resources. In doing so, it creates the critically important organic act for NOAA and solidifies their position as a lead agency for ecosystem based management. The bill creates mechanisms to promote marine ecosystem health in response to the recommendations of the Pew Oceans Commission and the US Commission on Ocean Policy.
Clean Cruise Ship Advocacy and Potential Legislation
Due to the great harm that cruise ship and gambling ship discharges pose to our ocean and marine environment, Surfrider is actively engaged in working with the EPA and legislators to issue final standards, taking into account best available technology, improved inspection and monitoring for ship discharges. We have worked to assess proposed legislation entitled the Clean Cruise Ship Act, which would prohibit discharges of sewage (including sewage sludge), graywater and oily water from the ship bilge within 12 miles of U.S. shore or in marine sanctuaries, marine national monuments and marine protected areas. The bill would require ships to treat their wastewater wherever they operate; and authorize broadened enforcement authority. Proposed legislation would establish minimum limits for levels of fecal coliform, total suspended solids, and chlorine in treated sewage and graywater. Surfrider also recently entered comments on the Draft Cruise Ship Discharge Assessment Report issued by the EPA.
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