Vol. 6 No. 1 Summer 1998
A Newsletter About New Jersey's Water Quality Programs

Through its Clean Vessel Program, DEP has instituted a cooperative program to fund and install boat sewage pumpout facilities.

The Clean Vessel Program has enabled the DEP to establish two No Discharge Zones and is now proposing a third for the Navesink River. These zones are designed to improve water quality along the New Jersey coast.

There are currently five pumpouts on the Navesink, enough to meet the requirements for the No Discharge Zone. This designation prohibits the discharge of treated or untreated sewage. Four marinas have applied for additional facilities, which will almost double the total number of available stations for boaters.

DEP Commissioner Bob Shinn forwarded the Navesink River application to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Earlier this year, EPA gave tentative approval for No Discharge Zones in the Manasquan and Shark rivers. Following the public comment period, DEP hopes to receive final approval by the summer boating season.

"I want to commend the Navesink Regional Environmental Planning Council for its great job in preparing the No Discharge Zone application. The council members and participating organizations did a tremendous amount of work over the past few years, including surveys, water monitoring and the establishment of more sewage pumpout facilities, to meet the designation requirements," Shinn said.

Establishing No Discharge Zones is part of DEP's Statewide Watershed Management Program to reduce nonpoint source pollution. The Marine Trades Association has been supportive of this effort, which has already improved water quality through the use of pumpout facilities and other actions. The pumpouts can handle many thousands of gallons of sewage over a summer that would otherwise pollute the rivers.

The Navesink River, part of the New York-New Jersey Harbor Estuary Program, has been identified as a waterbody of national significance. It is an important coastal area for swimming, recreation and fishing. The river contains nearly 2,300 acres of shellfish growing waters that support substantial populations of soft and hard shell clams. Thanks to coordinated efforts to improve water quality, DEP was able to reopen the eastern Navesink River for unrestricted seasonal shellfish harvesting for the first time in over 25 years last summer. The Navesink was recognized by the federal government on the 25th anniversary of the Clean Water Act last fall as one of 25 national "Symbols of Progress."

Since the start of the Clean Vessel Program four years ago, New Jersey has received nearly $2.4 million in federal funding and has contributed approximately $450,000 in state funds. There are now 65 pumpout stations statewide, with state approval for another 68 stations to date.

The five sewage pumpout stations on the Navesink River service more than 1,000 harbored boats at 14 marinas plus additional transient vessels. The DEP is working in conjunction with the Navesink planning council and various organizations to develop additional pumpout facilities by this summer at four marinas - Irwin's Yard Two and Irwin's Yacht Works (two), Oceanic Marina and Fair Haven Yacht Works.

	Marina Name	Facility Type	Status	Location
	Sea Land Marina	Portable Pumpout	Existing	Red Bank
	Molly Pitcher Inn	Stationary Pumpout	Existing	Red Bank
	Irwin's Yacht Works	Stationary	Existing and 2 Proposed	Red Bank
	Irwin's Yard Two	Stationary Pumpout	Proposed	Red Bank
	Marine Park	Stationary Pumpout	Existing	Red Bank
	Fair Haven Yacht Works	Portable Pumpout	Existing and Proposed	Fair Haven
	Oceanic Marina	Stationary	Proposed (Approved)	Rumson

DEP hopes that EPA will be able to grant approval of the Navesink No Discharge Zone this summer. DEP and the Navesink Regional Planning Council, along with participating organizations, plan to continue an educational campaign on the importance of No Discharge Zones as part of an overall program to reduce nonpoint source pollution. The river will continue to be monitored for water quality to track progress.

The Navesink planning council includes members from nine municipalities: the boroughs of Fair Haven, Red Bank, Rumson and Tinton Falls, and the townships of Middletown, Holmdel, Colts Neck, Freehold, and Marlboro. Organizations that worked with DEP and the council are: Clean Ocean Action, Marine Development USA, Marine Trades Association of New Jersey, Monmouth County Health Department and Planning Board, New Jersey State Police Marine Bureau - Sea Bright, United States Coast Guard Auxiliary and the United States Coast Guard - Sandy Hook.

DEP is working to implement the No Discharge Zone concept throughout the state. DEP expects applications for the Shrewsbury River and Barnegat Bay Estuary later this year. Applications for waterways in Monmouth and Ocean counties are being completed, and the DEP has begun working with Atlantic County organizations to propose similar zones for the Mullica River and Great Bay, which are part of the recently designated Jacques Cousteau National Estuarine Research Reserve.