SEWAGE DISCHARGES FROM SHIPS TRANSITING COASTAL SALT WATERS1

Abstract

ABSTRACT: A number of aspects of the discharging of non‐oily wastewaters by transiting ships are treated in this overview paper. In the introduction, options to discharging (the use of holding tank, on board treatment) and the impact of changing regulations are discussed. Assessment of the effects of sewage discharges on coastal waters required that data, at first not available, be generated. An account is given of the characterization of Navy shipboard wastewaters and of experiments involving sewage discharges at sea, measurements of water quality before, during and after an amphibious operation, and fore and aft of transitting Navy ships. A better understanding of sewage dilution after discharge led to the verification of a method for controlled discharging of sewage (and other wastewaters). This method permits limiting the coliform bacteria count in the ship's wake to values below acceptable limits. The final sections contain information on long range effects of ships’sewage discharges, obtained in studies by the U.S. Navy and others, as well as public health considerations.