Northwest Environmental Advocates--News/Media

Back to News Releases

For Release
April 2, 2001
For Further Information
Nina Bell (NWEA): 503/295-0490

Groups File Lawsuit to Force Federal Regulation of Exotic Species Discharges by Ships

Citing the refusal of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to withdraw its illegal interpretation of the Clean Water Act, three environmental organizations filed a lawsuit Monday seeking restrictions on pollution discharges from ships. The ships at issue discharge ballast water containing exotic species that are rapidly invading U.S. coastal waters and the Great Lakes.

The groups filed a petition with EPA in January, 1999, asking that the agency withdraw a regulation that exempts ships from needing Clean Water Act permits to discharge ballast water.

"Exotic species invasions are a growing crisis for American industries and native species," said Nina Bell, Executive Director of the Portland, Oregon-based Northwest Environmental Advocates (NWEA). "We have waited over two years for EPA to take action on an issue that even the agency admits is an environmental and economic disaster and yet it refuses to do anything. We have no other recourse than to turn to the federal courts," she said.

Linda Sheehan, Director of the Pacific Region Office for the Center for Marine Conservation (CMC), explained the groups' sense of urgency: "Exotic species carried in ships' ballast water are hurting commercial fishing and shellfishing, clogging the intake pipes of power plants and drinking water treatment facilities, and further threatening species on the verge of extinction. In fact, exotic species imperil almost half of America's threatened and endangered species, making it second only to habitat destruction. Ballast water is the biggest source of new aquatic species showing up in the country's coastal waters."

Live species from other countries are carried to U.S. waters in ballast water which ships use for stabilization. The ballast water is discharged into bays, estuaries, and the Great Lakes when cargo for export is loaded. Over 21 billion gallons of ballast water from international ports is discharged into U.S. waters each year. Estimates of the cost of invasive species to the U.S. economy are in the billions of dollars annually.

"San Francisco Bay has been hard hit by exotic species carried in ships' ballast water," said Jonathan Kaplan, Executive Director of the San Francisco BayKeeper. "The Asian clam, the green crab, and the Chinese mitten crab all were carried here in ballast water. Exotic species now represent most of the life of the Bay and it's getting worse; on average a new species establishes itself in the Bay every 14 weeks. The voluntary and piecemeal efforts that have been put in place since we filed the petition are simply not enough to stem this modern invasion," he added.

The plaintiffs are among fifteen groups that filed a petition in January 1999 calling upon EPA to withdraw its regulation that exempts vessels from a requirement for Clean Water Act discharge permits. Normally, discharges of pollution require such permits. The petition said the exemption for ships is illegal because it was not called for in the federal Clean Water Act.

In January 2001, the groups informed EPA that legal recourse would be necessary if the petition was not answered. EPA responded on February 7 by telling the groups about its involvement in various committees that are attempting to address the exotic species problem. The agency declined to give the organizations a date by which it would respond to their petition.

The lawsuit, filed in federal district court in San Francisco, alleges EPA has violated the Administrative Practices Act by failing to respond to the petition. Attorneys Craig Johnston and Aaron Courtney of the Pacific Enviornmental Advocacy Center (PEAC) represent the groups.

- E N D -

133 SW 2^nd Ave., Portland, OR 97204-3526 (503) 295-0490 FAX 295-6634