Coastal waters declared a No Discharge Area

NAHANT – Safer Waters in Massachusetts (SWIM) founder and Nahant resident Polly Bradley told the selectmen the waters off Nahant were declared a no discharge area on Wednesday.Under the Clean Water Act, a body of water can be designated a No Discharge Area if local, state and federal authorities determine the area is ecologically and recreationally important enough to increase protection.Bradley explained the coastal waters of Revere, Saugus, Lynn, Nahant and Swampscott would be protected as a “No Discharge Area,” where discharges of treated and untreated boat sewage would be prohibited. The area is between Boston Harbor and Salem Sound, areas which were previously designated as no discharge areas in 2008.Bradley said the designation is good news for Nahant because it affects both local boats and also boats and ships headed to and from Boston Harbor that travel through Nahant waters.”That should really protect Nahant,” she said.She said because Boston is a no discharge zone it was almost inviting boats passing through Nahant waters to discharge waste in waters of Nahant.Selectman Robert Frary said the town should place signs at the town wharf informing boaters of the no discharge zone and Selectman Richard Lombard suggested the town look into buying buoys.The protection of Massachusetts waters was strengthened when Gov. Deval Patrick signed legislation in January giving environmental law enforcement – including harbormasters – the ability to issue administrative penalties for violations of no discharge regulations.Bradley said the new law allows substantial fines, which she hopes would deter illegal dumping of waste.”It gives people an incentive to clean up their act,” Bradley said.Lombard suggested looking into the feasibility of appointing lobstermen as assistant harbormasters to help increase enforcement. He said perhaps the town could use federal stimulus money to pay assistant harbormasters a stipend.”It’s to their benefit the waters are clean,” he said,.In other business, the selectmen at the request of SWIM asked residents to voluntarily join in turning their lights out from 8:30 p.m. until 9:30 p.m. on March 28 as part of “Earth Hour.”According to SWIM, the program is backed by the World Wildlife Fund and is designed to make people aware of environmental issues related to energy consumption.