Office of Coastal Management

Marina Brochure

Heavy rainfall in Louisiana rinses a variety of pollutants off the land, sending them into our canals, bayous, rivers, lakes, and estuaries. This "nonpoint source pollution"comes from scattered or diffuse sources and is not discharged from a single concentrated "point source" such as a pipe outlet. Nonpoint source pollutants are rinsed off streets and parking lots, and washed from crop fields, livestock pens, construction sites, and from lands on which some type of forestry operation is being conducted. Some of this pollution makes its way to our salt marshes, beaches, oyster beds, bays and other coastal waters. There pollutants can accumulate, threatening organisms ranging from shrimp, oysters, and redfish, to pelicans, bald eagles, ... and people.

WHAT ARE SOME EXAMPLES OF NONPOINT SOURCE POLLUTANTS FROM MARINA- RELATED ACTIVITIES?

When marina siting, design, construction and operation; and recreational boat operation, and maintenance activities are carried out without paying attention to protecting our soil and water resources, a variety of problems can result. The primary nonpoint pollutants resulting from these activities are toxicity in the water column (low dissolved oxygen levels and/or high levels of metals), increased pollutant levels in aquatic organisms, increased pollutant levels in sediments (mainly metals and petroleum hydrocarbons), increased levels of pathogen indicators (fecal coliform), disruption of sediment and habitat, and shoaling and shoreline erosion.

HOW IS LOUISIANA PLANNING TO ADDRESS THIS SET OF PROBLEMS?

Louisiana is developing a program to reduce pollution from "nonpoint" or widely diffuse sources that may impact coastal waters. While we can never stop all of the nonpoint source water pollution, there are a number of practices that each one of us can adopt to help protect and conserve our soil and water resources. The program will consist of menus of recommended "best management practices" (BMPs), or actions that can be taken to address specific problem issues, as well as a plan to help bring about implementation of these practices. This Coastal Nonpoint Pollution Control Program, or CNPCP, is sometimes referred to as the "CZARA" program, the "6217" program, or the "Coastal Nonpoint Source" program. The Louisiana Department of Energy and Natural Resources (LDNR) is the designated lead agency coordinating its development. The CNPCP will address six major source categories: Agriculture, Forestry, Urban Runoff, Hydrology Modifications, Marinas and Recreational Boating, and Wetland Conservation. Each source category is broken down into ten to fifteen problem issues called management measures.

Management measures must use economically achievable approaches to reduce pollutants that would impact our coastal waters, applying best available technology. Louisiana is developing menus of recommended best management practices or BMPs to address each management measure. While not all of these best management practices will be appropriate for all places and situations, most of us can do at least something more or different to better manage our land and water.

Listed below are some examples of BMPs that can be used to address the management measures pertaining to marinas and recreational boating. A complete listing of Louisiana's marina BMPs can be obtained by contacting LDNR.

MARINA MANAGEMENT MEASURES AND EXAMPLES OF BEST MANAGEMENT PRACTICES

1. MARINA FLUSHING MANAGEMENT MEASURE
   1. Design marinas to utilize tides and/or currents to aid flushing action and circulation.
   2. Avoid, to the maximum extent practicable, dead-end or deep canals without adequate circulation or flushing.
   3. Avoid dredging marina basins deeper than adjacent waters.
2. WATER QUALITY ASSESSMENT MANAGEMENT MEASURE
   1. Encourage the development and implementation of a water quality monitoring program.
   2. Monitoring requirements should be tailored to the marina based on factors such as flushing, existing water quality, number of slips, and presence and proximity of fueling facilities to important habitats.
   3. Periodically review sampling requirements to determine adequacy of parameters.
3. HABITAT ASSESSMENT MANAGEMENT MEASURE
   1. Plan, site, design, construct, and maintain marinas to protect the long term biological productivity of the coastal ecosystem.
   2. Identify important habitat areas and establish buffer zones between marina activities and these areas. Avoid disruption of migratory patterns of fish and coastal wildlife.
   3. Avoid siting of marinas close to areas of high natural resource value such as open productive oyster beds, beds of seagrass and other submerged aquatic vegetation, and areas frequented by endangered species.
4. SHORELINE STABILIZATION MANAGEMENT MEASURE
   1. Plan, design, and construct jetties, groins, breakwaters, and similar structures so as to avoid, to the maximum extent practicable, downstream land loss and erosion.
   2. Vegetative or other nonstructural methods of shoreline protection should be utilized to the maximum extent practicable.
   3. Utilize the best practical techniques for site restoration and revegetation of linear facilities.
5. FUELING STATION DESIGN MANAGEMENT MEASURE
   1. Locate and design fueling stations so that spills can be contained in a limited area. Fueling stations on land should be curbed to contain spills.
   2. Develop and implement a spill contingency plan.
   3. Spill containment equipment and materials should be provided in convenient accessible locations.
6. SEWAGE FACILITY MANAGEMENT MEASURE
   1. To help reduce overboard discharge of sewage from boats, readily accessible restroom facilities, or adequate capacity, should be provided at marinas.
   2. Installation of pump-out systems should be encouraged, they should be easily accessible, and guidelines for their use should be clearly posted at marinas. Availability of pump-out services should be advertised.
   3. The installation and use of dump station facilities at marinas for dumping portable toilet wastes should be encouraged.
7. FISH WASTE MANAGEMENT MEASURE
   1. Provide adequate fish cleaning areas and fish waste disposal receptacles at marinas where needed.
   2. Provide adequate signage directing marina patrons to fish cleaning and fish waste disposal areas and include instructions for proper use.
   3. Implement fish composting where feasible.
8. PETROLEUM CONTROL MANAGEMENT MEASURE
   1. Promote the use of oil absorbing materials in the bilge areas of all boats with inboard engines. Examine these materials at least once a year and replace as necessary. Dispose of properly.
   2. Use automatic shut-off nozzles and promote the use of fuel/air separtators on air vents or tank stems of inboard fuel tanks.
   3. Fuel tanks should be topped off or emptied and purged as required by the method of storage.
9. BOAT CLEANING MANAGEMENT MEASURE
   1. Discourage in-the-water hull scraping or any process that may remove paint from the boat hull.
   2. Minimize the use of soaps and detergents in the marine environment.
   3. When cleaning compounds are called for, use phosphate-free and biodegradable products.
10. BOAT OPERATION MANAGEMENT MEASURE
    1. Cooperate in the identification of important shallow-water habitats and inform boaters of the potential negative impacts of boating in these areas.
    2. Work with state and parish officials to help establish, enforce and comply with No-Wake Zones.
    3. For habitats identified to be particularly sensitive, state, federal, and parish officials should cooperate to establish zones restricting motorized vessel access.

HOW CAN INDIVIDUALS GET INVOLVED?

Public participation and public education/outreach will be important in the Coastal Nonpoint Pollution Control Program. The Best Management Practices or "BMPs" are the "best practices" that we know of at this time, but they can be, and will be, improved, upgraded and replaced over time as we work out even better ways of managing our resources. We welcome and encourage the involvement of all interested Louisianians in this process. Additional comments and questions can be addressed to the:

Technical and graphic support provided by LSU Agricultural
Center's Louisiana Cooperative Extension Service