Direct Discharge Head

[MarkJ]

Originally Posted by Chuck Baier

Mark, Can you tell us which countries don't want or have regulations against having holding tanks?

St Martin in the Carabbean was where the discussion started with sentiments like "no country south of the USA". We never cruised to other countries there but Hud should be able to confirm for other Caribbean countries. I never saw a pump out station there, nor anywhere till we arrived in Australia. Even told firmly to throw all food scraps overboard in an enclosed port in the pacific as no green wasted would be disposed of ashore (I wont mention where for a reason).

Its weird that there is such a disparity of thought, but when you wonder what must be in holding tank treatments you wonder who is right. I don't want to go boating where stuff is floating, but also I don't want 80 litres of chemicaly treated stuff to be dumped a mile off shore either.


Mark

[gonesail]

Originally Posted by cburger

Is the discharge of my waste overboard morally the correct thing to do?

probably not ... but then again consider last year's leak of 20 million gallons of raw sewage into the intracoastal waterway near my home due to a pipe break. and this is only what was reported!! i have to wonder how many times this has been repeated across the country? just sayin.

[Curmudgeon]

The best solution (morally and otherwise) is a holding tank for no discharge zones and a macerator for everywhere else.

[Soft Air]

gringos have laws for everything but they do not comply unless law enforcement agencies are on top.

[imagine2frolic]

Originally Posted by Soft Air

gringos have laws for everything but they do not comply unless law enforcement agencies are on top.

I think that applies to most of mankind. Not just GREEN GOES!!!!!!

[richardhula]

Originally Posted by cburger

Regardless of what the regulations may be, and in consideration of all the environmental pressures on the worlds oceans and water ways, the more important question should be "Is the discharge of my waste overboard morally the correct thing to do?"

Interested to know what peoples views are on this subject when spending extended time cruising and at anchor off mainland shores. However big, where are you going to empty your holding tank outside the US?

Regards

[Christian Van H]

This has become WAY too complicated. Just answer this question; would you mind if ALL the boats (sometimes hundreds) in your favorite tropical paradise flushed their heads into the anchorage? Is that really the way you want to live, or would you just do it because you could get away with it? Way back, when there were less than 50 boat circling the world at any time, I guess it would have been OK. Those days are long gone. If you are truly cruising, it shouldn't be that hard to get out there past the 3 mile limit and dump your tank...Oh, and by the way...I don't use chemicals in my holding tank. If ya need 'em, your tank is probably installed slightly wrong.

[AnchorageGuy]

the best system is one that flushes all waste into the holding tank with no overboard discharge from the head. The tank is then connected to both deck pump out and to a macerator that will empty the tank when off shore and when no pump outs are available. That way you are not tempted to dump your sewage then go swimming in that same water that afternoon. Anchoring off mainland shores are not an issue if this is not a beach or area that the public or myself uses. A believe that the sewage that is dumped by cruisers is only a minute amount of negative influence to the environment. But I would not want to swim where I dump nor dump where someone else might use the water and the system I describe is not intrusive and solves all of these issues. It is not dependant on the availability of pump outs or anything else.

[Christian Van H]

Chuck has it NAILED! I second that description of the best system. Just leave enough length on the connection hoses that if, God forbid, the macerator ever failed during a cruise you could swap in your manual bilge pump and empty your tank. My system uses the Whale Gulper toilet pump...

[AnchorageGuy]

Christian, A sized manual pump instead of a macerator will work with the system just fine but I am getting lazy in my later years. We had a Targa 32 once upon a time set up this way with a manual pump.

[Vasco]

Originally Posted by Christian Van H

This has become WAY too complicated. Just answer this question; would you mind if ALL the boats (sometimes hundreds) in your favorite tropical paradise flushed their heads into the anchorage?.

What do you think is happening every day in the BVI?

[Hud3]

The truth of the matter is that direct discharge happens. It would be great if all boats had a holding tank and only flushed it offshore between islands, but that doesn't happen. There are no pump-out facilities in the islands that I know of.

[Christian Van H]

Originally Posted by Vasco

What do you think is happening every day in the BVI?

Whats your point? Are you suggesting I go along with that, that it's right, or that it is happening? I'll stick with the way I operate. Change starts at home.

[AnchorageGuy]

Originally Posted by Vasco

What do you think is happening every day in the BVI?

That does not mean it should or that there is nothing that can be done about it. Change starts with one person at a time.

[s/v 'Faith']

WRT the Bahamas,

In spite of the majority of the posts thus far, you will have trouble finding any place to pump out unless you are doing a tour of the most expensive marinas (even then, some that advertise may not have working facilities).

Funny, on internet chat boards most folks are against at the idea of overboard discharge... when you are out cruising most folks don't seem quite so passionate. Might be a bit of a 'do as I say, not as I do' issue.