About the Marine Protection, Research and Sanctuaries Act
The Marine Protection, Research and Sanctuaries Act was enacted by the U.S. Congress in 1972 to protect and preserve our ocean and coastal resources by regulating the transportation and disposition of material in the ocean.
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What is the Marine Protection, Research and Sanctuaries Act?
The Marine Protection, Research and Sanctuaries Act (MPRSA) is a federal statute that was enacted by U.S. Congress in October 1972. The MPRSA regulates the transportation and disposition of materials in the ocean which would adversely affect human health, welfare or amenities, or the marine environment, ecological systems or economic potentialities.
The MPRSA also implements the requirements of the Convention on the Prevention of Marine Pollution by Dumping of Wastes and Other Matter of 1972, known as the London Convention. The London Convention is one of the first international agreements for the protection of the marine environment from human activities.
Title I of the MPRSA contains the permitting and enforcement provisions for regulating the disposition of materials into the ocean. The EPA, the United States Army Corps of Engineers, and the United States Coast Guard work together implement Title I of the MPRSA.
The Marine Protection, Research and Sanctuaries Act (pdf)
The EPA’s regulations for implementing the MPRSA are published at 40 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) 220-229, and include the criteria and procedures for MPRSA permits and for the designation and management of MPRSA ocean sites. In addition, the USACE has published regulations under various provisions of 33 CFR 320, 322, 324, 325, 329, 331, and 335-337.
How has the MPRSA protected the ocean since its enactment in 1972?
Before the MPRSA, little attention was given to the environmental impacts of disposing wastes at sea. Our coastal and ocean waters were often used as a dumping ground for many types of wastes.
Several historical reports indicate a vast magnitude of ocean dumping in the United States prior the enactment of the MPRSA in 1972:
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In 1968, the National Academy of Sciences estimated annual volumes of ocean dumping by vessel or pipes:
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100 million tons of petroleum products;
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two to four million tons of acid chemical wastes from pulp mills;
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more than one million tons of heavy metals in industrial wastes; and
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more than 100,000 tons of organic chemical wastes.
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A 1970 Report to the President from the Council on Environmental Quality on ocean dumping described that in 1968 the following were dumped in the ocean in the United States:
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38 million tons of dredged material (34 percent of which was polluted),
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4.5 million tons of industrial wastes,
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4.5 million tons of sewage sludge (significantly contaminated with heavy metals), and
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0.5 million tons of construction and demolition debris.
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The EPA’s records indicate that more than 55,000 containers of radioactive wastes were dumped at three ocean sites in the Pacific Ocean between 1946 and 1970. Almost 34,000 containers of radioactive wastes were dumped at three ocean sites off the East Coast of the United States from 1951 to 1962.
In 1972, the United States became a key member of an international treaty organization called the London Convention, which aimed to protect the ocean from deliberate disposal of wastes. Later that year, U.S. Congress passed the MPRSA to implement the requirements of the London Convention treaty in the United States and put a stop to uncontrolled dumping of wastes in the ocean.
The passage of the MPRSA in 1972 marked a major milestone in the protection of the marine environment. Today, the United States is at the forefront of protecting coastal and ocean waters from adverse impacts from the dumping or disposition of material in the ocean. The MPRSA has prevented many harmful materials from entering the oceans and will continue to protect our ocean and coastal resources in the future. Materials that are authorized to be disposed or released into the ocean today are carefully evaluated to ensure that they will not pose a danger to human health or the environment and that there are no better alternatives for their reuse or disposal.
To learn more, please visit our MPRSA Timeline and explore our 50 Years of Ocean Protection StoryMap.
What kinds of material are permitted for disposition in the ocean under the MPRSA today?
The vast majority of material permitted under the MPRSA is uncontaminated sediment (dredged material) removed from our nation’s waterways to support a network of coastal ports and harbors for commercial, transportation, national defense and recreational purposes. Other materials permitted under the MPRSA include human remains for burial at sea, vessels, human-made ice piers in Antarctica, marine mammal carcasses, fish wastes, and materials released under research permits.
Learn more about MPRSA permits or explore a map of MPRSA permit locations.
What materials cannot be permitted under the MPRSA?
The MPRSA and the EPA’s MPRSA regulations prohibit certain materials from being permitted for disposition into the ocean, such as:
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high-level radioactive wastes;
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radiological, chemical and biological warfare agents;
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persistent inert synthetic or natural materials which may float or remain in suspension in the ocean in such a manner that they may interfere materially with fishing navigation or other legitimate uses of the ocean;
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materials insufficiently described to permit application of the environmental impact criteria of 40 CFR 227 subpart B;
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sewage sludge;
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medical wastes (isolation wastes, infectious agents, human blood and blood products, pathological wastes, sharps, body parts, contaminated bedding, surgical wastes and potentially contaminated laboratory wastes, dialysis wastes);
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industrial wastes, specifically liquid, solid, or semi-solid wastes from a manufacturing or processing plant (except on an emergency basis); and
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materials containing the following constituents in greater than trace amounts (except on an emergency basis):
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Organohalogen compounds.
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Mercury and mercury compounds.
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Cadmium and cadmium compounds.
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Oil of any kind or in any form.
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Known carcinogens, mutagens, or teratogens.
Amendments to the MPRSA in 1988 banned the dumping of industrial wastes in the ocean, such as those previously permitted for incineration at sea. In the 1970s and 1980s, several types of liquid organic wastes, including herbicide orange and polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), were incinerated at sea using shipboard incinerators. These incineration at sea activities were conducted under MPRSA permits issued by the EPA. In 1985, the EPA proposed specific regulations to better manage incineration at sea under MPRSA permits, but the regulations were never finalized, and the incineration-at-sea program was discontinued in 1988.
Internationally, incineration at sea is also regulated under the London Convention and London Protocol, which are ocean dumping treaties. The United States is a Contracting Party to the London Convention. The United States has signed the London Protocol, which is intended to modernize and eventually replace the London Convention; however, the Senate has not ratified the treaty.
Under the London Convention, incineration at sea of industrial waste and sewage sludge is prohibited. The London Convention defines “incineration at sea” as the deliberate combustion of wastes and other matter on marine incineration facilities for the purpose of their thermal destruction. Combustion associated with activities incidental to the normal operation of vessels, platforms and other manmade structures is excluded from the scope of this definition. Marine incineration facility means a vessel, platform, or other manmade structure operating for the purpose of incineration at sea.
Under the London Protocol, incineration at sea and the export of wastes and other materials for incineration at sea is prohibited. The London Protocol defines “incineration at sea” as the combustion on board a vessel, platform or other man-made structure at sea of wastes or other matter for the purpose of their deliberate disposal by thermal destruction. The prohibited incineration at sea does not include the incineration of wastes or other matter on board a vessel, platform, or other man-made structure at sea if such wastes or other material were generated during the normal operation of that vessel, platform, or other manmade structure at sea.
How do the EPA and other federal agencies implement the MPRSA?
Three federal agencies have responsibilities under the MPRSA:
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The EPA has primary authority for regulating the disposition of all materials into the ocean except dredged material.
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The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the EPA share responsibility for the regulation of dredged material.
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The U.S. Coast Guard supports implementation with surveillance of activities permitted under the MPRSA.
The EPA’s Marine Protection Permitting Program plays a primary role in protecting and preserving our ocean and coastal resources by implementing the Marine Protection, Research and Sanctuaries Act (MPRSA). The EPA’s Headquarters and the EPA’s seven coastal Regional Offices (Regions 1, 2, 3, 4, 6, 9, and 10) work together to designate and monitor MPRSA ocean sites, to evaluate permit inquiries and issue permits as appropriate, and to provide technical support to other agencies to ensure that the disposition of materials into the ocean is appropriately regulated and safeguards human health and the marine environment.
Under the MPRSA, the EPA is responsible for:
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Establishing marine protection criteria for reviewing and evaluating permit applications
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Designating and managing MPRSA ocean sites for all types of materials
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Issuing MPRSA permits for all materials other than dredged material.
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Co-regulating the ocean disposal of dredged material with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, including review and concurrence for MPRSA permits for dredged material issued by the USACE.
In addition, the EPA’s Marine Protection Permitting Program coordinates with partners at the international, Tribal, federal, state and local levels, and through interagency groups, including National and Regional Dredging Teams, on activities permitted under the MPRSA, dredged material management, pollution prevention and marine protection activities.
What are MPRSA ocean sites?
MPRSA ocean sites are geographic locations or areas specified by the EPA where materials permitted under MPRSA may be released or disposed. MPRSA special permits and dredged material permits generally require the use of a designated MPRSA ocean site.
The EPA designates MPRSA ocean sites through rulemaking in the MPRSA regulations at 40 CFR 228.15. The EPA bases site designations on detailed environmental studies of the proposed site and regions adjacent to the site, as well as historical knowledge of the impact of disposition on areas similar in physical, chemical and biological characteristics. Designated MPRSA ocean sites have site management and monitoring plans.
Authorized locations for material released under a general, research or emergency permit are specified by the EPA as a condition in the permit and do not require use of a designated MPRSA ocean site.
Learn more about MPRSA ocean sites, and site monitoring or explore a map of MPRSA ocean site locations.