Is it legal to dump urine overboard?

[warren631]

Is it legal to dump urine overboard? Fish do it.

[paul I]

Is it legal to dump urine overboard? Fish do it.

I think it might depend on where you are. I know it isn't legal in Lake Erie and Lake Ontario, the places I frequent.

The prisons here get more and more full every year with criminal fish...

[Tomfoolery]

I've seen interesting discussions where various regulations are quoted, generally along the lines of "emptying containers into waters . . . ", but using the waters directly is not technically a violation.

Not something I'd try, and I can't imagine having to defend myself in court, or pay the giant fine if I chickened out, and it goes against the spirit of the rules in the first place, but they're always interesting discussions at least.

[ris]

I thought it was illegal to have a porta-potty on Lake Ontario but it is not illegal to have a composting toilet. I thought the objective was to keep feces out of the water. Of course my idea might be wrong. I did try to dump the liquid container on land or in a toilet when possible. In fact we have 2 liquid containers for this reason.

[Tomfoolery]

I thought it was illegal to have a porta-potty on Lake Ontario but it is not illegal to have a composting toilet.

Only in Canadian waters, specifically Ontario Province. And only, AFAIK, if it's not a MSD - I have the MSD version of the Porta Potti, with pumpout hose to a deck fitting, and a vent. The documentation says it's a MSD, so that's what I'm banking on if I get boarded. Though I've never even seen a marine police or coast guard unit when I've been on the other side, so I don't think the risk of having to prove it's a real MSD is all that high in the first place. Plus, I live and mostly boat down here, where even a standard Porta Potti is legal.

[DownSouth]

Seems silly to ban porta potti's surely it is not the device that is the problem it is the disposal - we have a very popular lake system (brackish water connected (just) to the sea) that encourages porta potti's and pump outs and even supplies floating sewerage dump barges which are free to use - all much beter than those 'marine' toilets with their through hulls and the 'bucket and chuck it' (US: pail it and hurl it????? ) smaller yachts and dinghies.



DownSouth

[dlandersson]

In the US it IS silly to ban porta potties (etc.) but legally the line had to be drawn somewhere. The law wasn't created for small boats like ours, it was created for the factories, larger ships, "floating casinos", etc.

So the joke (sad but true is) it's legal to stand on the deck and pee into the lake (direct deposit) but it's not legal to empty a container (because that's what larger entities do). So we get caught in the legal need to control large orgs. behavior.

[Russ]

I do know it's illegal to pee in the pool if that helps.

[WHRoeder]

I do know it's illegal to pee in the pool if that helps.

Especially if you do it from the high board.

[BOAT]

Is it legal to dump urine overboard? Fish do it.

Hi Warren,

In California fish are arrested if they are caught peeing outside of designated peeing places - but the Sacramento Bureaucrats did make an exception for pooping - According to California Law fish are allowed to poop in any area that does not include dry land - (fish need to obtain a special California Permit to poop on dry land), but in any water they are allowed to poop, so guess what? The fish get around the peeing restrictions by peeing when they take a poop. Technically, you can do the same - just make sure you poop when you pee and you will not be breaking any laws in California.

There is an exception for the Delta Smelt - they are allowed to poop, pee, and defecate anywhere in the state of California they desire including the Central Valley farmlands - the Delta Smelt have been craping on California Farmers for over 20 years now.

If you live in Los Angeles you can pi$$ on anything you want - anytime, but don't pi$$ in a Men's room or you will be arrested for disrespecting the Gender Identity of others.

There is one place that you can do anything you want anytime you want - it's called INTERNATIONAL WATERS - International Waters are all the parts of the ocean that are more than three miles from any coastline. In International Waters you can poop, pee, empty your beer into the porta potty first and then into the sea or the other way around - it's all good - no restrictions at all out there.
Sacramento and the country of California has no jurisdiction whatsoever outside the three mile line (clearly indicated on all PROPER chartplotters sold in Southern California).

Makes you want to get a boat, right?

Now you know why I spend 99.9% of my sailing time outside the three mile line.

[paul I]

There is one place that you can do anything you want anytime you want - it's called INTERNATIONAL WATERS - International Waters are all the parts of the ocean that are more than three miles from any coastline. In International Waters you can poop, pee, empty your beer into the porta potty first and then into the sea or the other way around - it's all good - no restrictions at all out there.
Sacramento and the country of California has no jurisdiction whatsoever outside the three mile line (clearly indicated on all PROPER chartplotters sold in Southern California).

Makes you want to get a boat, right?

Now you know why I spend 99.9% of my sailing time outside the three mile line.

I didn't think you hit the international water line until you were 12 miles out from the shore, not 3 (maybe its 6 miles... my memory is getting old). Of course I don't sail the ocean so I may not know what i'm talking about. But I do know from being on cruise ships that they cant open the ships casino (and in some cases the bars) until they are 12 (or 6) miles out and in "international waters".

[BOAT]

Yes, TERRITORIAL waters are 12 nautical miles, In the USA INTERNATIONAL WATERS extend out 200 miles from the coastal baseline, and of course if you play by any of THOSE rules your in the territorial waters of CHINA as soon as you step off the shore - so nobody here in the country of California follows those rules, and even better yet - no legal agency of the Country of California will enforce any law past the three mile line in effort to not offend Mexico or interfere with any of their citizens travel. I know - I can travel back and forth to Mexico all day long as long as I stay three miles out. (I pooped in their territorial waters once and no one even cared).

The international boundary in California is like the Stop Sign boundaries at a traffic intersection: STOP really means "Slow" so it's like a California Stop. So the US International Waters line in California is really the three mile line in Southern California. That's why all the chartplotters here have the three mile line clearly marked - three mile line = "Let The Party Begin!" in California talk. After your here for a while it all makes sense.

[Tomfoolery]

I didn't think you hit the international water line until you were 12 miles out from the shore, not 3 (maybe its 6 miles... my memory is getting old). Of course I don't sail the ocean so I may not know what i'm talking about. But I do know from being on cruise ships that they cant open the ships casino (and in some cases the bars) until they are 12 (or 6) miles out and in "international waters".

It's an interesting question. US Territorial Waters I believe start where State Waters ends (from 3 to 9 miles out), and that depends on the State, but US Waters ends at 12 miles. I think.

Edit: Too slow. Again.

[BOAT]

Ha Ha! Tom! Got ya again! I know you guys on the "other" 'Left Coast' claim to get out of bed before we do so you should not let us get ahead of you - it's embarrassing.

In deference to all the 'little people' that live outside of the Official Ruling Territories of the Left coast and the OTHER Left coast I can add that the three mile line is is never enforced in the territories of the Republic of Texas, the Nation of California, or the Sovereign Kingdom of Miami in any way that would interfere with the Pharmaceutical Industry Trading Partners Pact that provides so much funding for our fine political leaders in Washington DC. Hi Grade Pharma from Mexico is a thriving industry that supports a lot of Charitable "Foundations" in the DC area, so no Official US Law Agency would dare mess with that. Once you get past three miles everyone looks the other way. (Which is good considering the appearance of some us).

[sailboatmike]

Once you get past three miles everyone looks the other way. (Which is good considering the appearance of some us).

And with the line up of boats with everyone on board crapping and peeing over the side of course they would look the other way and hold their noses too I would think