33 CFR § 159.7 - Requirements for vessel operators.
---
identifier: "/us/cfr/t33/s159.7"
source: "ecfr"
legal_status: "authoritative_unofficial"
title: "33 CFR § 159.7 - Requirements for vessel operators."
title_number: 33
title_name: "Navigation and Navigable Waters"
section_number: "159.7"
section_name: "Requirements for vessel operators."
chapter_name: "COAST GUARD, DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY"
subchapter_number: "O"
subchapter_name: "POLLUTION"
part_number: "159"
part_name: "MARINE SANITATION DEVICES"
positive_law: false
currency: "2026-04-05"
last_updated: "2026-04-05"
format_version: "1.1.0"
generator: "[email protected]"
authority: "33 U.S.C. 1322(b)(1); 49 CFR 1.45(b). Subpart E also issued under authority of sec. 1(a)(4), Pub. L. 106-554, 114 Stat. 2763; DHS Delegation No. 00170.1, Revision No. 01.4."
regulatory_source: "CGD 73-83, 40 FR 4624, Jan. 30, 1975, unless otherwise noted."
cfr_part: "159"
---
# 159.7 Requirements for vessel operators.
(a) No person may operate any vessel equipped with installed toilet facilities unless it is equipped with:
(1) An operable Type II or III device that has a label on it under § 159.16 or that is certified under § 159.12 or § 159.12a; or
(2) An operable Type I device that has a label on it under § 159.16 or that is certified under § 159.12, if the vessel is 19.7 meters (65 feet) or less in length.
(b) When operating a vessel on a body of water where the discharge of treated or untreated sewage is prohibited by the Environmental Protection Agency under 40 CFR 140.3 or 140.4, the operator must secure each Type I or Type II device in a manner which prevents discharge of treated or untreated sewage. Acceptable methods of securing the device include—
(1) Closing the seacock and removing the handle;
(2) Padlocking the seacock in the closed position;
(3) Using a non-releasable wire-tie to hold the seacock in the closed position; or
(4) Locking the door to the space enclosing the toilets with a padlock or door handle key lock.
(c) When operating a vessel on a body of water where the discharge of untreated sewage is prohibited by the Environmental Protection Agency under 40 CFR 140.3, the operator must secure each Type III device in a manner which prevents discharge of sewage. Acceptable methods of securing the device include—
(1) Closing each valve leading to an overboard discharge and removing the handle;
(2) Padlocking each valve leading to an overboard discharge in the closed position; or
(3) Using a non-releasable wire-tie to hold each valve leading to an overboard discharge in the closed position.
[CGH 95-028, 62 FR 51194, Sept. 30, 1997]