At the November 30, 2023, meeting of the State Water Control Board, staff presented the Board with information on the petition and a summary of the comments received on the petition during the public comment period.  The petition states that vacuum pumps are used to transfer netted fish and seawater from a waterbody into a hopper on the ship, the water is discharged overboard from the hopper via a pipe, and the fish are emptied into the hold of the ship.  There is no addition of any pollutant or combination of pollutants to surface waters through the discharge of the vacuum pump water; therefore, discharges would not be considered a discharge of a pollutant per federal law and the Virginia Pollution Discharge Elimination System (VPDES) Permit Regulation (9VAC25-31).  This is consistent with the ruling in the ...... expand note