SWIFT ADMINISTRATION ANNOUNCES "4 THE ENVIRONMENT" CLEAN OUTBOARD ENGINE GRANTS FOR CAPE COD AND THE ISLANDS

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
October 4, 2001
Contact: Doug Pizzi
(617) 626-1118

Bob Durand, Secretary of Environmental Affairs, announced $21,300 in grant awards today to seven Cape Cod and Island communities to replace old, polluting 2-stroke outboard motors with new, clean 4-stroke engines. As part of the state's Clean Marine Initiative, which aims to reduce the impacts of boating on coastal water quality, the Massachusetts Office of Coastal Zone Management (CZM) has developed the "4 the Environment" grant program. The towns of Barnstable, Brewster, Dennis, Edgartown, Falmouth, Oak Bluffs, and Wellfleet will each receive grants of $2,400 to $4,050.

Secretary Durand made the announcement as part of Governor Jane Swift's Cabinet Day. The Governor's Cabinet Day, the second of a number of similar planned events, is an effort to make the public aware of the various projects going on within the secretariats in the governor's cabinet, and to give the public a chance for one on one discussion with cabinet level state officials.

A conventional carbureted 2-stroke outboard motorboat engine allows an estimated 20 to 30 percent of its fuel to pass directly, unburned, into the air and water. The high level of emissions is attributed to the design inefficiency of the 2-stroke motor, which has remained essentially unchanged since the 1940s. A 4-stroke outboard motor emits significantly less pollutants, is more fuel efficient, and much quieter than conventional 2-stroke technology.

"The '4 the Environment' grants give harbormasters and shellfish wardens a tool they need to help make Massachusetts waters even cleaner," said Secretary Durand. "This program will place new outboard motors onto municipal vessels that spend a lot of time in sensitive coastal waters. These 4-stroke engines will significantly decrease boating impacts."

"The grants we are announcing today are all about taking practical steps to help communities address pollution issues without new regulations," said Tom Skinner, Director of CZM. "Cities and towns need tools to assist their environmental efforts, and we are pleased to provide funding that will really help improve coastal water quality."

This grant program is one component of the Clean Marine Initiative-a collection of measures targeted at boaters, communities, and marinas to reduce the pollution of marine waters.

The Clean Marine Initiative has three additional components:

• Bilge Socks - beginning in the Spring 2002, CZM will begin distributing pollution-fighting bilge socks to boaters. By soaking up and bonding to oil and gas that get into the bilge, bilge socks help boaters prevent the release of petroleum products to coastal waters. CZM will distribute 10,000 free bilge socks.
• Marina Technical Assistance - CZM is currently distributing the Massachusetts Clean Marina Guide to hundreds of marine boating facilities throughout the coastal zone. This reference manual for owners and operators of marinas, yacht clubs, and boatyards provides information on cost-effective practices to reduce marina and boating impacts on the coastal environment.
• Pumpout Analysis - the state's Division of Marine Fisheries, the Urban Harbors Institute at UMass/Boston, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, and CZM teamed up to collect information on the use and availability of boat pumpout facilities along the Massachusetts coast. Pumpouts draw sewage from boat holding tanks for proper disposal on-shore. More than 100 coastal pumpout facilities and convenient pumpout boats are available in the Bay State. These partners will work together to develop new ways to improve the delivery of pumpout services to boaters.

"This initiative is the result of several agencies and businesses working together," said Secretary Durand. "We've had great cooperation from the marine trade groups, and none of this would have been possible without support from the state's Division of Marine Fisheries, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration."

In addition, CZM has a variety of publications available for boaters, including the Boater Guide to Tides & Pumpout Facilities, currently being updated for the 2002 season. For a list of publications or to order copies, see the CZM Web site at www.mass.gov/czm or call the CZM Information Line at (617) 626-1212.