Dealing with galley scraps at anchor?

[StuM]

Originally Posted by Tetepare

Orange rind put in a bowl and it will make things smell nice.

And once the volatile oils have evaporated from the skin, it's completely harmless to throw over the side.

[Uplander]

If the locals and the law says not to dump your rubbish overboard then only inconsiderates would do so. Personally I do not wish to be associated with them.

[Alastair A]

Hello, I say that your should please respect all waterways wherevere in the world. Please don't drop anything into "close waters" that you would not want dumped in your street at home. Do please be honorable. Best wishes A.

[brianlara 3]

Originally Posted by uncle stinkybob

Amazingly and sadly, yes.

Facts Victoria Sewage Alliance

Been reading about it for an hour. COULD spend a week reading about Canada's raw sewage dumping. And to think that for 20 years all I wanted to do was circumnavigate Vancouver Island. O M B G !!

[uncle stinkybob]

Originally Posted by brianlara 3

Been reading about it for an hour. COULD spend a week reading about Canada's raw sewage dumping. And to think that for 20 years all I wanted to do was circumnavigate Vancouver Island. O M B G !!

But for Gods sake, if you decide to circumnavigate turd island don't toss orange peels overboard. and make damn sure all your plumbing is to their coast guard regs, they hate the thought of non-canadian turds floating in their waters and will fine the crap (pun) out of you and eject you, that water is only for canadian turds.

[brianlara 3]

"Eventually" was you key word KOM. Do you like to see floating trash as you go ashore in your dinghy. And frankly, I am of the opinion that people who throw food scraps from their boat also throw just about anything.
In my pretty harbour good people throw bloody NOTHING from their boat.

[valhalla360]

Originally Posted by Mike OReilly

I get what you’re saying Val, and you’re right in some cases, but reality is more nuanced. We’ve (meaning our society) sometimes wastes ridiculous resources chasing the last ppm or ppb concentration of a pollutant. We get those foolish slogans about “no amount of pollution is acceptable!” or “any pollution is too much!!” This flies in the face of good science, and at least some people’s common sense.

That said, there are situations where everyone’s small contribution DOES lead to a big problem. One person pooping in an enclosed harbour makes no real difference. But 10, 100, 1000 … all doing the same creates an environmental problem.

Most of our planet’s environmental crisis have begun with the false notion that the resource is endless (forests, fish, water, etc…), or that my little garbage means nothing. "Nothing I do can possibly affect something so large…”. This is usually true when one person does it. But again, when the everyone does it, it becomes a problem.

This is why it is reasonable to dump organics in areas of good flow with small existing nutrient loads. But in areas where loads are concentrated, it makes perfect sense to not add to the problem.

If we were talking heavy metals or other items that concentrate over time, I would generally agree.

If we were talking 1000boats in a harbor 1/2 mile in diameter, I would generally agree.

Organic waste is only a pollutant if dumped in huge quantities on a regular basis. Even "sensitive" areas can absorb and process large quantities (at least in terms of what could be generated by typical cruising situations) of organic materials very quickly.

Point source and large scale non-point source (ie: farming) are still by far the biggest sources and the easiest to go after technologically. The problem is they are better organized politically. Cruisers are generally not politically connected so it's easier for them to divert attention by refocusing limited resources going after holding tanks dumped 2.5miles offshore. Also many of the rules were intended for large ships which historically would dump waste by the thousands of gallons.

In 99.999% of harbors, the stray orange peel is going to have no impact and will be broken down long before there are enough boats dumping orange peels to have any impact. In fact, you will be hard pressed to show a location where it will have an impact.

(note: in a busy harbor, there is an aestetic impact but that is much different from an ecological impact.)

[ReMetau]

Somebody better tell all the coconut palms to quit dropping all that fruit and polluting my water!

[belizesailor]

Originally Posted by ReMetau

Somebody better tell all the coconut palms to quit dropping all that fruit and polluting my water!

Disgusting isn't! How they willfully pollute all those beautiful beaches!

[Mike OReilly]

Originally Posted by valhalla360

If we were talking heavy metals or other items that concentrate over time, I would generally agree.

If we were talking 1000boats in a harbor 1/2 mile in diameter, I would generally agree.

Organic waste is only a pollutant if dumped in huge quantities on a regular basis. Even "sensitive" areas can absorb and process large quantities (at least in terms of what could be generated by typical cruising situations) of organic materials very quickly.

Point source and large scale non-point source (ie: farming) are still by far the biggest sources and the easiest to go after technologically. The problem is they are better organized politically. Cruisers are generally not politically connected so it's easier for them to divert attention by refocusing limited resources going after holding tanks dumped 2.5miles offshore. Also many of the rules were intended for large ships which historically would dump waste by the thousands of gallons.

In 99.999% of harbors, the stray orange peel is going to have no impact and will be broken down long before there are enough boats dumping orange peels to have any impact. In fact, you will be hard pressed to show a location where it will have an impact.

(note: in a busy harbor, there is an aestetic impact but that is much different from an ecological impact.)

I don’t agree that just because someone is doing something that is worse, somehow this justifies me to do something less worse. And I would quibble with your scales -- but basically I agree with your analysis here.

Boaters’ contributions to all manner of pollution is minuscule compared to most other sources. More to the point, the environment can absorb a certain amount of our pollution with no impact. It’s how ecosystems function. So dumping organics from our boats appropriately is not only benign, it is often the best disposal option.

As I’ve said, I dump organics when underway, including the much maligned orange peel. I have no issue doing this, but I do try and avoid dumping while in enclosed anchorages or harbours. I simply save my organics for when I’m underway (not hard to do). And aesthetics do matter, at least to most people, so I also try to consider that when heaving my orange peels .

[SV DestinyAscen]

Originally Posted by Kenomac

You people do realize that the sewage and table scraps don't stay in the water forever? They break down, decompose and eventually go away just like the Clintons.

It's about concentration and whether it reaches critical mass to ruin things.

I'm not concerned about the occasional sewage overflow during heavy rain, but it can become a hazard if another municipal water source relies on the discharge river. Many cities rely on the Mississippi - fed by the Ohio, inturn fed by the Mon and Allegheny. Ten years ago illegal fracking brine water discharge was turning the salinity behind local wildlife concentration and messing up water treatment. Now it's all good.

I think a balanced needs to be recognized. Of course if you're in the Mediterranean or Atlantic a boat doesn't matter much, but if I owned a cove and you were dumping trash onto my beach I would be a little annoyed.

[Cheechako]

Originally Posted by Palarran

Whatever.

I can tell you that in crowded anchorages in the Med, it isn't unusual to see full watermelons, melon rinds, bunches of bananas, and bags of oranges floating around. I don't like it.

Yep, people seem to think these things readily disappear for their own convenience, they don't. Orange peels and banana peels last a very long time.
As I said early on: "if you live on beachfront property and would take it out onto your beach and dump it, then sure throw it over"
It amazes me that some boaters wonder why landowners don't like cruisers.... it's not amazing at all...

[capngeo]

OK, guys enough with the political discourse; I have better things to do than clean-up after you!

[Cadence]

Originally Posted by capngeo

OK, guys enough with the political discourse; I have better things to do than clean-up after you!

I am so sick of politics I could puke. I'm sure there are forums for that.

[Alastair A]

My affirmation for cruisers please sticking to cruising discussion topics. Please stay on topic. Best wishes for all. A