It would seem to me that dumping 44 million gallons of sewage a year would be illegal but apparently it's not. Gambling day-cruises in operation off the Florida coast get away with polluting coastal waters enjoyed by millions of beachgoers simply by dumping their sewage when they are technically in international waters.

Port Canaveral, FLThis practice of ocean sewage dumping by the "cruise-to-nowhere" industry has been going on for years and the Surfrider Foundation has led the charge against this dangerous practice that threatens the health of the surfers and swimmers that frequent Florida's beaches. Surfrider has been organizing regular demonstrations along Florida's Atlantic Coast, going so far as to follow cruise ships out of port and into the open ocean in small outboard motorboats flying protest banners aimed at informing onlooker and cruise patrons about the gambling cruise industry's dirty little game its playing with our health.

As the Florida media started to pick up on the demonstrators' activities, legislators in Tallahassee started paying attention as well. The Florida Legislature is considering legislation requiring gambling cruise operators to pay for onshore sewage hook-ups to dispose of their sewage in a safe way that doesn't harm people or marine life.

The legality of the proposed Florida bill will be challenged by the cruise ship operators as the nuances of the legality of regulating ships that are US-based but operate in international waters is very complicated. The issue has also drawn strong resistance from the ship operators and an industry lobbyist Ralph Haben has come right out and said "we ain't hooking up."

The Slog will continue to follow this story and the progress of the Florida cruise-ship sewage bill.