Last year, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis signed a new bill into law that expanded the State’s Clean Marina Program and introduced economic incentives for marinas, boatyards, and marine manufacturers who achieve the “Clean” designation. To earn the designation, marinas must comply with all regulatory requirements and implement at least 60 percent of the established best management practices (BMPs) at their facilities.
Best Management Practices for the Marina Industry
Florida’s best management practices address a variety of considerations, including:
- Marina Siting: Carefully selecting locations for marina construction or expansion, with attention paid both to rare and endangered species, as well as structural safety from natural disasters.
- Hurricane Preparedness: Establishing boat evacuation protocol to reduce spills and contamination with fuel, oils, and other chemicals into water during a hurricane.
- Habitat Preservation: Restricting boating activities in shallow waters to reduce injury or death to endangered species.
Of course, one of the most expansive and impactful areas of practice for marinas concerns wastewater management. The Florida Clean Marina Best Management Practices handbook lays out how marinas should manage recycled liquid waste (for example, bilge water), address boat cleaning in the water, and properly oversee out-of-the-water saltwater rinsing to reduce environmental impact.
If boats are cleaned while still submerged, or if wastewater from bottom boat washing is improperly managed, contaminants like suspended solids, lead, zinc, and copper can easily leach into the surrounding clean water. This contaminated run-off (largely caused by antifouling paint) degrades water quality, promotes nuisance aquatic plant growth, and reduces the dissolved oxygen levels needed for aquatic life. It can also result in contaminated sediments around the marina, which necessitates a costly removal to remediate.
Learn more about the ecotoxicological impact of hull cleaning in a previous blog.
Meet Key BMP with EPA-Compliant Water Treatment Solutions
Fortunately, there is a simple, cost-efficient solution for marinas owners and operators looking to implement BMPs around wastewater management. Using a combination of machinery (like Sabo’s EV250RT mix tank and BFT16 bag filter tank) and Cleartreat® wastewater chemicals, marinas can adopt a one-step treatment for the common heavy metals associated with hull cleaning.
First, the contaminated wastewater is pumped into a large mix tank, where a Cleartreat® separating agent is added. Because Cleartreat® is a predominantly clay-based separating agent, it permanently encapsulates contaminants (as opposed to simply separating them) into a large, sturdy flock.
The treated effluent is then transferred to a bag filter tank, where several filters work together to ensure continuous filtering and maximum de-watering. The resulting sludge—resembling a ball of clay—typically meets or exceeds the Toxicity Characteristics Leaching Procedure (TCLP) leach test benchmark. As a result, it can then be safely disposed of at the local municipal landfill.
Protect the Environment, Avoid Fines and Receive Economic Incentives
The cost of improper wastewater management is high, for both aquatic life and marinas. Polluted water disrupts fragile ecosystems, resulting in contaminants escalating up the food chain into the same fish and seafood we buy in grocery stores. For marina owners and operators, the cost may also include tens of thousands of dollars in penalties owed to the State for failure to meet environment guidelines.
In contrast, Florida facilities that achieve a “Clean Marina” designation receive a 10% discount on their annual sovereign submerged land lease fee as of July 2025. This means marina owners and operators can now earn financial rewards for their ethical stewardship of bodies of water.
Sabo Industrial Corp. is committed to helping marina owners and operators achieve these Best Management Practices, preserving the natural beauty of Florida’s waters for generations to come. Call us today at (845) 562-5751 or contact us online to start making progress towards your Clean Marina designation.
