Marine drilling platforms are another example of an application where the question arises of whether an engine is a marine engine (subject to 40 CFR Part 94) or a land-based nonroad diesel engine (subject to 40 CFR 89). Drill ships are clearly marine vessels, so engines installed in drill ships are marine engines. In contrast, permanently anchored drilling platforms would not qualify as marine vessels, so none of the engines associated with one of these facilities would be a marine engine. A third class of drilling equipment is less clear. Semi-submersible drilling rigs are moored to the ocean bottom, but have some propulsion capability. We consider these to be marine vessels, so any engine that is "installed" on such a rig would be a marine engine. As described above, we would consider portable engines on a drilling rig to be land-based nonroad engines, since they are not installed on the vessel.
D. Remanufactured Engines
As described in the proposed rule, we are not setting emission standards for engines originally manufactured before the Tier 2 standards take effect. Section VI describes our ongoing concern with remanufactured engines.
E. Recreational Engines
We continue to believe, as we discussed in the proposal, that it is appropriate to distinguish between commercial and recreational marine engines for the purpose of establishing requirements for engine and vessel manufacturers. This is because the performance characteristics for these two kinds of engines can be substantially different, due to the different characteristics of the vessels on which they are installed. Commercial marine vessels tend to be displacement hull vessels, designed and built for a unique application. Power ratings for engines used on these vessels are analogous to land-based applications, and these engines are warranted for 2,000 to 5,000 hours of use a year. Recreational vessels, on the other hand, tend to be planing vessels, and engines used on these vessels are designed to achieve higher power output with less engine weight. This increase in power reduces the lifetime of the engine; recreational marine engines are therefore warranted for fewer hours of operation than their commercial counterparts.
We will be pursuing emission limits for recreational marine engines in a separate rulemaking. This makes it necessary to clearly define recreational marine engine, so engine manufacturers and users will be able to know which set of standards apply to their engine.
In this final rule, we are finalizing a definition of recreational marine engine as a propulsion engine that is intended by the manufacturer to be installed on a recreational vessel. To ensure that users will not install a recreational engine on a commercial vessel his engine, we are requiring the following label language (in our proposed rulemaking for recreational marine engines, we will also address any changes that would be appropriate or necessary for this label):
THIS ENGINE IS CATEGORIZED AS A RECREATIONAL ENGINE UNDER 40 CFR PART 94, AND IS NOT SUBJECT TO THE EMISSION STANDARDS OF THAT PART. INSTALLATION OF THIS ENGINE IN ANY NONRECREATIONAL VESSEL IS A VIOLATION OF FEDEIAL LAW SUBJECT TO CIVIL PENALTY.
It should be noted that there is no prohibition against installing a certified commercial marine engine on a recreational vessel. In fact, we encourage recreational vessel manufacturers to use certified engines whenever possible due to the beneficial impact on the environment. There is also no prohibition on installing an old marine engine in an old vessel.
We are revising our definition of recreational marine engine, in response to comments, to bring it more in line with the Coast Guard approach contained in 46 U.S.C. 2101. Specifically, we are defining a recreational vessel as a vessel that is intended by the vessel manufacturer to be operated primarily for pleasure or leased, rented or chartered to another for the latter's pleasure. However, we continue to believe that it is necessary to put some boundaries on this definition, since certain vessels that are used for pleasure may have operating characteristics that are, in fact, similar to commercial marine vessels. For example, engines installed on excursion boats should be grouped with commercial marine engines because they are used much more intensely (more hours, higher load) than engines on a similar vessel operated exclusively for one's own pleasure. Therefore, we are drawing on the Coast Guard's definition of passenger vessel to further delineate what will be considered to be a recreational vessel. Specifically, vessels of less than 100 gross tons that carry more than six passengers will not be considered recreational vessels, and vessel of 100 gross tons or more that carry one or more passengers will not be considered recreational vessels. For the purpose of defining a recreational vessel, a passenger will have the same meaning as that in given by 46 U.S.C. 2101(21), which is generally a person that pays to be on the vessel. Finally, a vessel that is used solely for competition will not be considered a recreational vessel.
A vessel will be a considered a recreational vessel if the boat builder intends that the customer will operate the boat consistent with the recreational-vessel definition. Relying on the boat builder's intent is necessary since manufacturers need to establish a vessel's classification before it is sold, whereas the Coast Guard definitions apply at the time of use. The final definition therefore relies on the intent of the boat builder to establish that the vessel will be used consistent with the above criteria. If a boat builder manufactures a vessel for a customer who intends to use the vessel for recreational purposes, we will always consider that a recreational vessel regardless of how the owner (or a subsequent owners) actually uses it. To be able to verify that boat buyers don't abuse this provision, we would need to have some way of verifying the validity of the vessel manufacturer's original intent, for example, with written assurance from the buyer. We are not finalizing such a requirement in this final rule, but intend to address it when we propose emission standards for recreational marine engines.
F. Engine Dressing Exemption
Some companies produce marine engines by marinizing new, land-based engines and modifying them for installation on a marine vessel. This can be done in a way that does not affect emissions. For example, the modifications may consist of adding mounting hardware and a generator or reduction gears for propulsion. It can also involve installing a new marine cooling system that meets original manufacturer specifications and duplicates the cooling characteristics of the land-based engine, but with a different cooling medium (i.e., water). This is similar to the process of buying certified land-based engines to make a generator or other equipment. This simplified approach of producing an engine can be described as dressing an engine for a particular application. Because the modified land-based engines are subsequently used on a marine vessel, however, these modified engines will be considered marine diesel engines, which then fall under the requirements in this final rule.
The final rule exempts engines from the marine certification requirements if the marinizing company meets the following conditions.
