18 CFR 1304.103 – Health, safety, and environmental standards
(a) Wastewater. Floating cabins shall comply with § 1304.2(d) with regard to discharges into navigable waters of the United States. All discharges, sewage, and wastewater, and the pumping, collection, storage, transport, and treatment of sewage and wastewater shall be managed in accordance with all applicable federal, state, and local laws and regulations. If a floating cabin is documented to be in violation of any federal, state, or local discharge or water quality regulation by the respective regulatory agency, TVA is authorized to revoke the permit and require removal of the floating cabin from the Tennessee River System if the violation is not corrected as specified by the regulatory agency in accordance with the agency’s requirements.
(b) Flotation. Floating cabins shall comply with the requirements for flotation devices and material contained in § 1304.400.
(c) Mooring. All floating cabins must be moored in such a manner as to:
(1) Avoid obstruction of or interference with navigation, flood control, public lands, or reservations;
(2) Avoid adverse effects on public lands or reservations;
(3) Prevent the preemption of public waters when moored in permanent locations outside of the approved harbor limits of commercial marinas;
(4) Protect land and land rights owned by the United States alongside and subjacent to TVA reservoirs from trespass and other unlawful and unreasonable uses;
(5) Maintain, protect, and enhance the quality of the human environment;
(6) Ensure visibility of all mooring cables; and
(7) Comply with § 1304.205(c).
(d) Electrical. Floating cabins shall comply with all applicable federal, state, and local laws and regulations regarding electrical wiring and equipment. If a floating cabin is documented to be in violation of any federal, state, or local electrical standard or regulation by the respective regulatory agency, TVA is authorized to revoke the permit and require removal of the floating cabin from the Tennessee River System if the violation is not corrected as specified by the regulatory agency in accordance with the agency’s requirements. Floating cabins shall comply with § 1304.209(c)(2).
(e) Electrical certifications. Floating cabin owners shall provide, in a form acceptable to TVA, certification of compliance with the electrical standards of paragraphs (e)(1) and (2) of this section with their initial permit application, no later than October 1, 2024, and by October 1 of every even-numbered year thereafter. The certification must be signed by a licensed electrical engineer, a state-certified electrical inspector, or a person certified by the International Association of Electrical Inspectors, the International Code Council, or an equivalent organization.
(1) All floating cabins must meet the following minimum requirements for ground fault protection:
(i) The feeder(s) from electrical service on the shore to the floating cabin shall have ground fault protection not exceeding 100 milliamps.
(ii) If the floating cabin has a transformer, the transformer shall have ground fault protection not exceeding 100 milliamps at the first overcurrent protection device on the secondary side of the transformer. The conductors from the transformer enclosure to the overcurrent protection device shall not exceed ten feet and shall be installed in a raceway.
(iii) If the floating cabin is located in a marina and the feeder supplying the floating cabin is part of the marina’s electrical system, the feeder shall have ground fault protection not exceeding 100 milliamps.
(iv) If another source of electrical power is utilized on a floating cabin, such as but not limited to a generator, photovoltaic cell, or wind turbine, the source of electrical power shall have ground fault protection not exceeding 100 milliamps at the first overcurrent protection device for each source. For permanently installed sources, the conductors from the source to the first overcurrent protection device shall not exceed ten feet and shall be installed in a raceway.
(v) The floating cabin owner may determine the devices that are utilized to achieve the ground fault protection requirement provided such devices are labeled and listed from a third-party testing laboratory for the purpose of the installation.
(2) If power is supplied to the floating cabin by an underwater cable, the portable power cable shall, at a minimum, meet the requirements of National Fire Protection Association 70 Article 555.13 (A)(2) and (B)(4) of the 2017 National Electrical Code. For new portable power cables installed after October 12, 2021, the cables shall meet the requirements of the most recent version of the National Electric Code.