frequencies 

 groups and 

 many human 

 trialized 



helped to control toxic substances, but 

 spotty enforcement, illegal dumping, and 

 accidental releases have led to major 

 toxic material releases, as well as to 

 chronic releases (Page et al. 1976). 

 The existing laws have not solved the 

 problem, but have merely postponed it. 

 The situation may get worse as the 

 numerous toxic waste disposal sites 

 begin to affect the environment, and 

 chronic long term impacts begin to ac- 

 cumulate. As Stich et al. (1976) have 

 reported: 



There is compelling evidence 

 that points to cancer as an 

 ecological disease. A com- 

 parison of high with low 

 incidences of tumors in dif- 

 ferent geographic regions, 

 along with changes in tumor 

 among immigrant 

 the clustering of 

 tumors in indus- 

 regions in the 

 U.S.A. suggest a strong 

 environmental influence in 

 cancer induction, promotion, 

 or both. Thus, it seems rea- 

 sonable to apply ecological 

 methodology to uncover the 

 environmental component in 

 cancer formation. The eco- 

 logical approach may have the 

 further advantage of being 

 highly relevant to man, since 

 it is economical and manage- 

 able with the presently 

 available manpower. 



A system for carcinogenic monitor- 

 ing in estuaries using biological and 

 chemical indicators has recently been 

 developed (Stich et al. 1976). A number 

 of microbial organisms, plants, and 

 animals have been suggested as resident 

 indicators of water quality. The ideal 

 organism should detect the appearance of 

 a specific group of chemical compounds 

 (i.e., by appearance of tumors), have a 

 fairly uniform distribution over a wide 

 area, survive in contaminated waters, 

 stay within a restricted territory, and 

 be easy to collect in large quantities. 

 Bottom-dwelling flatfish species whose 

 skin tumors can be readily diagnosed and 

 counted are good candidates for test 

 organisms (Stich et al. 1976). 



In one study, the distribution 

 pattern of flatfish with skin tumors was 

 mapped. The prevalence of skin tumors 

 in lemon soles collected in uncontami- 

 nated areas was compared with sole 

 populations inhabiting the shore around 

 the cities of Vancouver, Canada; 

 Bellingham, White Rock, and Everett, 

 Washington. Tumor prevalances went from 

 0.0% to 58.6%, the higher values being 

 found in areas adjacent to the cities 

 (Stich et al. 1976). 



The complementary chemical indi- 

 cator system estimates the amounts of 

 known carcinogens in environmental 

 samples. The chemicals chosen should be 

 representative of a larger group of 

 carcinogenic compounds, detectable in 

 small amounts at a reasonable cost in 

 samples of a size suitable for collec- 

 tion, and reasonably stable in the 

 environment so that transient discharges 

 can be detected. Promising candidates 

 for the establishment of a "carcinogenic 

 index" are polycyclic aromatic hydro- 

 carbons. These should be sampled in 

 water, bottom sediments, and marine 

 organisms, such as shellfish, that are 

 bioaccumulators (Stich et al. 1976). 



The management of toxic substances 

 represents a clear example of how a tax 

 and subsidy approach might be more ef- 

 fective than the existing direct regu- 

 lation approach. If industries were 

 taxed for their toxic substance releases 

 and the tax rate were tied to the cumu- 

 lative potential damages of the release, 

 there would be an incentive to minimize 

 the damage done and the taxing agency 

 would have the funds to rectify any 

 remaining damages. The burden of proof 

 would shift from the regulatory agency 

 (which must now prove a violation of 

 regulations) to industry, which would 

 have to prove a reduction in releases to 

 qualify for a tax cut. The idea is 

 similar to the "Superfund" proposal now 

 in effect. This would give the polluting 

 industries an incentive to reduce their 

 polluting activities. A technology such 

 as waste incineration would be actively 

 pursued by industry, since it might lead 

 to reduced costs by reducing the pollu- 

 tion tax. Currently, any new technology 

 to reduce waste output only increases 



170 



