8ouare-feet in the Disposal Area in the spring and 12 in November. The 

 Mud Hole had animals 20/per-one-hundred-square-feet in the spring while 

 only 2 were visible in the 296 square feet covered in November. 



However, the total nvunbers of bottom animals oaught with the dredge 

 Increased during the period (tables 2 and 4). A comparison of the total 

 shows that 2.4 times as many organisms per sample were taken in the 

 second coverage in the Disposal Area and 3.1 times as many in the Mud 

 Hole. These increases were not consistent in the several groups of 

 animals. Worms and amphipods increased in the Disposal Area while 

 clams and sea cucximbers decreased. In the Mud Hole clams and worms 

 increased while the other forms were caught in too few numbers. 



These changes cannot be clearly associated with the commencement of 

 the acid disposal. Obviously they could be seasonal fluctuations or 

 vagaries of sampling. However, the significant fact which applies to 

 the problem of acid disposal is that there was no eradication of the 

 bottom animals directly beneath the area where the acid was dumped for 

 7 months. 



In the Disposal Area and its control, the Mud Hole — and especially 

 in the latter — a ccaaparison of the two photographic surveys (tables 

 1 and 3) shows a marked decrease in marine organisms visible on the bottom. 

 There are approximately 27 animals visible per-lOO-square-feet of aree 

 in the Disposal Area in the first coverage ccsnpared to 12 animals 

 per-lOO-square-feet of area in the second. TWenty animals are visible 

 per-lOO-square-feet area in the first coverage of the Mud Hole, compared 

 to only two animals for the entire 296 square feet covered in the second. 



Similar comparison of tables 2 smd 4 shows both increase and de- 

 crease in sub-surface bottom organisms when considered by species. 

 However, when the number of organisms per sample are compared, it will 

 be seen that there were 2.4 times as many organisms taken in the 

 Disposal Area and 3.1 times as many in the Mud Hole during the second 

 coverage. 



While no definite conclusions regarding change in abundance can be 

 made at this time due to the relative paucity of data, and the confusion 

 of changes which could be caused by either season or acid, it is clear 

 that even directly beneath the area where the dumping of acid solution 

 has been going on for 7 months, there has been no eradication of bottom 

 organisms. Seasonal variation might be the explanation for the fluctu- 

 ation in abundance shown by the above data. Also, it is evident that 

 very extensive studies of this nature will be necessary to deteot if 

 any changes are caused by acid disposal at sea. 



10 



