Transport and Trade 



plans for resp)onding to pollution emergencies involving oil or hazardous ma- 

 terials with the understanding that he would work closely with the Secre- 

 taries of Transportation and Defense in this effort. In the event of an 

 emergency prior to completion of these plans, the Coast Guard was to 

 assume on-site command responsibility. Also, an ad hoc committee of offi- 

 cials of the Executive Office of the President was established to review the 

 development of the plans. 



In the fall of 1968 the President approved the National Multi-Agency Oil 

 and Hazardous Materials Pollution Contingency Plan which established a 

 pattern for a coordinated response among the Departments of the Interior, 

 Transportation, Defense, and Health, Education, and Welfare, and the 

 Office of Emergency Planning in the event of an oil pollution emergency. 

 It establishes a national reaction team and provides guidelines for the estab- 

 lishment of regional contingency plans and reaction teams. A standing 

 National Inter-Agency Committee will continue to plan the Federal multi- 



Figure Wl\l-2— Grounding of the 12,000 gross ton oil tanker OCEAN EAGLE off 

 San Juan Harbor in March 1968 is one of a series of recent oil pollution incidences 

 emphasizing the importance of intensified research and development and improved 

 regulation and enforcement procedures to reduce the possibilities of damage from 

 massive oil spills. 



119 



