828 



Charles Caccia, Can- 



meets with Ruckel- 

 shaus fo discuss the 



and agreements on 

 the Great Lakes and 

 hazardous 



should operate overseas in concert with the State De- 

 partment and adhere to stated principles of U.S. for- 

 eign policy. 



None of these goals will be — or can be — totally 

 achieved. But they provide a kind oi north star by 

 which the agency's potential for freewheeling abroad 

 can be kept on course. They encourage EPA to be alert 

 for "bargain- rate" learning experiences. For example, 

 when other countries or organizations stage profes- 

 sional meetings on something like acid rain, EPA can 

 piggyback the efforts of others and avoid duplication, 

 or enlist others in bilateral research or consultations 

 on common targets. Or EPA can join with multilater- 

 al groups like the European Community, the Organi- 

 zation for Economic Cooperation and Development, 

 or even the UN. Environment Program to harmonize 

 the setting of standards on pollutants, handling ex- 

 ports of hazardous and toxic chemicals, or protecting 

 some sfjecific vital organ of the environment such as 

 the oceans or ozone layer. 



With EPA so busy overseas, it should keep in mind 

 the third goal of the agency's international program: 

 that all activities be consistent with U.S. foreign poli- 

 cy. EPA hopes to avoid misunderstandings and work- 

 ing at cross-purposes. Cooperating with State, rather 

 than contesting it. earns EPA a place at the policy- 

 making table whenever ecological subjects are dis- 

 cussed. As Russell E. Train, a former chairman of the 

 Council on Environmental Quality and adn 

 of EPA, once quipped, the environment is too 

 be left solely in the !ap of the State Departn 



STATE ALSO HAS A STAKE in fostering collabora- 

 tion. Without It, the department would be 

 hard put to safeguard both its own position and 

 the coherence of U.S. foreign policy. U.S. dip- 

 lomats must watch over the sometimes untutored en- 

 voys representing scientific and technical agencies to 

 avoid upsetting vital relationships with foreign citi- 

 zens and governments. State must study and guide 

 the domestic agencies so they can be kept in sync with 

 the dictates offoreign policy. To repeat, State must be 

 able to enlist their support and participation on those 

 matters when their technical expertise is needed. 



It IS one thing to set cooperation as a goal, and 

 quite another to achieve it. This is particularly so 

 since the lines of authority between the agencies are 

 often rather murky. State is pre-eminent abroad, but 

 at home it lacks the clout to order other agencies to do 

 its bidding. It can only request help and hope for a 

 positive answer. Usually this is forthcoming — after 

 all. State is the senior department of the cabinet. 

 Fufthermore, proximity to diplomats carries a certain 

 panache for stay-at-home bureaucrats, and State De- 

 partment officials do tend to phrase their calls for 

 assistance with a certain finesse. 



One road block has been removed: in the past there 

 were several special assistants to the secretary of state 

 with tesponsibility fot a variety of scientific and natu- 

 ral resource programs. Not only was this cumber- 

 some, but the special assistants complained that theit 

 very numbers reduced their access to and influence 

 with the secretary. Senatot Claiborne Pell (D. -Rhode 

 Island), a former Foreign Service officer, crafted a 



cretary for 



remedy which abolished the special assistant slots. In 

 1973, he drafted and saw passed a bill creating the 

 Bureau of Oceans and International Environmental 

 and Scientific Affairs (OES), The assistant secretary 

 for OES could thus speak for numerous constituen- 

 cies — like population, health, polar affairs, fisheries. 

 natural resources, and nuclear technology. He or she 

 could even get the ear of the secretary when necessary. 

 An assistant secretary also commands more respect 

 from other government agencies, particularly the 



Now, the deputy assistant secretary for the envi- 

 ronment within OES works directly with EPA's Of- 

 fice of International Activities. The State Depart- 

 sometimes unilaterally, but clearance of EPA tele- 

 gtams and other messages to U.S. embassies must 

 always keep OES in the loop. 



Often State and EPA overlap s 

 required than simply checking p 

 gust a delegation headed by the a 

 OES negotiated a border environment agreement 

 with Mexico. Officials from EPA and the U.S. Coast 

 Guard participated. Since then, EPA has served as 

 national coordinator to implement the agreement. 

 This has meant interaction with the Mexicans to ame- 

 liorate harmful situations such as untreated sewage or 

 air pollution crossing the border. In short. State and 

 EPA were responsible for different aspects of the same 

 project (one for negotiation and one for implementa- 

 tion), and so their close meshing was essential. 



Sometimes collaboration requires cohabitation. A 

 domestic agency may open its own offices in US. 

 embassies. For example, the National Science Foun- 

 dation has staff stationed in the Tokyo embassy, and 

 EPA has detailed a man to the US mission to the 

 OECD in Paris. Even in Washington, understanding 

 between State and EPA has been enhanced by detail- 

 ing personnel back and forth. Despite good humored 

 accusations that these individuals are really moles for 

 their permanent agency, they have been a big plus in 

 teaching each agency about the priorities and proce- 

 dures of the other. The practice should continue. 



Overall the system functions amazingly well. For 

 the most part the domestic agencies have satisfied 

 theit need to commingle with their opposite -number 

 experts and organizations abroad, and State has main- 

 tained control over international policy. As in any 

 human endeavor, however, a successful partnership 

 between State and EPA (or any other domestic agen- 

 cy) depends on the people involved. Where there is 

 patience, candor, and mutual trust the machinery 

 runs smoothly. When one or more of these elements is 

 missing, mischief can occur and US. interests suffer. 

 The day-to-day routine between State and other agen- 

 cies IS not simple. The general modus operandi has 

 developed well, with few glitches, but there are al- 

 ways threats to the necessary cooperative spitit. 



I HE POSSIBILITIES ARE INFINITE Think of 

 some specific chicanery and it might actual- 

 ly happen. In fact it may already have hap- 

 pened: A joint State-EPA delegation visits a 



ountry. They draft a speech and wire it co 

 Foreign Service Journal 



