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 Over the past two years, the Agency, through its sediment management 

 strategy has been working to define the specifics of SQC implementation in various 

 Agency programs, including remediation, point source controls, and dredged material 

 disposal. Before determining precisely how sediment quality criteria will be integrated 

 into the ocean dumping regulatory regime, the Agency will provide an opportunity for 

 public comment on the options being considered. EPA also is conducting an economic 

 analysis to estimate what potential economic impacts use of SQC might have on 

 dredged material disposal, and a final report is expected this summer. Using the 5 

 draft criteria and 10 interim criteria, a preliminary analysis suggests that the vast 

 majority of dredged material will not exceed these sediment criteria. This is because 

 most dredged material comes from operation and maintenance dredging (clean 

 material being carried by currents into the harbors and canals) and only a small 

 amount of dredged material comes from locations near urban and industrialized 

 centers that have not been regularly dredged and that consequently may contain an 

 accumulation of contaminated sediments. 



Contaminated Sediment Task Force. Survey, Monitoring Program 



I now would like to briefly describe EPA's current activities and future plans to 

 implement Title V of the Water Resources Development Act (WRDA) of 1992 . 

 Among other things. Title V of WRDA of 1992 directs EPA, in consultation with the 

 National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and the Corps, to conduct 

 a comprehensive national survey of all existing information on the quantity, physical 



