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the entities that must dredge in order to do business, public port authorities are left with the 

 job of properly disposing of these dredged materials. We strongly urge you to work with 

 EPA and the Corps to reform the federal regulatory process, to avoid permit delay and to 

 ensure that our nation's harbors can be dredged in a timely and cost effective manner. 



This morning, I have attempted to outline the components which we believe a 

 successful sediments approach would feature, including the critical point that all disposal 

 methods ought to be considered in determining which option poses the least risk to the 

 environment. We believe that these initiatives would form the basis for addressing the 

 scope and extent of our contaminated sediments problems. We look forward to working 

 with the Congress on such a program. 



