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If permitting standards are applied equally, how would the economic viability and 

 competitiveness of the Ports be affected by increased costs associated with obtaining 

 dredge disposal permits? 



Answer: Perhaps it would be more accurate to say that permitting standards 



should be applied "consistently and fairly", rather than "equally" 

 because, as previously discussed, ocean disposal criteria are necessarily 

 flexible enough to consider the relative environmental impact that 

 disposal activities will have on the relevant environment. Although the 

 EPA and Corps are working to improve the consistency of their 

 permit programs, there is no indication that the current inequities 

 impact directly on the viability or competitiveness of the U.S. public 

 port community. While it is true that U.S. ports are very competitive, 

 the costs of compliance with applicable environmental regulations is 

 just one among many costs of doing business and among many 

 competitiveness issues which impact a port's viability. 



While ports are committed to pay the costs necessary to preserve a 

 healthy environment, it is extremely important that the additional 

 regulatory costs for the clean-up, management or remediation of 

 contaminated sediments in federal navigational channels and harbors 

 caused by years of industrial, agricultural and municipal activities not 

 fall on the port community. 



Questions of the Honorable Curt Weldon 



1. Mr. Lee, in your written testimony you state that as a nation, we are on the verge of 

 a national dredging crisis because we have not been able to dredge our nation's 

 harbors in a timely and cost-effective fashion. You go on to state that it is time to 

 develop a comprehensive, national dredged material management and disposal policy 

 that will break the gridlock. What do you think should be the major components 

 of such a comprehensive strategy? Do you feel that they will address the growing 

 problems facing our nation's harbors? If not, what needs to be done? 



Answer: As a nation we have become hypnotized by regulatory process. Our scientific 



ability to identify potential environmental threats has far outpaced our 

 administrative ability to make decisions. Furthermore, we have passed law 

 after law and adopted regulation after regulation to respond to the public 

 perception of environmental risk (in many cases fanned by the political 

 expediency of the moment - the "hot" environmental issue), while expending 

 little time or money assessing relative environmental risks and determining if 

 we are making progress toward meeting our environmental goals. The result 



