15 



encouraging this nation to become a nation of spies where we spy 

 on each other, but the fact is that public pressure keeps neighbor- 

 hoods clean, and public pressure and public reward for good citi- 

 zenship service will keep the oceans clean. And we think your ex- 

 ample is a good one, and we are trying our best to highlight it. We 

 intend to highlight it even further. Al, thank you so much for your 

 testimony, for your citizen involvement, and, as I said, it is our 

 hope that the Court recognizes your efforts the same way this com- 

 mittee does. Thank you very much. 



Mr. Levett. Thank you. 



Mr. Tauzin. The Chair now recognizes the remaining members 

 of the panel. Al, if you have to at any point leave to catch your 

 flight, you are certainly welcome. We want to welcome first of all 

 Ms. Betsy Schrader, Director of the Marine Debris Information 

 Office, Center for Marine Conservation, for your testimony. Ms. 

 Schrader. 



STATEMENT OF BETSY SCHRADER, DIRECTOR, MARINE DEBRIS 

 INFORMATION OFFICE, CENTER FOR MARINE CONSERVATION 



Ms. Schrader. Good morning, Mr. Tauzin and members of the 

 subcommittee. The Center for Marine Conservation appreciates 

 this opportunity to present testimony on the problem of cruise ship 

 pollution. The Center has been working on marine debris issues 

 since 1985, documenting the harmful effects of plastic debris and 

 campaigning through our beach cleanups and other advocacy for 

 changes in U.S. law to prohibit the disposal of plastics at sea. 



MARPOL Annex V has been in effect for almost five years, and 

 our beach cleanup indicates that there has not been a significant 

 decline in the amount of plastic trash washing onto our beaches. 

 Although the data analysis for the September '92 cleanup is not 

 yet complete, preliminary results show that volunteers in the U.S. 

 found items embossed with the names of at least 15 different cruise 

 lines. 



Cruise line companies often argue that the cruise line debris 

 found on our beaches is insignificant in number. However, a large 

 volume of galley wastes such as vegetable sacks, egg cartons, and 

 meat trays, as well as other operational wastes wash ashore with 

 no identifying marks and, therefore, cannot be traced back to a 

 specific vessel. It is our contention that the labeled items found 

 during beach cleanup such as shampoo bottles and plastic cups are 

 only a small fraction of the total waste that may be attributable to 

 cruise lines. - . . 



As a nonprofit marine conservation organization, many citizens 

 contact CMC when they observe potential danger to the marine en- 

 vironment. In the past several years, we have received an increas- 

 ing number of complaints from cruise line passengers and crew 

 who have described any manner of trash items being tossed over- 

 board including toxic chemicals, plastics, deck furniture, old mat- 

 tresses, paint cans, and gas canisters. These are just some of the 

 letters that we have received. Witnesses who see such events ex- 

 press their outrage that the cruise ships are blatantly disregarding 

 not only the laws regulating dumping but the welfare of the very 

 seas upon which they depend for their livelihood. 



