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radionuclides and persistent organic pollutants; and 

 • Assessment of contaminated coastal sites in terms of potential risks to regional 

 or local environmental quality, biota and ecosystems, habitats, human and 

 coastal economies. 



More information on this program can be obtained from NOAA as it develops its plans. 

 I expect that NOAA will request funds for their Coastal Arctic Initiative in the next 

 budget cycle. 



The Arctic Environmental Protection Strategy: Many of the concerns expressed 

 about Arctic contaminants are addressed by an international program known as the 

 Arctic Environmental Protection Strategy (AEPS). AEPS is currently divided into five 

 studies: 



The Arctic Monitoring and Assessment Program (AMAP); 

 The Conservation of Arctic Flora and Fauna (CAFF); 

 Preservation of the Arctic Marine Environment (PAME); 

 Emergency Prevention, Preparedness and Response (EPPR); and 

 The Sustainable Development Working Group. 



The United States is a full participant in the AEPS and the lARPC Agencies are 

 responsible for supporting participation in working groups and producing reports on US 

 data and activities. Unfortunately, this program was adopted without a new funding 

 base and the lARPC Agencies are forced to curtail current activities to provide funds for 

 AEPS participation. In these time of budget stringency this task is difficult and 

 international participants and observers have expressed concern to me that US 

 participation in the AEPS system has been weak. 



SCICEX: The Arctic Research Commission has coordinated the signing of a 

 Memorandum of Agreement between the US Navy, the National Science Foundation, 

 the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the Office of Naval Research 

 and the US Geological Survey for a program of annual deployments of a Navy nuclear 

 attack submarine into the Arctic Ocean. This program, known as SCICEX, conducted 

 an ambitious scientific program to study the Arctic Ocean in 1995. Four civilian 

 scientists sailed in the USS Cavalla from Pearl Harbor, through the Bering Straits and 

 into the Arctic Ocean. The scientific program occupied 44 days and covered a track 

 10,800 nautical miles long. The 1996 expedition is under active planning and review 

 now and subsequent expeditions are mapped out until 1999. These studies represent 

 the best way that immediate and wide ranging surveys can be carried out in the Arctic. 

 The mobility and endurance of the nuclear submarine makes it a research platform 

 without peer. The limited availability, the small size of the science party and the 

 limitations on onboard work space are obstacles which the scientific community has 

 worked hard to overcome with the outgoing and thorough cooperation of the Navy and 

 the active and enthusiastic participation of the submarine's officers and crew. This is a 

 unique activity for civilian science in the Arctic and the junction of academic and military 



