115 



posed "Marine Protection Act of 1971." That proposal would meet the essential 

 objectives of the subject bills by prohibiting the transport from the United States 

 by any person of material to be dumped in the ocean without a permit. 



The Office of Management and Budget advises that from the standpoint 

 of the Administration's program there is no objection to the submission of these 

 reports. 



Sincerely yours, 



David M. Abshire, 

 Assistant Secretary for 

 Congressional Relations. 



Depaktment of State, 

 Washington, B.C., April 21, 1971. 

 Hon. Edward A. Garmatz, 



Chairman, Committee on Merchant Marine and Fisheries, 

 House of Representatives. 



Dear IMr. Chairman : Thank you for your letter of March 9, 1971 requesting 

 the Department of State to comment on H.R. 1383, a bill to amend the Fish and 

 Wildlife Coordination Act to provide additional protection to marine and wild- 

 life ecology by providing for the orderly regulation of dumping in the coastal 

 waters of the United States. 



The Department of State shares the concern regarding the protection of the 

 marine environment to which H.R. 1383 is directed and has no objection to its 

 enactment from a foreign policy viewpoint. However, the Department would 

 prefer a more comprehensive proposal to regulate the dumping of materials in 

 the oceans as contained in the Marine Protection Act of 1971 (H.R. 4247 or H.R. 

 4723). 



The Office of Management and Budget advises that from the standpoint of the 

 Administration's program there is no objection to the submission of this report. 

 Sincerely yours, 



David M. Abshire, 

 Assistant Secretaru for 

 Congressional Relations. 



Department of State, 

 Washington, B.C., April 7, 1971. 

 Hon. Edward A. Garmatz, 



Chairman, Committee on Merchant Marine and Fisheries, House of Representa- 

 tives, Washington, B.C. 

 Dear Mr. Chairman : The Secretary has asked me to reply to your letter of 

 February 26, 1971, enclosing for the Department's comments copies of H.R. 

 4247 and H.R. 4723, bills cited as the "Marine Protection Act of 1971". 



The Department's A^iews on this legislation, which we fully support, are set 

 forth in the prepared statement delivered to your Committee in advance of the 

 hearings today at which the Department's Legal Adviser, John R. Stevenson, is 

 testifying on this general subject. 



The Department recommends favorable action on this legislation which the 

 Office of Management and Budget advises is in accord with the program of the 

 President. 



Sincerely yours, 



David M. Abshire, 

 Assistant Secretary for 

 Congressional Relations. 



(The position paper referred to follows :) 



Annex I. — Position Paper on Ocean Protection 



the need 



The oceans, the common heritage of mankind and essential to his survival, have 

 always been regarded as too vast and productive to be damaged by man. But 

 today we know that existing threats to the health and productivity of the oceans 

 are both real and grave. We can no longer afford the myth that the oceans are 

 an unlimited cornucopia for exploitation by mankind. 



