120 



environment, the problem is nationwide in scope and needs a com- 

 preliesive national solution. 



The bill amends the Fish and Wildlife Coordination Act to j)rovide 

 additional protection to marine and wildlife ecology by requiring the 

 designation and regulation of certain water and submerged-land areas 

 where the depositing of any waste material will be permitted. The bill 

 established a mechanism for developing effective disposal standards 

 within these areas and provides that all other marine areas will be 

 maintained in a "no dumping" status and preserved and protected as 

 marine sanctuaries. 



The guiding principle is to require the Secretary of Interior or the 

 new Environmental Protection Agency to identify and designate 

 those areas in which certain dumping can be safely accomplished. 

 For example, some quantities of cellar dirt may be safely dumped on 

 the Continental Shelf without damaging the ecology of the marine 

 enviromnent if carefully controlled and regulated. Elsewhere the bot- 

 tom configuration and other factors may permit disposal of certain 

 chemicals or other wastes that are absorbed into the water without 

 causing imbalance. 



There has never been a comprehensive program to determine what 

 kinds can be safely disposed of in which waters. Previously, factors 

 such as effects on navigation and distance from population centers 

 were considered but specific ecological effects were generally ignored. 



My bill tasks the Secretary of Interior — or EPA — with studying 

 the national marine environment with a view to identifying each river, 

 harbor, and coastal area and designating which of these areas can 

 accept certain types of waste disposal. Standards for the types and 

 amount of dumping would follow in cooperation with the States and 

 the vast majority of our marine environment would be maintained 

 as disposal-free marine sanctuaries where wildlife and fish could exist 

 without the threat of foreign introduction of harmful materials. 



The bill includes stiff penalties which I am convinced are justified 

 for dumping in nondesignated areas and for illegal dvunping in desig- 

 nated areas : $10,000 per day, per violation, with each day of violation 

 constituting a separate offense. Two years are permitted for com- 

 pletion of the study and identification and designation of disposal 

 areas, and the Secretary of Interior — or EPA — is required to cooperate 

 with the Secretary of the Army in the execution of the study of poten- 

 tial water and submerged-land areas. 



Following formal designation by Interior — or EPA — all existing 

 licenses will be revoked and suspended and the Army Corps of En- 

 gineers will receive new applications for controlled disposal in des- 

 ignated areas. Enforcement of dumping standards — standards based 

 on the capacity of a specific marine area to absorb wastes harmlessly — 

 shall be undertaken by the Coast Guard. 



The foreging represents an innovative approach to the problem of 

 waste disposal in our harbor, river, and coastal waters, and has appli- 

 cation to evei*y type of waste disposal throughout the Nation. I 

 strongly urge your prompt approval of this approach and hope that 

 we may see House action on this proposal before the close of the cur- 

 rent session. 



So I implore the committee, let us take the first step. I have a great 

 deal of pride of authorship in this legislation but I am perfectly will- 



