161 



rubble, and similar wastes, which have been demonstrated to be inert 

 and nontoxic, should be evaluated on a case-by-case basis. Municipal 

 or industrial refuse, such as garbage, should not be dumped into the 

 sea. Finally, ocean dumping of digested or other stabilized sludge 

 should be discontinued as soon as feasible. 



] believe the time to act is now or we may find ourselves in a posi- 

 tion where we cannot change the biochemical reactions which are^ oc- 

 curring in the ocean at this very minute. 



The state of the oceans is rapidly approaching the crisis stage. 

 Tliis bill would provide the means for effective and prudent restraints 

 on ocean dumping within a 12-mile limit from our shores and would 

 be an instrumental step in seeking international cooperation so indis- 

 pensable if we are to save our oceans, and life itself, from death by 

 pollution. 



Passage of legislation of this type is especially important in view of 

 the attitude of foreign countries. For instance, American initiatives 

 for an absolute ban on ocean dumping have been rejected by our NATO 

 allies. 



The United States alone cannot end the killing of our seas, but we 

 can provide the leadership necessary. The spread of dead and dying 

 sections of our oceans must be stopped. 



I hope that the committee will review all testimony and act favor- 

 ably on measures to curb ocean dumping. 



In support of this testimony on H.R. 805, I submit as exhibit A a 

 letter from the person most expert on the oceans of the world — 

 Jacques- Yves Cousteau. 



I feel that his testimony, based on 30 years of exploration, is the 

 best available to alert us to the damages we have done to our oceans 

 and to the dangers we face if we do not act quickly and constructively, 

 I am grateful for his support of H.E. 805 and offer, as exhibit B, 

 biographical information on him that attests to his knowledge and 

 expertise. 



I thank you for the privilege of presenting this testimony and 

 Jacques- Yves Cousteau's letter on behalf of H.R. 805. 



Mr. Lennon. Congressman, we are grateful to you for an excellent 

 statement. If there is no objection, the exhibits you mentioned will 

 appear at this point in the record. 

 5lr. CouGHLiN. Thank you for your time, Mr. Chairman. 

 (The exhibits referred to follow :) 



Exhibit A 



Living Sea Corp., 

 Los Angeles, Calif., April 8, 1971. 

 Congressman Lawrence Coughlin, 

 336 Cannon Office Building, 

 Washington, D.C. 



Dear Congressman Coughlin: It is gratifying to learn of the introduction 

 of 'bill HR-805 to prevent the dumping of pollutants into the oceans. 



For nearly thirty years my companions and I have been studying the waters 

 of our unique planet. Our observations have been made in stations all over the 

 world — in the Mediterranean, the Red Sea, in the northern and sounthern Indian 

 Ocean, the southern Atlantic, the Caribbean and the Pacific — places we have 

 visited not just once, hut often. These observations lead us to an assessmient, 

 true everywhere, that the intensity of life has diminished by more than thirty 

 percent over the past twenty years. Tliis reduction applies to fixed fauna, to vege- 



