304 



port by bold face black type cautions against any easy 

 overconfidence and charges the Corps with ever-in- 

 creasing vigilance. 



28 



When the House Report and the National Environ- 

 mental PoHcy Act of 1969 are considered together with 

 the Fish and Wildlife Coordination Act and its inter- 



efforts of land developers to fill in a major part of 

 Boca Ciega Bay, near St. Petersburg, Fla. See Zahel 

 V. Tabh, 296 F. Supp. 764 (D.C. M.D. Fla., Tampa Div., 

 Feb. 17, 1969), now on appeal to the U.S. Court of Ap- 

 peals, Fifth Circuit, No. 27555. 



The committee commends the Corps for x'ccognizing 

 its broader responsibilities to protect against im- 

 necessary fills , and other alteration of water bod- 

 ies. ♦ * ♦" 

 H. Rep. No. 91-917, p. 5. 

 ZB "The Corps of Engineers should instruct its district 



engineers and other personnel involved in considering 

 applications for fills, dredging, or other work in estu- 

 aries, rivers, and other bodies of navigable water to 

 increase their emphasis on how the work will affect 

 all aspects of the public interest, including not only 

 navigation but also conser\'ation of natural resources, 

 fish and wildlife, air and water quality, esthetics, 

 scenic view, historic sites, ecology, and other public 

 interest aspects of the waterway." 

 H. Rep. No. 91-917. 



As the Committee views it, not only should the Corps con- 

 sider conservation, but it should consider conservation to be 

 endangered by every dredge and fill project and place the 

 burden of proving otJierwise on tlie applicant. Sec, e.g., the 

 conclusion of tlic first section of the Report and its bold face 

 type recommendation: 



"The Corps of Engineers should permit no further 

 landfills or other work in the Nation's estuaries, rivers 

 and other watei-ways except in those cases where the 

 applicant affirmatively proves that the proposed work 

 is in accord with the public interest, including the 

 need to avoid the piecemeal destruction of these water 

 areas." 

 H. Rep. No. 91-917, p. 6. 



