477 



provisions of the act and regulations issued thereunder by the 

 Environmental Protection Agency. 



I would refer you to page 11, to subsection 7(c) (2), in suggesting 

 that you give particular attention to line 15 of page 11, down through 

 line 22. The language to which I refer is as follows : That after the 

 effective date of this Act^ — 



No Federal license or permit shall be issued under the authority of the Rivers 

 and Harbors Act of 1899 to conduct any activity otherwise regulated by section 

 4 of this Act, and regulations issued thereunder, unless the Administrator has 

 certified that the activity proposed to be conducted is in conformity with the 

 provisions of this Act, and with regulations issued hereunder. 



Now Mr. Ruckelshaus this morning testified that that language in- 

 dicated that the Corps would continue to issue regulations for dredg- 

 ing, filling, and dumping, as they have in the past, in conformity with 

 the statutes that you have cited in your statement. And that those 

 actions would be simply done in conformity with regulations and so 

 forth, and subject to certification by the Environmental Protection 

 Agency. I think this may change somewhat the understanding that 

 the port authorities have with regard to the impact of this particular 

 legislation. Am I correct ? 



Mr. Douglas. Yes. I would say that you are correct. We were con- 

 cerned at the prospect of the permit issuance procedure being trans- 

 ferred from the Corps of Engineers to the EPA, because we felt 



Mr. DiNGELL. Excuse me, Mr. Douglas. This is a new problem that 

 we have here. I apologize to you. The Chair notes that we have at this 

 moment a teller vote with clerks on the floor of the House, which 

 gives us exactly 12 minutes to get over there and cast our vote on a 

 very important question, and for that reason, with due apologies to 

 you, I must recess the committee briefly. We should be back within the 

 next 15 minutes. 



Mr. Douglas. Certainly, sir. 



Mr. DiNGELL, If there is no further business at this time, the sub- 

 com.mittee will stand in recess for a period of approximately 15 

 minutes. 



(Brief recess.) 



Mr. DiNGELL. The subcom.mittee will come to order. 



At the time when the subcommittee was constrained to recess, we 

 were hearing from Mr. Henry Douglas, Chief of Planning of the 

 Maryland Port Authority. 



Mr. Douglas, I am sure you recall my question. Perhaps you would 

 want to comment on the point raised. 



Mr. Douglas. Yes. Mr. Chairman. I haA^e liad an opportunity now 

 to consider the implications of the paragraph you referred me to. And 

 frankly, sir, as I understand it, with all due respect to Mr. Ruckel- 

 shaus, whose possible iiiterpretation is to the contrary. I would read 

 this as meaning that although the Corps of Engineers would issue 

 the permit, it would liave to obtain certification from the EPA that 

 it Avns in order so to do. So that for all practical purposes, we would 

 have imposed an additional laver of regulatory procedure on top of 

 that alreadv existing. And in all candor, this is one of the things that 

 we are concerned about, the addition of additional layers of permanent 

 processing procedure, which in this particular instance with which we 

 are concerning ourselves, we think is suoerfluous. 



