480 



Department of Commerce believes that the approach of H.R. 4723 

 which places the regulatory authority in the Environmental Protec- 

 tion Agency is most appropriate since EPA is an agency which has as 

 its chief purpose the protection of the environment and. which 

 possesses the necessary regulatory capability to develop and carry out 

 a comprehensive ocean dumping policy. 



We see the Department of Commerce as a logical agency to support 

 EPA in the development of appropriate regulations. 



This conforms with the intention of the President expressed in 

 his message of July 9, 1970, where, in speaking of the role of NOAA, 

 he stated : 



I expect it to maintain continuing and close liaison with the new Environmental 

 Protection Agency and the Council on Environmental Quality as part of an effort 

 to insure that environmental questions are dealt with in their totality and that 

 they benefit from the full range of the Government's technical and human 

 resources. 



I see NOAA as playing an important role in support of the Environ- 

 mental Protection Agency especially in the areas of marine research 

 and monitoring. 



NOAA and other organizations in the Department can contribute 

 in the following areas : 



1. Ecological research and determination of the processes con- 

 trolling the dispersion and concentration of pollutants in the marine 

 environment ; 



2. Engineering and economic analysis of alternatives to ocean 

 dumping as presently practiced involving both field and laboratory 

 tests and analysis ; 



3. Development of more reliable and adequate instrumentation as 

 well as precise measurement techniques; and, finally, 



4. Assisting with improved information exchange to shorten the 

 timelag between acquisition of information and application for pol- 

 lution control. 



I would like to discuss the special capabilities of the Department of 

 Commerce as they relate to the ocean-dumping j^roblem. 

 NOAA has already begun research in the following problem areas : 



1. Broad-based ecological research to understand the pathways of 

 wastes in marine ecosystems. 



2. Oceanographic studies of basic physical and chemical processes, 

 with special emphasis on estuaries and coastal areas. 



3. Identification of toxic materials and their lethal, sublethal, and 

 chronic effects on marine life. 



4. Development of effective monitoring systems. 



NOAA's 1972 budget request provides for expansion in these four 

 areas. 



NOAA resources that could be used in ocean dumping research 

 include some 43 research vessels and 25 laboratories. At the present 

 time we are also working on the development of ocean monitoring 

 buoys which would contribute to our understanding of the marine 

 environment and which may provide information useful in dealing 

 with ocean-dumping problems. 



In addition, as part of the Environmental Data Service, NOAA has 

 the National Oceanographic Data Center, and I should also add, for 

 the record, the National Oceanographic Instrumentation Center, 



