128 



Mr. Breaux. Can you say if a Member of Congress wanted to get 

 brought up to date on the effects they should not read it? 



Dr. Bolton. No; I would certainly read it. But I am not sure you 

 can take everj^hing in there at face value. You have to use a 

 discretionary mind. 



Mr. Breaux. You should have another study to see if this study 

 is accurate? 



Dr. Bolton. There already has been one. There has been a 

 rather good critique made by one of the Woods Hole scientists. 



Mr. Breaux. What does he say? 



Dr. Bolton. He points out a number of flaws 



Mr. Breaux. Has someone studied his study yet? 



Dr. Bolton. I really do not know. Probably the oil company has 

 studied Dr. Sanders' study, I imagine. 



Mr. Breaux. I would like to incorporate this as part of the 

 record, Mr. Chairman, not to have it printed or anything but just 

 incorporated by reference, since it is such a large volume. It is 

 entitled "Rice University Studies Offshore Ecological Investiga- 

 tion," put together by a research consortium of a number of univer- 

 sities, it was edited by a number of pretty distinguished editors 

 who did not take part in the study, just as a matter of reference to 

 our study. 



Mr. Studds. Who funded it? 



Mr. Breaux. By the universities and I would imagine also by the 

 industry. 



Dr. Bolton. The Offshore Operators Committee and several mud 

 companies funded it. 



Mr. Breaux. I would hope so. It is dealing with their business. It 

 is a study by the universities and I am sure the nasty old oil 

 companies probably had something to do with helping to fund it. I 

 want to make that very clear right now. OK. Are you familiar with 

 what California has done with regard to the question of barging or 

 discharging drilling muds? 



Ms. CoMPTON. Are you saying the oil rigs in California? 



Mr. Breaux. The State of California used to require that drilling 

 muds be barged on shore and disposed of on shore. The California 

 legislature by unanimous vote of both the House and the Senate 

 out there decided that disposing of drilling fluids, muds at sea was 

 a safe method of doing it. But prior to that a California Lands 

 Commission study went into great detail on whether they should or 

 should not make that recommendation. The study indicated that it 

 was better to dispose of it at sea and made some conclusions which 

 would indicate that they could in fact do it without any significant 

 deleterious effects on the environment. Is EPA familiar with what 

 the California Land Commission study said? 



Dr. Bolton. I am somewhat familiar with it. I believe most of 

 their determination was based on something pretty much of a 

 qualitative assessment rather than a stringent quantitative assess- 

 ment. 



Mr. Breaux. Most everything is, is it not? 



Dr. Bolton. No, sir. 



Mr. Breaux. Pardon me? 



Dr. Bolton. It is not. 



Mr. Breaux. It is not? 



