138 



Ms. CoMPTON. I believe they have to be. 



Mr. Studds. They will? 



Ms. CoMPTON. I believe so. 



Mr. Studds. OK. 



Ms. CoMPTON. We have already been meeting with some of the 

 States with regard to coastal zone management compliance. 



Mr. Studds. Your proposed rule for ocean discharge criteria re- 

 quires that an NPDES permit applicant must analyze all alterna- 

 tive methods of reducing or eliminating pollutants. 



I assume that in the case of drill muds, barging offsite is one 

 such possible alternative? 



Ms. CoMPTON. Certainly. 



Mr. Studds. If you reach the determination that you could not 

 justify granting a permit for dumping into the water of these 

 materials, is your statutory responsibility such that all you could 

 do would be to simply deny that permit or could you also require or 

 recommend alternative methods of disposition? 



Ms. Compton. Well, it seems to me that we could put in the 

 permit a limitation that would not allow the discharge of the 

 drilling muds and cuttings and that it would be up to the appli- 

 cant, the discharger, to find a place to take his drilling muds and 

 cuttings. 



Mr. Studds. Now if you, in an OCS area, were to deny permis- 

 sion to discharge the drill muds, does the Department of the Interi- 

 or, to your knowledge, have the statutory authority by virtue of 

 some other statute to ignore your recommendation and somehow 

 proceed in the granting under their permitting process of authority 

 to dump the discharge? 



Ms. Compton. I believe that we have exclusive authority under 

 the Clean Water Act to determine what discharges go into the 

 ocean. 



Mr. Studds. So whether or not Interior agreed with your find- 

 ings, they would be final under the law with respect to these 

 requests? 



Ms. Compton. That is right. 



Mr. Studds. You made reference, heaven help us all, to a new 

 task force for drilling muds and formation waters. Does it actually 

 do research? What is it, who is on it, when was it established, and 

 what is its relation to the famous biological task force on Georges 

 Bank? 



Dr. Bolton. It is chaired by a representative from the Office of 

 Research and Development. 



Mr. Studds. Is that an EPA task force? 



Ms. Compton. It is an internal task force to coordinate the Ocean 

 Programs and Research and Development Offices and other techni- 

 cal offices to make sure we all know what we are doing. 



Mr. Studds. I see. You don't have a task force for intertask force 

 relationships, do you? 



Ms. Compton. I am sure we do. 



Mr. Studds. I am sure you do. I am sure someone thinks they are 

 interfacing. When do you think your regulations on ocean dis- 

 charge will be final? 



Ms. Compton. We are under court order to promulgate those 

 regulations by September 30, 1980. 



