342 



Although the materials dumped in the ocean were considered to 

 be low-level waste, they were not harmless and were given special 

 attention in their handling and transport. However, since these 

 materials were of little or no value, good records of their quantities 

 and isotopic composition were not maintained. Additionally, there 

 is some uncertainty about the location of some dumpsites because 

 of navigation inaccuracies. 



Between 1946 and 1970 the United States dumped approximately 

 89,500 containers with an estimated radioactivity content of 94,600 

 curies. Our review of available documents indicates that four 

 dumpsites, out of a total of more than 37 reported dumpsite areas, 

 received between 95 and 98 percent of all the radioactivity dumped. 

 Three of these sites are in the Atlantic: One is in Massachusetts 

 Bay, another one is about 120 miles off the Maryland-Delaware 

 coast, and another site is about 200 miles off the Maryland-Dela- 

 ware coast. The fourth dumpsite area that received large quantities 

 of radioactivity is near the Farallon Islands at a distance of more 

 than 40 miles offshore from San Francisco, Calif. It now appears 

 that this large Pacific dumpsite is an area in excess of 500 square 

 miles and it contains several reported radioactive waste disposal 

 locations. Further details concerning the dumpsites and other in- 

 formation on ocean dumping of low-level radioactive wastes are 

 provided in the factsheet I have appended to this testimony. It is 

 an updated version of a factsheet we previously have made availa- 

 ble. 



UNITED STATES AND INTERNATIONAL CONTROLS 



I would like to talk a little about the controls or laws that govern 

 ocean disposal. 



Prior to 1970, the ocean disposal of radioactive material was 

 under the control of the AEC. In 1970, the Council on Environmen- 

 tal Quality (CEQ) issued a report to the President calling for a 

 national policy on ocean dumping. It recommended a continuing 

 prohibition on the dumping of high-level radioactive waste in the 

 ocean. It further stated that "dumping other radioactive materials 

 in the ocean would be prohibited except in a very few cases for 

 which no practical alternative offers less risk to man and his 

 environment." This concept has governed the U.S. policy on this 

 matter for the last decade. 



In December 1971 the AEC amended its regulations (10 CFR, 

 part 20.302) to reflect the CEQ proposals regarding sea disposal, 

 and they still read as follows: 



The Commission will not approve any application for a license for disposal of 

 licensed material at sea unless the applicant shows that sea disposal offers less 

 harm to man or the environment than other practical alternative methods of 

 disposal. 



In 1972 Congress passed Public Law 92-532, the Marine Protec- 

 tion, Research, and Sanctuaries Act, commonly called the Ocean 

 Dumping Act. It prohibited the dumping of high-level radioactive 

 waste and radiological warfare agents. The act is administered by 

 the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), and all materials not 

 specifically prohibited from ocean disposal are subject to our 

 permit review authority. Low-level radioactive wastes are one ex- 

 ample of such materials. 



