546 



(b) Retrievable storage. 

 Art. HI, Sec. (1) (b) (2) of the Convention exempts from the scope of 

 "dumping" the "placement of matter for a purpose other than the mere dispo- 

 sal thereof, provided that such placement is not contrary to the aims of 



this Convention." It has been argued that this provision could allow 



23 



for retrievable storage of HLW. 



Retrievable storage could be pursued either as a systematic disposal 

 option or as a test program to determine whether the isolation from the 

 marine environment achieved by sub-seabed disposal would be complete. Reso- 

 lution of the question whether a particular retrievable storage program 

 would or would not be within this exemption to the coverage of the Conven- 

 tion would hinge on the purposes of the program and the actual prospects 

 for retrieval. Any systematic program of storage would probably be con- 

 strued as "contrary to the aims" of the Convention, especially if the 

 prospects for retrieval were dim -- as they would likely be, because of 

 the expense and technical difficulty of retrieval. However, a test program 

 of retrievable storage of actual HLW would appear to fall within the exemp- 

 tion, since such a program would be on a limited scale, retrieval would be 

 a genuine prospect, and the program would not be construed as a subterfuge 

 for ultimate disposal. 



(3) Federal Agency Views 



A number of federal agencies have now issued statements of one sort 

 or another on the legality of sub-seabed disposal under international law. 



Several such statements were triggered by Congressional inquiries, the 



24 



first round stemming from hearings conducted by Rep. Udall m 1976. 



The Department of State concluded at that time on the international issue: 



