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There is only one pollution; it is water pollution, because every- 
thing ends up in the water anyway, by rain and so on. Our first 
care is to keep that water system as clean as we can. It is vital for 
our life, for the lives of our children and our grandchildren. It is a 
basic truth; there is nothing we can do against it. We can discuss, 
discuss, discuss, but the basic truth is there: without pure water, 
we cannot survive. 
Mr. ForsyTHE. Whether the water is in the oceans or whether it 
is on the land, it is water. 
Captain CousTEAu. Exactly. The ice caps, the snow, the ice, the 
lakes, the rivers, the oceans: it is all the same. 
Mr. ForsyTHE. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. 
Mr. D’Amours. Thank you, Mr. Forsythe. 
The chairman of the full committee, Mr. Jones. 
Mr. JoNEs. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. 
Captain Cousteau, we are certainly delighted to have you here 
this morning. I would like to express our gratitude for your explo- 
rations and inventions that have enabled a worldwide awareness 
and appreciation of the marine environment and its resources. 
I am especially concerned about the proposal to dump nuclear 
waste from subs in the ocean, because the U.S. Navy suggests 
dumping them off Cape Hatteras, a district which I represent. Does 
your society have scientific expertise on this issue? 
Captain CousTEAu. No, sir, we do not, but I am working in 
Monaco with the International Marine Radioactivity Laboratory to 
know as well as we know today what each radionucleii becomes in 
the ocean and what effect they have on the bioconcentration chain, 
yes. There is something that we cannot judge. We are not given the 
information from the Navy about what exactly are the elements 
that are left in the section of the sub that is radioactive. They say 
they have taken the core out, but what is actually the nature of 
the radioactivity left in that section. As long as we do not know, 
how can we judge? My instinct is to say, keep it apart in a dry 
place until we know better. 
Mr. JonEs. Thank you, Captain. 
Thank you, Mr. Chairman. 
Mr. D’Amours. The gentleman from New York, Mr. Carney. 
Mr. Carney. Thank you very much, Mr. Chairman. 
Welcome, Captain Cousteau. From your work in the oceans and 
coastal regions around the world, do you have any data that would 
indicate whether the marine waters under the jurisdiction of the 
United States are in better or worse condition than those of the 
rest of the world? 
Captain CousTEAU. From pollution or from wildlife? 
Mr. Carney. From a pollution standpoint. 
Captain CousTEAu. The more industrialized a country is, I think 
the more the coastal waters have a tendency to be polluted. How- 
ever, as I said, the United States has been the first country to take 
some drastic measures, and it has paid off. There are many, many 
areas where we are amazed to see the vitality of the oceans still. 
For example, we were diving last year on the wreck of the Monitor, 
off Norfolk, Va., and North Carolina, it is a very deep wreck, the 
amount of fish circling the ship is phenomenal. We were very 
agreeably impressed by the vitality of these waters off Virginia. 
