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all forms of wastes, including those currently disposed of in the ocean 
(i.e., sewage sludge, dredged materials and acid wastes). The strategy 
must define social, economic, and ecological trade-offs for terrestrial, 
atmospheric, and marine disposal systems, and address all the important 
pollution sources, including sewage sludge. 
These same agencies should develop a strategy with timetables for 
implementation. The regional waste disposal management plan must strive 
for total waste management, including source control. At present, the 
ocean dumping of sewage sludge constitutes only about 1-10% of waste 
loadings in the New York Bight. The remaining 90-99% of waste discharge 
must be controlled if the New York Bight waste management plan is to be 
effective. 
Serious consideration should be given to the implementation of the 
user fee concept in the context of NY Bight ocean dumping. Fees would 
have to be in proportion to the dumped wastes' contribution to overall 
degradation and could be used to implement a regional waste management 
plan. The financial basis for establishing a fee might be the dollars 
saved by being permitted to continue using the 12-Mile site instead of 
the 106-Mile site. 
7. SUMMARY 
The continued use of the existing 12-Mile site is the preferred 
marine waste disposal alternative until a regional waste disposal manage- 
ment strategy can be developed. Scientific investigation has indicated 
that, while sewage sludge has had a measurable effect at’and adjacent to 
the 12-Mile site which is localized, no conclusive evidence shows that 
sludge dumping at this site has resulted in a significant threat to 
public health or danger to local beaches. In decision situations where 
the options are to dump materials at an existing dumpsite or to dump at 
a new location, the preferred option may be to continue to use an existing 
dumpsite, thereby avoiding the despoliation of a new area. If in the 
future, other metropolitan regions on the east coast propose to ocean 
dump sewage sludge at existing or new dumpsites, comprehensive analyses 
