504 



CONSERVATION LINCOLN, MASSACHUSETTS 01773 • TEL. 617-259-9500 



EDUCATION 

 RESEARCH 



STATEMENT OF MARSHA ROCKEFELLER, LEGISLATIVE LIAISON, MASS. AUDUBON SOCIETY 



to the 



HOUSE SUBCOMMITTEE ON OCEANOGRAPHY 



concerning the 



Georges Bank Biological Task Force 



June 23, 1983 



The Massachusetts Audubon Society is the oldest and largest state conser- 

 vation organization in the country with 30,000 member households and over 

 13,000 acres of land. The Society has been concerned with leasing for offshore 

 oil and gas exploration In the North Atlantic since the start of planning for 

 the Georges Bank lease sale. We have worked to assure adequate environ- 

 mental safeguards to protect the Georges Bank fishery and other marine 

 resources. 



The Department of Interior's (DOI) creation of the Biological Task 

 Force (BTF) was a positive step toward filling a gap in the OCS leasing process 

 in the North Atlantic. Regulatory authority for OCS activity is shared by 

 the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service 

 and the Minerals Management Service within DOI, and the National Oceanic 

 and Atmospheric Administration within the Department of Commerce consults 

 with DOI on endangered species Issues. The formation of the BTF, composed 

 of representatives of the three departments, created a framework for cooperative 

 efforts to develop stipulations and recommend studies to protect the biological 

 resources of Georges Bank. 



The BTF's accomplishments so far are the development of a study of the 

 trace metal concentrations in the sediments; a study of petroleum hydrocarbons 

 in sediments, clams and flounder; a monitoring program to sample benthlc 

 communities in the Lease Sale 42 area; and an analysis of historical data from 

 the OCS environmental benchmark study. 



