619 



-16- 



E. State Activities 

 On 1 September 1983, California's Governor George Deuktnejian 

 signed into law State Assembly Bill 138, sponsored by State 

 Assemblyman Dan Hauser and State Senator Barry Keane. That state 

 law directs the California Coastal Commission (CCC) , in coopera- 

 tion with other state agencies, to use all available legal means 

 to prevent dumping of radioactive wastes in the Pacific Ocean 

 unless the CCC finds that the dumping would be consistent with 

 that state's federally approved coastal management program. 

 Several members of the environmental coalition supported and 

 actively worked for the enactment of this state law. The law 

 reflects the concern of the state officials and citizens with the 

 risks of ocean disposal of radioactive wastes, stating that "the 

 legislature finds and declares that the dumping of radioactive 

 waste, including the scuttling of radioactive submarines, could 

 adversely affect the California coastal zone." The "consistency" 

 requirements of the Coastal Zone Management Act are a component 

 of 28 federally approved coastal programs, offering states one 

 important mechanism to ensure that proposed federal activities do 

 not harm their marine and coastal resources. This requirement is 

 similarly highlighted at the federal level through the recent 

 Ocean Dumping Amendments (Sec. 104 (i) (1) (F) ) . 

 II. International Activities 



Coinciding with domestic efforts leading to the enactment of 

 the Ocean Dumping Act, the United States was a leading force 

 behind the adoption of the 1972 Inte-rnational Convention on the 

 Prevention of Marine Pollution by Dumping of Waste and Other 

 Matter ("London Dumping Convention"). To date, that Convention 



