685 



ENCLOSURE 



RESPONSE TO CONGRESSMEN D' AMOURS AND PRITCHARD 

 HOUSE SUBCOMMITTEE ON OCEANOGRAPHY 



Q. Indicate how much (of FY 1984 SOP budget) will be spent on marine research 

 on biology, physical oceanography, etc. 



A. A budget of $7.5 million will continue the biological and physical 

 oceanographic studies at the FY 1983 level of $600,000 dollars, in 

 addition to partial completion of several on-going studies such as field 

 deployment testing of the in situ heat transfer experiment platform, 

 scale testing of waste emplacement concepts, and development of models of 

 radionuclide transport in deep ocean sediments. 



The biological and physical oceanographic activities in FY 1984 will 

 include: 



(1) A continuation of the development of the physical ocean mixing 

 model and the biological food-web model as input into the safety 

 assessment and environmental impact of subseabed disposal. 



(2) Laboratory testing of the deep ocean sediment, microbial 

 activities at high pressure, respiration rates of sub-ecosystems, 

 and radiosensitivities of certain deep ocean organisms to 

 determine the effects of microorganisms on a subseabed disposal 

 system. 



(3) Use of existing data from the literature on known biological 

 systems and ocean circulation to determine sensitivity of the 

 predictive models, as a basis for planning future data 

 acquisition. 



Q. What is the Subseabed Program's long-term research agenda for determining 

 the scientific and environmental feasibility of subseabed disposal? 



A. The long-term research agenda for determining subseabed disposal concept 

 feasibility of subseabed disposal includes acquisition of data by 1990 to 

 assess four major areas: 



(1) Site Assessment : Determining if there are stable sedimentary 

 formations in the deep ocean which can effectively contain 

 radioactive wastes. 



(2) Emplacement Assessment : Determining if there are techniques for 

 emplacement and isolation of the wastes which do not compromise 

 the natural containment potential of the seabed sediments? 



