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C. Recommendations 
Recommendations do not solve problems. They can serve as a 
starting point for planning and organization. for agencies at all 
levels of government; also they can serve as a basis for moving 
ahead with action programs and policies. As a general recommen- 
dation, the Committee urges that the Federal Government establish 
appropriate coordinating and other action programs to accomplish 
the recommendations that follow. 
Some members of the Committee had the opportunity to review 
briefly a draft report "Waste Management’ Concepts for the Coastal 
Zone--requirements for research and investigation" prepared jointly 
under the auspices of the National Academy of Sciences Committee 
on Oceanography and the National Academy of Engineering Committee 
on Ocean Engineering. The report was prepared at the request of 
the Federal Water Quality Administration. This is an excellent 
document; its recommendations on research, monitoring, and data 
Management are more complete than those listed below. Thus, 
another general recommendation is made that when released, the 
above-mentioned report should be carefully reviewed for additional 
and more comprehensive recommendations. 
The recommendations are broken down into broad categories that 
cover most of the problem areas associated with ocean pollution; 
recommendations specifically for New York Bight begin on page 17. 
Policy 
The policy of the Federal Government should be an aggressive 
and total condemnation of ocean pollution from all sources. It 
should provide the necessary guidelines for agencies at all levels 
of government to limit or prevent ocean disposal of all materials 
that would unfavorably alter the marine environment through direct 
or indirect effects of changes in energy patterns; radiation. levels; 
chemical and physical constitution; and distribution, abundance, and 
quality of organisms. The policy should incorporate the following 
specific recommendations: 
1. The dumping of any waste materials which could create 
hazardous conditions, toxic or otherwise, in ocean waters should 
cease. In some specific cases, until suitable alternative methods 
can be put into practice, ocean disposal of certain toxic sub- 
stances may be the least objectionable solution. Where this can be 
demonstrated, disposal methods and sites must be approved by the 
Departments of Health, Education, and Welfare; Interior; State if 
beyond the territorial sea; and other appropriate Federal agencies. 
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