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and other States with a valuable and much-needed recreation and 
vacation area. 
According to a report prepared by the U.S. Marine Laboratory at 
Sandy Hook, this dumping has already transformed a 20-square-mile 
area at the mouth of New York Harbor into a “dead sea,” and there 
is an alarming drift of the pollutants toward the surrounding beaches. 
The indiscriminate dumping is contaminating sea life throughout 
the area to the point where fish caught in these waters may be unfit 
for human consumption. 
The findings of the Sandy Hook study have since been confirmed 
and reinforced by two additional reports: one prepared by the Marine 
Studies Center of the State University of New York at Stony Brook, 
and another by a group of scientists under the direction of the Smith- 
sonian Institution. 
Mr. Chairman, in view of the graveness of this situation, and the 
potential menace to public beaches, it is imperative that we act now to 
prevent an impending ecological anibateapte: I urge the committee to 
give prompt favorable attention to H.R. 15829. 
Mr. Dineett. Thank you very much for an excellent statement. 
Our next witness is Dr. Jack Pearce, research biologist, Sandy Hook 
Laboratory. Dr. Pearce, the Chair might observe that you have long 
been interested in this matter. The Chair observes that you gave 
testimony when the Subcommittee on Rivers and Harbors of the 
Public Works Committee took testimony in the New York-New Jersey 
area. The Chair observes that you made a number of comments there 
with regard to fish populations, the effects of fish populations from the 
dumping, and other matters regarding the dumping. 
We would appreciate it very much if you would assist this com- 
mittee by making similar comments at this time on these matters. 
STATEMENT OF DR. JACK PEARCE, RESEARCH BIOLOGIST, 
SANDY HOOK MARINE LABORATORY 
Dr. Pearce. I would be glad to. 
The study at Sandy Hook Marine Laboratory commenced in Au- 
gust of 1968, and an interim report was prepared and submitted to the 
corps approximately 6 months ago. Since the publication or the pres- 
entation of this report, we have found a number of interesting devel- 
opments in the New York Bight, one of which Congressman Ottinger 
alluded to this morning. That is, the area affected by the dumping 
seems to be increasing. We do not know actually if the increase is equal 
in every direction. If you draw radii out from the center of the dump- 
ing area, we do not know if, in every case, the dumping will be found 
to be increasing in all directions. However, we have found stations to 
the north, to the northwest, and to the southwest of the dumping area 
which, when we initiated the study, were unpolluted; today these sta- 
_ tions are contaminated. 
It is the feeling of the personnel involved in the study that recent 
contamination may result because the boats which are doing the dump- 
ing are being more accurate. That is, rather than dumping nearer 
