246 
Mr. Dincetu. Without objection, the documents referred to will 
appear in the record. 
Mr. Harrineton. I would also like to have you listen this afternoon 
to Dr. John M. Hunt, who is presently the Chairman of the Depart- 
ment of Chemistry at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute, and 
who is here to testify on behalf of my bill. Dr. Hunt will explain in 
greater detail the problems associated with dumping in the ocean and 
the Continental Shelf area. 
Prior to coming to Woods Hole in 1964, Dr. Hunt for many years 
had worked in Oklahoma for an operating affiliate of Standard Oil of 
New Jersey. He brings, I think, a wealth of background in this field, 
and I hope that the committee will find him of interest as a witness in 
behalf of the bill before you cn this general subject area. 
Mr. Dinexett. Doctor, we are happy to have you with us. Will you 
give your full name and address to the reporter for the purpose of the 
record and we will be most happy to hear your statement. | 
STATEMENT OF DR. JOHN M. HUNT, CHAIRMAN OF THE DEPART- 
MENT OF CHEMISTRY, WOODS HOLE OCEANOGRAPHIC INSTITU- 
TION 
Dr. Hunt. Mr. Chairman, I appreciate this opportunity to present 
some research data from the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution 
in support of Mr. Harrington’s bill. 
The problem of waste disposal in the ocean is exceedingly complex. 
There are several points which I would like to emphasize in my state- 
ment as having an important bearing on the way in which your final 
bill is formulated. These are as follows— 
(1) Hazardous chemicals in increasing amounts are finding their 
way into the coastal waters of the United States and the open ocean 
through polluted river outfalls and from untreated sewage and direct 
dumping on the Continental Shelf. For example, the quantity of 
mercury in phytoplankton off the northeast coast of the United States 
is reaching levels which not only can disturb the ecology but also rep- 
resent a potentially serious health hazard as mercury begins to spread 
through the marine food chain. All dumping of the most hazardous 
chemicals should be banned now rather than wait for future action 
after a period of investigation and study. 
(2) There are many chemicals and other waste materials of rela- 
tively low hazard which may be dumped at sea without constituting 
a hazard to the marine food chain. It should be recognized, however, 
that anything dumped at sea will affect the ecology to some extent 
and, therefore, thorcugh studies and continuous surveillance of po- 
tential dumping sites are needed to minimize stress on the environ- 
ment. Also, the choice of dumping sites should carefully consider the 
effect of sea bottom currents in transporting the more soluble compo- 
nents of wastes long distances from the point of dumping. 
