should relate awards on the basis of overall 

 consideration; disposal of Federal surplus coastal 

 lands by the General Services Administration 

 should be suspended until public interests are 

 adequately defined. 



Fulfillment of many of these urgent needs can 

 be accomplished by two general means: 



—Use of authority which already exists 

 —Action on pending legislation. 



A. Use of Existing Authority 



Many coastal zone problems have been identi- 

 fied with pollution, eutrophication, and general 

 public loss of shoreline resources. In many cases, 

 control of these abuses can be exercised— or at 

 least further deterioration retarded— by prompt 

 and vigorous enforcement of existing authority 

 and laws. In many cases, the lack of enforcement 

 is principally due to funds' not keeping pace with 

 burgeoning enforcement responsibilities. In other 

 cases, however, it is due to complacency, tangled 

 jurisdictions, and— as several State and Federal 

 officials have remarked— a plain lack of guts. 



Though many laws may be obsolete, ambijuris- 

 dictional, or in need of clarity, they can— for 

 contingent purposes— suffice, based on coopera- 

 tion between both State and Federal Agencies. 

 These include: 



—The Federal Water Pollution Control Act, (33 

 U.S.C. 466 et seq.) as amended, is an important 

 Federal tool in the prevention of water pollution. 

 The Act requires the States to establish enforce- 

 able water quality standards applicable to inter- 

 state waters. These standards must be approved by 

 the Secretary of the Interior, must protect public 

 health and welfare, and enhance water quality. If a 

 State fails to establish acceptable standards, the 

 Secretary of the Interior is empowered to issue 

 such standards. Enforcement of water quality 

 standards is a most effective method of preventing 

 pollution of a continuing nature. However, the 

 time period between notice of a violation and the 

 abatement thereof is unreasonably long in the case 

 of sudden, non-recurring pollution incidents. This 

 situation should be remedied by amending existing 

 legislation and is discussed in greater detail in 

 Chapter 4. 



—The Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act (43 

 U.S.C. 1331-1343) authorizes the Secretary of the 

 Interior to require the prevention of pollution in 

 offshore oil or mining operations. In the imple- 

 mentation of this Act, a requirement for com- 

 pliance with antipollution regulations could be 

 made a condition of any lease, revocable upon 

 failure to comply. Further, this act specifically 

 authorizes the President to withdraw from disposi- 

 tion any of the unleased lands. Under the terms of 

 this authorization a system of fishery preserves, 

 mineral reservations, sanctuaries, and recreation 

 areas could be established. Safety provisions of 

 this same act, administered by the U.S. Coast 

 Guard, are indirectly a pollution prevention tool. 

 Navigational safety regulations to prevent colli- 

 sions also prevent pollution. 



-Rivers and Harbors Act of 1899 (33 U.S.C. 407), 

 administered by the Corps of Engineers, requires 

 that plans for all wharves, piers, dolphins, booms, 

 weirs, break-waters, bulkheads, Jetties, or other 

 structures, and excavations or fills in navigable 

 waters must be approved under a permit system. 

 Although all tiaelands and marshes may not come 

 under the provisions of this Act, it allows strong 

 regulatory action over modifications to coastal 

 waters, especially dredging and filling. Constant 

 enforcement is required. 



-The Refuse Act of 1899 (33 U.S.C. 407), 

 administered by the Corps of Engineers, applies to 

 both vessels and shore-based facilities with respect 

 to almost every discharge to a navigable water 

 except that flowing from streets and sewers. A 

 1965 judicial ruling construed the act to include 

 the discharge of oil products as well as solid 

 wastes. 



-The Oil Pollution Act, 1924, (33 U.S.C. 431 et 

 seq.) makes unlawful, with some exceptions, the 

 grossly negligent or willful discharge of oil from a 

 vessel into the navigable waters and adjoining 

 shorelines of the United States. The prohibition 

 applies to foreign and domestic vessels within our 

 territorial sea and navigable inland waters. The act 

 establishes both civil and criminal sanctions for 

 violations. The exceptions are emergencies im- 

 periling life and property; unavoidable accidents, 

 collisions, or strandings; and those cases where 

 discharges are permitted by regulation. Enforce- 

 ment of this act is vested in the Federal Water 



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