ceed trace level requirements, e.g., dumping of sew- 
age sludge by New York City and Philadelphia. The 
criticism is that the Act provides no basis for such 
a permit and that its use does not conform with the 
intent of Congress. Time may make this controversy 
moot since the Final Regulations and Criteria on 
Ocean Dumping, issued by EPA in January 1977, 
state that interim permits will be phased out by 
December 31, 1981. It remains to be seen, however, 
whether New York City and Philadelphia will have 
a viable disposal alternative by that time, or whether 
the interim permit will simply be exchanged for an 
“emergency permit” as was the case with Camden, 
N. J. The Congress might also choose to step in; 
H. R. 4715 would authorize interim permits until 
December 31, 1981. This bill is expected to be con- 
sidered during the second session of the 95th Con- 
gress. 
A second problem involves the effectiveness of 
EPA’s criteria for assessing material to be dumped, 
particularly the bioassay tests. EPA has revised its 
criteria and provided added opportunity for public 
input by way of the EIS process, but accurate and 
relevant knowledge from research, and correspond- 
ing criteria revision, will be the only means of solving 
this problem.°*:°° 
Enforcement continues to be a serious concern. 
The Coast Guard’s objective is to monitor 75 per- 
cent of dumping activities at mixed industrial waste 
sites anc 10 percent of the remaining operations. In 
1977, 72 percent surveillance in the first area and 
22 percent in the second area were achieved. Over- 
all surveillance techniques still concentrate on vali- 
dating permits; examining logs, records, and geo- 
graphic position of the actual dumps; and investi- 
gating failures to notify the Coast Guard in advance 
of departure (411 of the 422 violations in 1976 
were of this last tvpe).*' EPA surveillance includes 
extensive sampling of representative dump loads. 
Among the major problems confronting research 
related to the Dumping Act is the lack of resources 
and coordination. Section 202 of the Act gave 
NOAA the lead responsibility for initiating a com- 
prehensive coordinated research program on long- 
term effects of pollution in the oceans. To date, this 
requirement has not been met, partly because re- 
sources were not available and partly because the 
lead agency mandate and the necessary authority to 
execute were not explicitly stated in the Act; nor, 
until recently, has NOAA aggressively pursued the 
implementation of the intent of Section 202. 
An overall coordinated program has not. been 
structured, and, as a result, data gaps and duplica- 
5° U.S. Congress, op. cit. note 32. 
© U.S. Congress, House, Committee on Merchant Marine and 
Fisheries. Hearings on Ocean Dumping Oversight, Washington, 
D.C., Government Printing Office, 1977. 
"U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, op. cit. note 49. 
tion of effort remain obvious 5 years after enactment 
of the Dumping Act. Research continues to be in- 
cohesive and without coordinated national planning. 
NOAA carries out some research on long-term ef- 
fects of modifications to ocean ecosystems; however, 
this research is funded under various laws for pro- 
grams predating MPRSA. As a result, no integrated 
program within NOAA addresses the concerns of 
Section 202. 
Through 1976, the Department of Commerce 
budget requests did not include Section 202 funding. 
In 1978, the Department made a minimal request, 
but no funds were appropriated. Fiscal year 1979 
budget requests again include funding for Section 
202 implementation. 
NOAA is currently preparing a Program Develop- 
ment Plan to be completed in 1978 for implementa- 
tion of Section 202. The plan will propose a manage- 
ment framework within which Federal research can 
be actively coordinated and oriented toward na- 
tional objectives on long-term effects. The program 
will seek to eliminate duplication of effort and to 
provide information in a problem solving mode. 
Implementation of this plan depends on aggressive 
leadership and the ability to justify the expenditure 
of the needed resources. New legislation, S. 1617, 
the Ocean Pollution Research and Monitoring Pro- 
gram Act, would provide for a coordinated program. 
It has now become law. 
Similar problems exist in Section 201 responsibil- 
ities. A Program Development Plan for implementa- 
tion of Section 201 was completed in August 1976.% 
It integrated all NOAA programs related to ocean 
dumping efforts, specifying coordination of NOAA 
efforts as a key element of an effective program. 
Owing to lack of resources, the plan has not been 
implemented as proposed. Instead, efforts have been 
concentrated on fulfilling NOAA’s responsibilities 
under the EPA/NOAA interagency agreement. 
In fiscal years 1974 and 1975, Section 201 funds 
were not requested by either NOAA or the Depart- 
ment of Commerce. In fiscal year 1976, NOAA’s re- 
quested funds were cut by the Department—funding 
was not requested by the Administration, and none 
was appropriated. Finally, funds were appropriated 
in 1977 and 1978. 
Funds to implement Section 203 were requested 
by NOAA, but deleted by the Department of Com- 
merce. In recent years, EPA and the Corps of En- 
gineers have carried out research on alternatives 
that has been responsive to requirements of the 
Dumping Act. At the present time, Congress is 
considering the transfer of Section 203’s authority 
from NOAA to EPA as proposed in H.R. 4715. 
CAO LS, Department of Commerce, NOAA. Program Develop- 
ment Plan for Ocean Dumpsite Research and Monitoring Pro- 
gram, 1976. 
VI-16 
