Marine Protection, Research, and Sanctuaries Act of 1972

Marine Protection, Research and Sanctuaries Act of 1972 (MPRSA), Ocean Dumping Act is one of several key environmental laws passed by the US Congress in 1972.Marine Protection, Research and Sanctuaries Act of 1972, . Full statute is at 86 Stat. 1052 and 1061. Titles I and II are codified at . Title III (National Marine Sanctuaries Act) is codified at .U.S. Senate. (Full text) The Act has two essential aims: to regulate intentional ocean disposal of materials, and to authorize any related research.Claudia Copeland. Cong. Bill. Washington, D.C.: Congressional Research Service, Library of Congress, 1999. While the MPRSA regulates the ocean dumping of waste and provides for a research program on ocean dumping, it also provides for the designation and regulation of marine sanctuaries referred to as the National Marine Sanctuaries Act.The Office of Health, Safety and Security - Home. Web. 09 Nov. 2011. The act regulates the ocean dumping of all material beyond the territorial limit ( from shore) and prevents or strictly limits dumping material that "would adversely affect human health, welfare, or amenities, or the marine environment, ecological systems, or economic potentialities". The MPRSA authorized the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to regulate ocean dumping of materials including, but not limited to, industrial waste, sewage sludge, biological agents, radioactive agents, NBC (nuclear, biological, and chemical), garbage, chemicals, and biological and laboratory, as well as other wastes, into the territorial waters of the United States through a permit program. The EPA can issue permits for dumping of materials other than dredge spoils if the agency determines, through a full public notice and process, that the discharge will not unreasonably degrade or endanger human health or welfare or the marine environment. The law also has provisions related to creating marine sanctuaries, conducting ocean disposal research and monitoring coastal water quality.

Ocean Dumping Code

+ Table 1. Major U.S. Code Sections of the Marine Protection, Research, and Sanctuaries Act (codified as 33 U.S.C. 1401–1445, 16 U.S.C. 1431-1447f, 33 U.S.C. 2801–2805).Copelan, Claudia. Ocean Dumping Act: A Summary of the Law. Web. May 9, 2012. Section Title Ocean Dumping Act 33 U.S.C 1401 Congressional findings, declaration of policy Sec. 2 1401 Definitions Sec. 3 Title I - Permit Program 1411 Prohibited acts Sec. 101 1412 Environmental Protection Agency permits Sec. 102 1413 Corps of Engineers permits Sec. 103 1414 Permit conditions Sec. 104 1414a Special provisions regarding certain dumping sites Sec. 104A 1414b Ocean dumping of sewage sludge and industrial waste Sec. 104B 1414c Prohibition on disposal of sewage sludge at landfills on Staten Island Sec. 104C 1415 Penalties Sec. 105 1416 Relationship to other laws Sec. 106 1417 Enforcement Sec. 107 1418 Regulations Sec. 108 1419 International cooperation Sec. 109 1420 Authorization of appropriations Sec. 111 1421 Annual report to Congress Sec. 112 Title II - Research Programs 1441 Monitoring and research programs Sec. 201 1442 Research on long-term effects Sec. 202 1443 Research program - ocean dumping and other methods Sec. 203 1444 Annual reports Sec. 204 1445 Authorization of appropriations Sec. 205 Title III - Marine Sanctuaries National Marine Sanctuaries ActTitle IV - Regional Marine Research Programs 16 U.S.C. 1447 Purposes Sec. 401 1447a Definitions Sec. 402 1447b Regional marine research boards Sec. 403 1447c Regional research plans Sec. 404 1447d Research grant program Sec. 405 1447e Report on research program Sec. 406 1447f Authorization of appropriations Sec. 407 Title V - National Coastal Monitoring System 33 U.S.C. 2801 Purposes Sec. 501 2802 Definitions Sec. 502 2803 Comprehensive coastal water quality monitoring program Sec. 503 2804 Report to Congress Sec. 504 2805 Authorization of appropriations Sec. 505

Responsible agencies There are four federal agencies that share responsibilities under the Ocean Dumping Act:

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) U.S. Army Corps of Engineers National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration(NOAA) U.S. Coast Guard

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is the primary agency that is in charge of regulating the disposal of all substances that are disposed in the ocean; this agency also authorize the research and demonstration of activities that have to do with phasing out sewage and industrial waste disposing. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers agency is in charge of dredged spoils. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) is in charge of the research on the changes of the marine environment that are caused by humans. The U.S. Coast Guard is in charge of the surveillance of ocean dumping.

The NOAA National Marine Sanctuary program manages a network of underwater areas that are protected by the US. These special bodies of water, like oceans and lakes, are protected by Congress to keep natural and cultural resources while allowing people to enjoy the waters. The Marine Protection, Research, Sanctuaries Act gives way for a national network of marine sanctuaries that are administered by NOAA. The NOAA was created in 1970 after an oil spill 30 miles of the coast of California released 235,000 gallons of crude oil into the ocean. As time passes and technology advances, the NOAA has added sanctuaries all over the US. Three sites followed from 1992, with Congress designating Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary in Massachusetts and Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary in California.

Title I - Permit Program

Title I of the MPRSA prohibits all ocean dumping, except that allowed by permits issued by the EPA Administrator pursuant to Section 102 of the MPRSA, in any ocean waters under U.S. jurisdiction, by any U.S. vessel, or by any vessel sailing from a U.S. port.Marine Protection, Research, and Sanctuaries Act, United States. Encyclopedia of Earth. Web. 09 Nov. 2011. EPA designates sites for ocean dumping and specifies in each permit where the material is to be disposed.

In 1973, the EPA permitted two interim chemical disposal sites in the Gulf of Mexico, as described in the report, Assessing Potential Ocean Pollutants, published by the National Academy of Sciences (NAS, 1975) https://books.google.com/books/about/Assessing_Potential_Ocean_Pollutants.html?id=eicQOgkswusC. At Site A, uncontained wastes were discharged through a submerged pipe into the turbulent wake of a barge. At Site B, waste materials were placed in barrels before discharge. Chemical wastes discharged at these sites reportedly had various concentrations of chlorinated hydrocarbons, calcium and sodium metals, formaldehyde, cyanide and other metals (i.e. antimony, mercury, arsenic, zinc, manganese, and iron). Seven permits issued by the EPA in 1973 for the period of May 1 to November 1 allowed for the disposal of 84,500 tons of uncontained waste at Site A and 208,500 waste barrels at Site B, of which 55,000 barrels contained chlorinated hydrocarbons. By July 1973, four companies with plants at 7 locations were using Sites A and B (NAS, 1975).

Nearly all of the ocean dumping that takes place today is dredged materials at the hands of the Corps of Engineers and due to the fact that they are the entity primarily responsible for the dredging, they issue permits for ocean dumping of such materials. The dredged materials are sediments removed from the bottom of water bodies, but before they are dumped in the ocean, they must be evaluated to ensure that they are not harmful to human health or to the marine environment.

The basic objective of the permit program is to "prevent or strictly limit the dumping into ocean waters of any material that would adversely affect human health, welfare, or amenities, or the marine environment, ecosystems, or economic potentialities."MPRSA sec. 2(b), . The Secretary of the Army (through the Corps of Engineers) is authorized to issue permits for dredged material disposal, and EPA is authorized to designate appropriate dump sites.

Dumping restrictions were enacted for both U.S. flag vessels and materials transported from a location outside the U.S. With respect to the latter category, dumping was prohibited within the U.S. territorial sea and the U.S. contiguous zone. A specific dumping prohibition was included for radiological, chemical and biological warfare agents, high-level radioactive waste and medical wastes. Restrictions have since been placed on dumping activities in the New York Bight Apex, and sewage sludge dumping at the "106-Mile Site" offshore of New Jersey ended in 1992.U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Washington, DC (1995). "Monitoring, Research, and Surveillance of the 106-Mile Deepwater Municipal Dump Site and Environs. Report to Congress. Document no. EPA-842-R-95-001. p. iii.

In order for anyone to dump on US waters, they must follow certain laws. Public Law 97-424, enacted in 1983, placed a 2-year prohibition on ocean dumping of any low-level radioactive waste. Public Law 100-688 terminated the dumping of sewage sludge and waste from industrial companies (commencing with the 270th day after November 18, 1988) under certain conditions. After December 31, 1991, it was prohibited to dump any type of sewage sludge and industrial waste. This law gives EPA the authority to issue emergency permits for the dumping of industrial waste into ocean waters if an unacceptable human health risk exists and no other alternative is available.

Statutes authorizing appropriations to implement Title I were enacted annually through 1977 and, thereafter, in 1980, 1981, and 1988. The 1988 amendments authorized appropriations of $12 million for Title I for each of Fiscal Years 1989 through 1991.

Title II - Research Programs Title II of the Act authorizes the Secretary of Commerce (through the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)) to coordinate a research and monitoring program with the EPA and the United States Coast Guard. The NOAA conducts general research on ocean resources and is responsible for research on the effects of ocean dumping, pollution, overfishing, and other issues caused by humans that cause changes in the marine ecosystem. The EPA's research is related to the phasing out of ocean disposal activities and its role includes conducting research, surveys, investigations, experiments, training, demonstrations, and studies to aid in their search for dumping alternatives.

This program is designed as a long-term research program to study the "possible long-range effects of pollution, overfishing, and man-induced changes of ocean ecosystems" and to conduct the research required to find dumping alternatives and to consider, in cooperation with other federal agencies, the feasibility of regional management plans for waste disposal in coastal areas. Congressional reports are required annually.

Statutes providing authority for appropriations were enacted in 1972, 1975, 1976, 1977, 1980, 1986 and 1988. Public Law 100-627 authorized appropriations of $13.5 million for Title II for Fiscal Year 1989, and $14.5 million for Fiscal Year 1990.

Title III - Marine Sanctuaries