44.674/7:002 OCEAN DUMPING OF RADIOACTIVE WASTE OFF THE PACIFIC COAST HEARING BEFORE A SUBCOMMITTEE OF THE COMMITTEE ON ) GOVERNMENT OPERATIONS HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES NINETY-SIXTH CONGRESS SECOND SESSION OCTOBER 7, 1980 Printed for the use of the Committee on Government Operations COMMITTEE ON GOVERNMENT OPERATIONS JACK BROOKS, Texas, Chairman L. H. FOUNTAIN, North Carolina WILLIAM S. MOORHEAD, Pennsylvania JOHN CONYERS, JR., Michigan HENRY A. WAXMAN, California PETER H. KOSTMAYER, Pennsylvania MIKE SYNAR, Oklahoma ROBERT T. MATSUI, California FRANK HORTON, New York Cohen, Jerry, northern California section, American Nuclear Society; 157 Cunningham, Richard, Director, Division of Fuel Cycle and Material Davis, W. Jackson, Ph. D., professor of biology and environmental studies, Golich, Conrad F., private consultant Hawkins, David, Assistant Administrator, Office of Air, Noise, and Radi- ation, Environmental Protection Agency; accompanied by Roger Matt- son, Director, Surveillance and Emergency Preparedness Division; and Robert Dyer, senior staff oceanographer Herz, Dr. Michael, Oceanic Society and chairman of the Ad Hoc Scientific Committee on Oceanic Dumping of Radioactive Wastes; accompanied Hirsch, Daniel, Committee To Bridge the Gap....... Kopp, Quentin, San Francisco; accompanied by Gary Patton, Santa Cruz Moffett, Hon. Toby, a Representative in Congress from the State of Con- Myers, Beverlee, director, California State Department of Health Serv- ices; accompanied by Dr. Donald O. Lyman, deputy director, public and environmental health division; Joseph O. Ward, chief, radiologic health section; Kenneth Fess, health physicist; and John M. Heslep, chief, laboratory services branch..... Panetta, Hon. Leon E., a Representative in Congress from the State of 194 114 1 Risebrough, Robert W., the U.S. Mussel Watch Committee. 285 285 Letters, statements, etc., submitted for the record-by- Barlow, Glenn, Friends of the Earth: Prepared statement. 328-332 Beilenson, Anthony C., a Representative in Congress from the State of 153-154 Cohen, Jerry, northern California section, American Nuclear Society: .161-180 Davis, W. Jackson, Ph. D., professor of biology and environmental studies, and chairperson, psychobiology, University of California at Santa Cruz: Dyer, Robert, senior staff oceanographer, Office of Radiation Programs, Golich, Conrad F., private consultant: Prepared statement Hawkins, David, Assistant Administrator, Office of Air, Noise, and Radi- Letters, statements, etc., submitted for the record by-Continued Herz, Dr. Michael, Oceanic Society and chairman of the Ad Hoc Scientific Hirsch, Daniel, Committee To Bridge the Gap: Prepared statement.. Page 98-105 ...296-315 Article entitled "Navy Considers Scuttling Old Nuclear Subs"........... 271-272 .265-268 Resolution requesting the EPA to release its report concerning the 263 155-156 Moffett, Hon. Toby, a Representative in Congress from the State of Connecticut, and chairman, Environment, Energy, and Natural Resources Subcommittee: October 1, 1980, letter from NRC Chairman Ahearne concerning 37-54 U.S. Department of Energy statement for the record.. 260 Myers, Beverlee, director, California State Department of Health Services: Prepared statement. 190-193 Panetta, Hon. Leon E., a Representative in Congress from the State of Prepared statement. 12-16 Resolution adopted by the board of supervisors in and for the county 150-152 Patton, Gary, Santa Cruz County: Prepared statement. .277-283 Risebrough, Robert W., the U.S. Mussel Watch Committee: Prepared statement 287-295 Ross, Dr. Hal, Project Tektite: Prepared statement. 316-318 APPENDIX Additional statements submitted for the record... 369 OCEAN DUMPING OF RADIOACTIVE WASTE OFF THE PACIFIC COAST TUESDAY, OCTOBER 7, 1980 HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, AND NATURAL RESOURCES SUBCOMMITTEE OF THE COMMITTEE ON GOVERNMENT OPERATIONS, San Francisco, Calif. The subcommittee_met, pursuant to notice, at 9 a.m., at 450 Golden Avenue, San Francisco, Calif., Hon. Toby Moffett (chairman of the subcommittee) presiding. Jr. Present: Representatives Toby Moffett and Paul N. McCloskey, Also present: Representatives John L. Burton, Phillip Burton, and Leon E. Panetta. Staff present: Barry Hager, senior counsel, and Catherine Sands, minority professional staff, Committee on Government Operations. OPENING STATEMENT OF CHAIRMAN MOFFETT Mr. MOFFETT. The subcommittee will come to order, please. In recent weeks, considerable public alarm has been sparked by new information and analysis regarding the past dumping of radioactive wastes into the ocean. The public concern was fueled for some time by the tardiness of the Federal Environmental Protection Agency in releasing important analyses of dump sites, notably those relating to the Farallon Islands site less than 50 miles from this room. The Subcommittee on Environment, Energy and Natural Resources, in cooperation with Representatives John Burton and Leon Panetta, responded in August by requesting that EPA produce to the subcommittee those reports as well as fresh analysis of the health implications of the past dumping. We also jointly requested all the relevant data on this problem from the two Federal agencies that are the bureaucratic successors to the old Atomic Energy Commission which supervised the dumping at the Farallons and elsewhere, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission and the Department of Energy. In an important sense, this action was the continuation of the work begun by this subcommittee 4 years ago, under the direction of then Chairman Leo Ryan and of Representative John Burton. In 1976 they held hearings which put a significant amount of important information about the dumping at the Farallons on the public record for the first time. As a result of our recent requests, however, the agencies in the past few days have made available to the subcommittee significant (1) |