Monitoring, Research, and Surveillance Plan for the 106-Mile Deepwater Municipal Sludge Dump Site and Environs

摘要

In 1988, Congress passed the Ocean Dumping Ban Act of 1988 (ODBA) to end the practice of ocean dumping of sewage sludge and industrial waste by December 31, 1991. OBDA also required that the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), in cooperation with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and the United States Coast Guard (USCG), design a monitoring program for the 106-Mile Site and the environs that may be impacted by the dumping of sewage sludge. In addition to requiring increased monitoring of the area, the joint Monitoring Plan required by ODBA was to include (1) sampling of an appropriate number of fish and shellfish species and other organisms to assess the effects of environmental conditions on living marine organisms in the areas of interest and (2) use of satellite and other advanced technologies in conducting the program.