[Congressional Bills 103th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 2173 Introduced in House (IH)]

103d CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 2173

  Relating to the procedures and criteria for the issuance of permits 
           authorizing the ocean dumping of dredged material.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                              May 19, 1993

Mr. Menendez (for himself and Mr. Franks of New Jersey) introduced the 
    following bill; which was referred jointly to the Committees on 
   Merchant Marine and Fisheries and Public Works and Transportation

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
  Relating to the procedures and criteria for the issuance of permits 
           authorizing the ocean dumping of dredged material.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Harbor Environmental Dredging and 
Management Act of 1993''.

SEC. 2. DUMPING PERMIT PROGRAM FOR DREDGED MATERIAL.

    (a) General Procedures.--Section 103 of the Marine Protection, 
Research, and Sanctuaries Act of 1973 (33 U.S.C. 1413) is amended by 
redesignating subsections (d) and (e) as subsections (e) and (f), 
respectively, and by inserting after subsection (c) the following:
    ``(d) Procedure.--The following procedure applies concerning action 
by the Secretary with respect to an application for a permit under this 
section:
            ``(1) Notice.--Within 15 days after the date on which the 
        Secretary receives an application for a permit under this 
        section, the Secretary shall cause to be published a notice 
        that contains--
                    ``(A) a description of the project;
                    ``(B) such other information that the Secretary 
                considers appropriate; and
                    ``(C) an invitation for comment on the application 
                and on any other matters of relevance, including the 
                effect of approval of the application on endangered 
                species, if appropriate, from interested Federal 
                agencies, other public agencies, and private persons.
            ``(2) Information to be considered.--In making the 
        determination required by subsection (a) regarding the 
        application, the Secretary shall consider any comment or other 
        information that the Secretary receives from interested 
        agencies and persons during the 30-day period following the 
        date on which the notice under paragraph (1) is published with 
        respect to the application.
            ``(3) Deadline for hearing.--If the Secretary determines 
        that a public hearing should be conducted with respect to the 
        application, the Secretary shall complete the hearing within 30 
        days after the last day of the comment period for the 
        application under paragraph (2).
            ``(4) Information to epa and other interested federal 
        agencies.--Within 15 days after the date on which the Secretary 
        receives all information pertaining to the application, the 
        Secretary shall provide necessary and appropriate information 
        concerning the application to the Administrator and to the 
        heads of all other interested Federal agencies. Within 15 days 
        of receiving such information, the Administrator and the heads 
        of such other agencies shall review the information and request 
        any additional information they deem necessary.
            ``(5) Concurrent evaluation of application.--The Secretary 
        and the Administrator shall concurrently evaluate the 
        application and, as appropriate and to the maximum extent 
        possible, confer on the application in order to complete its 
        consideration at the earliest possible date.
            ``(6) Deadline for determination by secretary.--The 
        Secretary shall make a determination regarding whether or not 
        to issue a permit under this section within 90 days after--
                    ``(A) the last day of the 30-day comment period for 
                the application under paragraph (2); or
                    ``(B) if a public hearing is held with respect to 
                the application, the last day of the public hearing.
            ``(7) Standards.--The Secretary, in determining under 
        subsection (a) whether or not the dumping proposed in the 
        application will result in the unreasonable degradation or 
        endangerment referred to in such subsection, shall--
                    ``(A) apply the applicable criteria and standards 
                as such criteria and standards are in effect on the 
                date of receipt of the application by the Secretary; 
                and
                    ``(B) disregard any change made to any such 
                standard after such date of receipt.
            ``(8) Consideration of effect of failure to dredge.--In 
        addition to applying the criteria referred to in section 102(a) 
        in making the determination required by subsection (a), the 
        Secretary shall also consider the effect that the failure to 
        dredge the material concerned will have on human health and 
        welfare, including economic, esthetic, and recreational values.
            ``(9) Time limits on process.--The Secretary and the 
        Administrator shall make a determination regarding whether to 
        issue a permit under this section within 165 days after the 
        Secretary receives an application for the permit under this 
        section.''.
    (b) Concurrence by Administrator.--Subsection (c) of such section 
is amended--
            (1) by adding at the end of paragraph (1) the following: 
        ``The Secretary shall provide the information requested within 
        15 days after the date of receipt of the request for the 
        information from the Administrator.''; and
            (2) in paragraph (2) by striking ``45'' each place it 
        appears and inserting ``30''.
    (c) Conforming Amendment.--Subsection (f) of such section, as 
redesignated by subsection (a) of this section, is amended by striking 
``and (d)'' and inserting ``, (d), and (e)''.

SEC. 3. DIOXIN CONTAMINATED SEDIMENT DISPOSAL STANDARD.

    Not later than 6 months after the date of the enactment of this 
Act, the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency, in 
consultation with the Secretary of the Army, shall develop a national 
standard for the disposal of sediments contaminated with dioxin. The 
standard shall apply, at a minimum, to determinations required to be 
made under subsection (a) of section 103 of the Marine Protection, 
Research, and Sanctuaries Act of 1973.

SEC. 4. MUD DUMP CONTAINMENT ISLAND.

    (a) Plan.--The Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency 
and the Secretary of the Army shall develop a plan for the construction 
of a containment island as an alternative to the Mud Dump Site, as 
defined in section 412(d) of the Water Resources Development Act of 
1990, for the disposal of contaminated dredged material. The plan shall 
include, at a minimum, the following:
            (1) A recommended location for the island.
            (2) Proposed timetable for construction of the island, 
        including public hearings, permit processes, and environmental 
        impact statements.
            (3) An analysis and estimate of the cost of construction of 
        the island and recommended financing mechanisms for the 
        construction.
            (4) The status of decontamination technologies to be used 
        on the contaminated materials.
    (b) Report.--Not later than 12 months after the date of the 
enactment of this Act, the Administrator and the Secretary shall submit 
to Congress the plan developed under subsection (a), together with 
recommendations for its implementation.

SEC. 5. CONTAINMENT AND CLEAN-UP OF DIOXIN IN PASSAIC RIVER, NEW 
              JERSEY.

    (a) Plan.--The Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency 
and the Secretary of the Army, in consultation with State authorities, 
shall develop a comprehensive plan for the containment, clean-up, and 
prevention of dioxin contamination in the Passaic River basin in the 
vicinity of Newark, New Jersey.
    (b) Minimum Content Requirements.--The plan to be developed under 
this section shall include, at a minimum, the following:
            (1) A comprehensive strategy for monitoring, containing, 
        and preventing the spread of dioxin in the Passaic River basin 
        to Newark Bay.
            (2) A comprehensive strategy for the clean-up of dioxin in 
        the Passaic River basin, including a proposed timetable, 
        estimate of the cost, and financing mechanism for the clean-up.
            (3) A comprehensive strategy for preventing land activities 
        from becoming new sources of dioxin pollution in the Passaic 
        River basin and Newark Bay.
            (4) The status of sediment sources in Newark Bay.
    (c) Report.--Not later than 6 months after the date of the 
enactment of this Act, the Administrator and the Secretary shall submit 
to Congress the comprehensive plan developed under subsection (a), 
together with recommendations for its implementation.

SEC. 6. CONSORTIUM OF DREDGED MATERIALS DISPOSAL PERMITTEES.

    The Secretary of the Army is authorized to approve the 
establishment of a consortium of permittees for the testing, 
permitting, and disposal of dredged materials in an effort to promote 
the cost-effective disposal and environmental management of dredged 
materials.

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