[Congressional Record Volume 153, Number 21 (Monday, February 5, 2007)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E257-E258]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




               MARITIME POLLUTION PREVENTION ACT OF 2007

                                 ______
                                 

                         HON. JAMES L. OBERSTAR

                              of minnesota

                    in the house of representatives

                        Monday, February 5, 2007

  Mr. OBERSTAR. Madam Speaker, I rise today, together with the Chairman 
of the Subcommittee on Coast Guard and Maritime Transportation, Mr. 
Cummings, to introduce the ``Maritime Pollution Prevention Act of 
2007''.
  For many years, the International Maritime Organization, an entity of 
the United Nations, has been developing international standards to 
prevent pollution from ships that ply the world's oceans. The 
international convention they developed is called the International 
Convention for the Prevention of Pollution from Ships, 1973, The United 
States has implemented these environmental laws by enacting and 
amending the Act to Prevent Pollution from Ships (APPS).
  On May 19, 2005, Annex VI of that Convention came into force 
internationally. Annex VI limits the discharge of nitrogen oxides from 
large marine diesel engines, governs the sulfur content of marine 
diesel fuel, prohibits the emission of ozone-depleting substances, 
regulates the emission of volatile organic compounds during the 
transfer of cargoes between tankers and terminals, sets standards for 
shipboard incinerators and fuel oil quality, and establishes 
requirements for platforms and drilling rigs at sea.

[[Page E258]]

  This bill is the necessary implementing legislation for Annex VI of 
that Convention. This legislation will provide the Coast Guard and the 
Environmental Protection Agency the authority that they need to develop 
U.S. standards and enforce these requirements on the thousands of U.S.- 
and foreign-flag vessels that enter the United States each year from 
overseas.
  Everyone here recognizes the challenge that the world faces in 
combating global climate change. We must pursue all avenues in the 
effort to turn around the rising temperatures on this planet. I am 
pleased that the International Maritime Organization stepped up to the 
plate and developed amendments to the International Convention for the 
Prevention of Pollution from Ships to regulate air pollution from 
ships.
  Last year, the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure 
favorably reported H.R. 5811, the MARPOL Annex VI Implementation Act of 
2006. This bill was subsequently added as an amendment to H.R. 5681, 
the Coast Guard Authorization Act of 2006, and passed the House on 
October 28, 2006.
  The bill that Mr. Cummings and I introduce today is very similar to 
H.R. 5811. Pursuant to requests by the Administration, the bill allows 
the Environmental Protection Agency (``EPA'') and the Coast Guard to 
enforce the standards. The Coast Guard acknowledges that the EPA has 
far more experience than it does on air quality emission standards. 
However, it is important for the EPA to develop the standards jointly 
with Coast Guard because of the Coast Guard's expertise regarding 
vessel safety issues.
  I am hopeful that the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure 
will report this bill to the House very quickly and that the House will 
have an opportunity to consider the bill in the coming weeks.
  I would like to take the opportunity to thank our new Chairman of the 
Subcommittee on Coast Guard and Maritime Transportation, Mr. Cummings, 
for his contributions in developing this bill.
  I urge my colleagues to join us in supporting the Maritime Pollution 
Prevention Act of 2007.

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