[Congressional Record Volume 153, Number 129 (Tuesday, September 4, 2007)]
[Senate]
[Page S11081]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




 REMOVAL OF INJUNCTION OF SECRECY--TREATY DOCUMENT NOS. 110-5 AND 110-6

  Mr. WHITEHOUSE. Mr. President, as in executive session, I ask 
unanimous consent that the injunction of secrecy be removed from the 
following treaties transmitted to the Senate on September 4, 2007, by 
the President of the United States: 1996 Protocol to Convention on 
Prevention of Marine Pollution by Dumping of Wastes, Treaty Document 
No. 110-5; and Amendment to Convention on Physical Protection of 
Nuclear Material, Treaty Document No. 110-6.
  I further ask consent that the treaties be considered as having been 
read the first time, that they be referred, with accompanying papers, 
to the Committee on Foreign Relations and ordered to be printed, and 
that the President's messages be printed in the Record.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  The messages of the President are as follows:

To the Senate of the United States:
  I transmit herewith, with a view to receiving advice and consent, the 
1996 Protocol to the Convention on the Prevention of Marine Pollution 
by Dumping of Wastes and Other Matter (the ``London Convention''), done 
in London on November 7, 1996. The Protocol was signed by the United 
States on March 31, 1998, and it entered into force on March 24, 2006.
  The Protocol represents the culmination of a thorough and intensive 
effort to update and improve the London Convention. The London 
Convention governs the ocean dumping and incineration at sea of wastes 
and other matter and was a significant early step in international 
protection of the marine environment from pollution caused by these 
activities.
  Although the Protocol and the London Convention share many features, 
the Protocol is designed to protect the marine environment more 
effectively. The Protocol moves from a structure of listing substances 
that may not be dumped to a ``reverse list'' approach, which prohibits 
ocean dumping of all wastes or other matter, except for a few specified 
wastes. This approach is combined with detailed criteria for 
environmental assessment of those materials that may be considered for 
dumping and potential dumping sites.
  The Protocol would be implemented through amendments to the Marine 
Protection, Research, and Sanctuaries Act (MPRSA), which currently 
covers London Convention obligations. There will not be any substantive 
changes to existing practices in the United States, and no economic 
impact is expected from implementation of the Protocol. I recommend 
that the Senate give early and favorable consideration to this Protocol 
and give its advice and consent to ratification, with the declaration 
and understanding contained in Articles 3 and 10 respectively in the 
accompanying report of the Department of State.
                                                      George W. Bush.  
The White House, September 4, 2007.
                                  ____

To the Senate of the United States:
  I transmit herewith for Senate advice and consent to ratification the 
Amendment to the Convention on the Physical Protection of Nuclear 
Material (the ``Amendment''). A conference of States Parties to the 
Convention on the Physical Protection of Nuclear Material, adopted on 
October 28, 1979, adopted the Amendment on July 8, 2005, at the 
International Atomic Energy Agency in Vienna. I transmit also, for the 
information of the Senate, the Department of State report on the 
Amendment. Legislation necessary to implement the Amendment will be 
submitted to the Congress separately.
  The Amendment contains specific provisions to effect a coordinated 
international response to combating and preventing nuclear terrorism 
and ensuring global security. It will require each State Party to the 
Amendment to establish, implement, and maintain an appropriate physical 
protection regime applicable to nuclear material and nuclear facilities 
used for peaceful purposes. The aims of the regime are to protect such 
material against theft or other unlawful taking, to locate and rapidly 
recover missing or stolen material, to protect such material and 
facilities against sabotage, and to mitigate or minimize the 
radiological consequences of sabotage. The Amendment also provides a 
framework for cooperation among States Parties directed at preventing 
nuclear terrorism and ensuring punishment of offenders; contains 
provisions for protecting sensitive physical protection information; 
and adds new criminal offenses that each State Party must make 
punishable by law. States Parties must also either submit for 
prosecution or extradite any person within their jurisdictions alleged 
to have committed one of the offenses defined in the Convention, as 
amended.
  This Amendment is important in the campaign against international 
nuclear terrorism and nuclear proliferation. I recommend, therefore, 
that the Senate give early and favorable consideration to this 
Amendment, subject to the understandings described in the accompanying 
report of the Department of State.
                                                      George W. Bush.  
The White House, September 4, 2007.

                          ____________________