[Congressional Record Volume 172, Number 152 (Thursday, September 24, 2026)]
[Senate]
[Pages S5005-S5006]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Mr. PADILLA:
  S. 5563. A bill to direct the Administrator of the National Oceanic 
and Atmospheric Administration to study the impacts of the dumping of 
certain waste in the San Pedro Basin, and for other purposes; to the 
Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation.
  Mr. PADILLA. Mr. President, I rise today to introduce the Ocean 
Protection and DDT Reduction Act. This bill would direct NOAA, in 
consultation with EPA and DOD, to study and address the impacts of 
historical toxic waste dumping, especially 
dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane, DDT, and other industrial and military 
wastes, in the San Pedro Basin off the coast of California.
  Dumping of industrial, chemical, and military waste off the Southern 
California coast occurred from the 1930s until it was banned in 1972 by 
the Ocean Dumping Act. This included the dumping of DDT, radioactive 
materials, alkaline and oil waste, and unexploded ordinance and 
munitions across 14 sites along the coastline from San Diego to Santa 
Monica.
  In addition to the dumping of chemical waste barrels, millions of 
pounds of DDT and PCBs were discharged through sewer outfall pipes. 
Roughly 110 tons of DDT ended up in the sediments of the Palos Verdes 
Shelf, and in 1996, EPA added this 17 square-mile underwater site as a 
Superfund site.
  Recent studies have found tens of thousands of degrading and leaking 
barrels of DDT and hazardous waste on the ocean floor at a depth of 
3,000 ft deep and 8 to 24 miles from the coast of Southern California, 
posing potential risks to marine life, fisheries, and public health.
  New images from 2020 that showed corroded metal barrels with 
mysterious

[[Page S5006]]

``halos'' in the deep ocean off Los Angeles prompted a Scripps study 
supported by NOAA, which found that these barrels were leaking caustic 
alkaline waste.
  This bill would support important research and coordination on the 
scope and impacts of the dumped covered waste in the San Pedro Basin 
and the potential of bioremediation, as well as require a report to 
Congress after 3 years. The bill would also establish a grant program 
for academic and research institutions to study the mapping, movement, 
breakdown, and bioaccumulation of contaminants.
  Due to slow degradation, DDT is an ongoing hazard to humans and 
wildlife, with bioaccumulation found in sea lions, dolphins, bottom-
feeding fish, and condors. Supporting further research is crucial to 
addressing the impacts of the toxic waste dumping.

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