[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 152 (2006), Part 15]
[House]
[Pages 20204-20208]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




         MARINE DEBRIS RESEARCH, PREVENTION, AND REDUCTION ACT

  Mr. GILCHREST. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the 
Senate bill (S. 362) to establish a program within the National Oceanic 
and Atmospheric Administration and the United States Coast Guard to 
help identify, determine sources of, assess, reduce, and prevent marine 
debris and its adverse impacts on marine environment and navigation 
safety, in coordination with non-Federal entities, and for other 
purposes, as amended.
  The Clerk read as follows:

                                 S. 362

       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 ``Marine Debris Research, 
     Prevention, and Reduction Act''.

     SEC. 2. PURPOSES.

       The purposes of this Act are--
       (1) to help identify, determine sources of, assess, reduce, 
     and prevent marine debris and its adverse impacts on the 
     marine environment and navigation safety;
       (2) to reactivate the Interagency Marine Debris 
     Coordinating Committee; and
       (3) to develop a Federal marine debris information 
     clearinghouse.

     SEC. 3. NOAA MARINE DEBRIS PREVENTION AND REMOVAL PROGRAM.

       (a) Establishment of Program.--There is established, within 
     the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, a Marine 
     Debris Prevention and Removal Program to reduce and prevent 
     the occurrence and adverse impacts of marine debris on the 
     marine environment and navigation safety.
       (b) Program Components.--The Administrator, acting through 
     the Program and subject to the availability of 
     appropriations, shall carry out the following activities:
       (1) Mapping, identification, impact assessment, removal, 
     and prevention.--The Administrator shall, in consultation 
     with relevant Federal agencies, undertake marine debris 
     mapping, identification, impact assessment, prevention, and 
     removal efforts, with a focus on marine debris posing a 
     threat to living marine resources and navigation safety, 
     including--
       (A) the establishment of a process, building on existing 
     information sources maintained by Federal agencies such as 
     the Environmental Protection Agency and the Coast Guard, for 
     cataloguing and maintaining an

[[Page 20205]]

     inventory of marine debris and its impacts found in the 
     navigable waters of the United States and the United States 
     exclusive economic zone, including location, material, size, 
     age, and origin, and impacts on habitat, living marine 
     resources, human health, and navigation safety;
       (B) measures to identify the origin, location, and 
     projected movement of marine debris within United States 
     navigable waters, the United States exclusive economic zone, 
     and the high seas, including the use of oceanographic, 
     atmospheric, satellite, and remote sensing data; and
       (C) development and implementation of strategies, methods, 
     priorities, and a plan for preventing and removing marine 
     debris from United States navigable waters and within the 
     United States exclusive economic zone, including development 
     of local or regional protocols for removal of derelict 
     fishing gear and other marine debris.
       (2) Reducing and preventing loss of gear.--The 
     Administrator shall improve efforts to reduce adverse impacts 
     of lost and discarded fishing gear on living marine resources 
     and navigation safety, including--
       (A) research and development of alternatives to gear posing 
     threats to the marine environment, and methods for marking 
     gear used in specific fisheries to enhance the tracking, 
     recovery, and identification of lost and discarded gear; and
       (B) development of effective nonregulatory measures and 
     incentives to cooperatively reduce the volume of lost and 
     discarded fishing gear and to aid in its recovery.
       (3) Outreach.--The Administrator shall undertake outreach 
     and education of the public and other stakeholders, such as 
     the fishing industry, fishing gear manufacturers, and other 
     marine-dependent industries, and the plastic and waste 
     management industries, on sources of marine debris, threats 
     associated with marine debris and approaches to identify, 
     determine sources of, assess, reduce, and prevent marine 
     debris and its adverse impacts on the marine environment and 
     navigational safety, including outreach and education 
     activities through public-private initiatives. The 
     Administrator shall coordinate outreach and education 
     activities under this paragraph with any outreach programs 
     conducted under section 2204 of the Marine Plastic Pollution 
     Research and Control Act of 1987 (33 U.S.C. 1915).
       (c) Grants, Cooperative Agreements, and Contracts.--
       (1) In general.--The Administrator, acting through the 
     Program, shall enter into cooperative agreements and 
     contracts and provide financial assistance in the form of 
     grants for projects to accomplish the purpose set forth in 
     section 2(1).
       (2) Grant cost sharing requirement.--
       (A) In general.--Except as provided in subparagraph (B), 
     Federal funds for any grant under this section may not exceed 
     50 percent of the total cost of such project. For purposes of 
     this subparagraph, the non-Federal share of project costs may 
     be provided by in-kind contributions and other noncash 
     support.
       (B) Waiver.--The Administrator may waive all or part of the 
     matching requirement under subparagraph (A) if the 
     Administrator determines that no reasonable means are 
     available through which applicants can meet the matching 
     requirement and the probable benefit of such project 
     outweighs the public interest in such matching requirement.
       (3) Amounts paid and services rendered under consent.--
       (A) Consent decrees and orders.--If authorized by the 
     Administrator or the Attorney General, as appropriate, the 
     non-Federal share of the cost of a project carried out under 
     this Act may include money paid pursuant to, or the value of 
     any in-kind service performed under, an administrative order 
     on consent or judicial consent decree that will remove or 
     prevent marine debris.
       (B) Other decrees and orders.--The non-Federal share of the 
     cost of a project carried out under this Act may not include 
     any money paid pursuant to, or the value of any in-kind 
     service performed under, any other administrative order or 
     court order.
       (4) Eligibility.--Any State, local, or tribal government 
     whose activities affect research or regulation of marine 
     debris, and any institution of higher education, nonprofit 
     organization, or commercial organization with expertise in a 
     field related to marine debris, is eligible to submit to the 
     Administrator a marine debris proposal under the grant 
     program.
       (5) Grant criteria and guidelines.--Within 180 days after 
     the date of the enactment of this Act, the Administrator 
     shall promulgate necessary guidelines for implementation of 
     the grant program, including development of criteria and 
     priorities for grants. In developing those guidelines, the 
     Administrator shall consult with--
       (A) the Interagency Committee;
       (B) regional fishery management councils established under 
     the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act 
     (16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.);
       (C) State, regional, and local governmental entities with 
     marine debris experience;
       (D) marine-dependent industries; and
       (E) nongovernmental organizations involved in marine debris 
     research, prevention, or removal activities.
       (6) Project review and approval.--The Administrator shall--
       (A) review each marine debris project proposal to determine 
     if it meets the grant criteria and supports the goals of this 
     Act;
       (B) after considering any written comments and 
     recommendations based on the review, approve or disapprove 
     the proposal; and
       (C) provide notification of that approval or disapproval to 
     the person who submitted the proposal.
       (7) Project reporting.--Each grantee under this section 
     shall provide periodic reports as required by the 
     Administrator. Each report shall include all information 
     required by the Administrator for evaluating the progress and 
     success in meeting its stated goals, and impact of the grant 
     activities on the marine debris problem.

     SEC. 4. COAST GUARD PROGRAM.

       (a) Strategy.--The Commandant of the Coast Guard, in 
     consultation with the Interagency Committee, shall--
       (1) take actions to reduce violations of and improve 
     implementation of MARPOL Annex V and the Act to Prevent 
     Pollution from Ships (33 U.S.C. 1901 et seq.) with respect to 
     the discard of plastics and other garbage from vessels;
       (2) take actions to cost-effectively monitor and enforce 
     compliance with MARPOL Annex V and the Act to Prevent 
     Pollution from Ships (33 U.S.C. 1901 et seq.), including 
     through cooperation and coordination with other Federal and 
     State enforcement programs;
       (3) take actions to improve compliance with requirements 
     under MARPOL Annex V and section 6 of the Act to Prevent 
     Pollution from Ships (33 U.S.C. 1905) that all United States 
     ports and terminals maintain and monitor the adequacy of 
     receptacles for the disposal of plastics and other garbage, 
     including through promoting voluntary government-industry 
     partnerships;
       (4) develop and implement a plan, in coordination with 
     industry and recreational boaters, to improve ship-board 
     waste management, including recordkeeping, and access to 
     waste reception facilities for ship-board waste;
       (5) take actions to improve international cooperation to 
     reduce marine debris; and
       (6) establish a voluntary reporting program for commercial 
     vessel operators and recreational boaters to report incidents 
     of damage to vessels and disruption of navigation caused by 
     marine debris, and observed violations of laws and 
     regulations relating to the disposal of plastics and other 
     marine debris.
       (b) Report.--Not later than 180 days after the date of 
     enactment of this Act, the Commandant of the Coast Guard 
     shall submit to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and 
     Transportation of the Senate and the Committee on 
     Transportation and Infrastructure of the House of 
     Representatives a report evaluating the Coast Guard's 
     progress in implementing subsection (a).
       (c) External Evaluation and Recommendations on Annex V.--
       (1) In general.--The Commandant of the Coast Guard shall 
     enter into an arrangement with the National Research Council 
     under which the National Research Council shall submit, by 
     not later than 18 months after the date of the enactment of 
     this Act and in consultation with the Commandant and the 
     Interagency Committee, to the Committee on Commerce, Science, 
     and Transportation of the Senate and the Committee on 
     Transportation and Infrastructure of the House of 
     Representatives a comprehensive report on the effectiveness 
     of international and national measures to prevent and reduce 
     marine debris and its impact.
       (2) Contents.--The report required under paragraph (1) 
     shall include--
       (A) an evaluation of international and domestic 
     implementation of MARPOL Annex V and the Act to Prevent 
     Pollution from Ships (33 U.S.C. 1901 et seq.) and 
     recommendations of cost-effective actions to improve 
     implementation and compliance with such measures to reduce 
     impacts of marine debris;
       (B) recommendation of additional Federal or international 
     actions, including changes to international and domestic law 
     or regulations, needed to further reduce the impacts of 
     marine debris; and
       (C) evaluation of the role of floating fish aggregation 
     devices in the generation of marine debris and existing legal 
     mechanisms to reduce impacts of such debris, focusing on 
     impacts in the Western Pacific and Central Pacific regions.

     SEC. 5. INTERAGENCY COORDINATION.

       (a) Interagency Marine Debris Coordinating Committee.--
     Section 2203 of the Marine Plastic Pollution Research and 
     Control Act of 1987 (33 U.S.C. 1914) is amended--
       (1) by striking subsection (a) and inserting the following:
       ``(a) Establishment of Interagency Marine Debris 
     Coordinating Committee.--There is established an Interagency 
     Marine Debris Coordinating Committee to coordinate a 
     comprehensive program of marine debris research and 
     activities among Federal agencies, in cooperation and 
     coordination with non-governmental organizations, industry, 
     universities, and research institutions, States, Indian 
     tribes, and other nations, as appropriate.''; and

[[Page 20206]]

       (2) in subsection (c), by inserting ``public, interagency'' 
     before ``forum''.
       (b) Definition of Marine Debris.--The Administrator and the 
     Commandant of the Coast Guard, in consultation with the 
     Interagency Committee established under subsection (a), shall 
     jointly develop and promulgate through regulations a 
     definition of the term ``marine debris'' for purposes of this 
     Act.
       (c) Reports.--
       (1) Interagency report on marine debris impacts and 
     strategies.--
       (A) In general.--Not later than 12 months after the date of 
     the enactment of this Act, the Interagency Committee, through 
     the chairperson, shall complete and submit to the Committee 
     on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate and 
     the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure and the 
     Committee on Resources of the House of Representatives a 
     report that--
       (i) identifies sources of marine debris;
       (ii) the ecological and economic impact of marine debris;
       (iii) alternatives for reducing, mitigating, preventing, 
     and controlling the harmful affects of marine debris;
       (iv) the social and economic costs and benefits of such 
     alternatives; and
       (v) recommendations to reduce marine debris both 
     domestically and internationally.
       (B) Recommendations.--The report shall provide strategies 
     and recommendations on--
       (i) establishing priority areas for action to address 
     leading problems relating to marine debris;
       (ii) developing strategies and approaches to prevent, 
     reduce, remove, and dispose of marine debris, including 
     through private-public partnerships;
       (iii) establishing effective and coordinated education and 
     outreach activities; and
       (iv) ensuring Federal cooperation with, and assistance to, 
     the coastal States (as that term is defined in section 304 of 
     the Coastal Zone Management Act of 1972 (16 U.S.C. 1453)), 
     Indian tribes, and local governments in the identification, 
     determination of sources, prevention, reduction, management, 
     mitigation, and control of marine debris and its adverse 
     impacts.
       (2) Annual progress reports.--Not later than 3 years after 
     the date of the enactment of this Act, and biennially 
     thereafter, the Interagency Committee, through the 
     chairperson, shall submit to the Committee on Commerce, 
     Science, and Transportation of the Senate and the Committee 
     on Transportation and Infrastructure and the Committee on 
     Resources of the House of Representatives a report that 
     evaluates United States and international progress in meeting 
     the purpose of this Act. The report shall include--
       (A) the status of implementation of any recommendations and 
     strategies of the Interagency Committee and analysis of their 
     effectiveness;
       (B) a summary of the marine debris inventory to be 
     maintained by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric 
     Administration;
       (C) a review of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric 
     Administration program authorized by section 3, including 
     projects funded and accomplishments relating to reduction and 
     prevention of marine debris;
       (D) a review of Coast Guard programs and accomplishments 
     relating to marine debris removal, including enforcement and 
     compliance with MARPOL requirements; and
       (E) estimated Federal and non-Federal funding provided for 
     marine debris and recommendations for priority funding needs.

     SEC. 6. FEDERAL INFORMATION CLEARINGHOUSE.

       The Administrator, in coordination with the Interagency 
     Committee, shall--
       (1) maintain a Federal information clearinghouse on marine 
     debris that will be available to researchers and other 
     interested persons to improve marine debris source 
     identification, data sharing, and monitoring efforts through 
     collaborative research and open sharing of data; and
       (2) take the necessary steps to ensure the confidentiality 
     of such information (especially proprietary information), for 
     any information required by the Administrator to be submitted 
     by the fishing industry under this section.

     SEC. 7. DEFINITIONS.

       In this Act:
       (1) Administrator.--The term ``Administrator'' means the 
     Administrator of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric 
     Administration.
       (2) Interagency committee.--The term ``Interagency 
     Committee'' means the Interagency Marine Debris Coordinating 
     Committee established under section 2203 of the Marine 
     Plastic Pollution Research and Control Act of 1987 (33 U.S.C. 
     1914).
       (3) United states exclusive economic zone.--The term 
     ``United States exclusive economic zone'' means the zone 
     established by Presidential Proclamation Numbered 5030, dated 
     March 10, 1983, including the ocean waters of the areas 
     referred to as ``eastern special areas'' in article 3(1) of 
     the Agreement between the United States of America and the 
     Union of Soviet Socialist Republics on the Maritime Boundary, 
     signed June 1, 1990.
       (4) MARPOL; annex v; convention.--The terms ``MARPOL'', 
     ``Annex V'', and ``Convention'' have the meaning given those 
     terms under section 2(a) of the Act to Prevent Pollution from 
     Ships (33 U.S.C. 1901(a)).
       (5) Navigable waters.--The term ``navigable waters'' means 
     waters of the United States, including the territorial sea.
       (6) Territorial sea.--The term ``territorial sea'' means 
     the waters of the United States referred to in Presidential 
     Proclamation No. 5928, dated December 27, 1988.
       (7) Program.--The term ``Program'' means the Marine Debris 
     Prevention and Removal Program established under section 3.
       (8) State.--The term ``State'' means--
       (A) any State of the United States that is impacted by 
     marine debris within its seaward or Great Lakes boundaries;
       (B) the District of Columbia;
       (C) American Samoa, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands, 
     Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands; and
       (D) any other territory or possession of the United States, 
     or separate sovereign in free association with the United 
     States, that is impacted by marine debris within its seaward 
     boundaries.

     SEC. 8. RELATIONSHIP TO OUTER CONTINENTAL SHELF LANDS ACT.

       Nothing in this Act supersedes, or limits the authority of 
     the Secretary of the Interior under, the Outer Continental 
     Shelf Lands Act (43 U.S.C. 1331 et seq.).

     SEC. 9. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

       There are authorized to be appropriated for each fiscal 
     year 2006 through 2010--
       (1) to the Administrator for carrying out sections 3 and 6, 
     $10,000,000, of which no more than 10 percent may be for 
     administrative costs; and
       (2) to the Secretary of the Department in which the Coast 
     Guard is operating, for the use of the Commandant of the 
     Coast Guard in carrying out section 4, $2,000,000, of which 
     no more than 10 percent may be used for administrative costs.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from 
Maryland (Mr. Gilchrest) and the gentleman from California (Mr. Filner) 
each will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Maryland.


                             General Leave

  Mr. GILCHREST. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members 
may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks 
and include extraneous material on S. 362.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from Maryland?
  There was no objection.
  Mr. GILCHREST. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume.
  Mr. Speaker, S. 362, the Marine Debris Research, Prevention and 
Reduction Act, was introduced by Senator Inouye of Hawaii and was 
passed by unanimous consent in the Senate in July last year.
  The bill would enhance the Federal Government's capabilities to 
remove and prevent the creation of marine debris that is derived from 
ocean-based activities. Marine debris degrades very slowly, is highly 
buoyant and can be carried thousands of miles by ocean currents. Marine 
debris poses significant entanglement threats to many marine organisms, 
including fish, crabs, birds and marine mammals and can have serious 
consequences on human health.
  The bill would require the establishment of a Marine Debris 
Prevention and Removal Program with the National Oceanic and 
Atmospheric Administration to coordinate that agency's existing 
activities and requirements to reduce the impact of marine debris on 
the environment and navigation safety.
  The bill also would require the Coast Guard to implement measures to 
improve compliance and enforcement of laws and international agreements 
regarding the discard of plastics and garbage from vessels.
  The bill also amends current law to reactivate the Interagency Marine 
Debris Coordinating Committee, rather than establish a new interagency 
forum, as was proposed in the Senate-passed bill.
  The bill before us today is the result of extensive consultation 
between the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure and the 
Committee on Resources. The bill has strong bipartisan support, and I 
expect the Senate to act quickly to send this legislation to the 
President.
  S. 362 will significantly improve the Federal Government's programs 
to prevent and remove marine debris without creating unnecessary, 
duplicative programs.

[[Page 20207]]

  I urge my colleagues to support the bill.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. FILNER. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the 
distinguished gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Pallone), the great 
defender of our Nation's coastlines.
  Mr. PALLONE. Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague from California for 
those very nice remarks.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of S. 362, legislation that will 
address the serious and overlooked problem of marine debris along our 
Nation's shores and beaches.
  Marine debris remains a huge issue in my home State of New Jersey. It 
was not too long ago that the New York Bight, a 19,000-square-mile area 
off the coast of New Jersey and New York, was known infamously as the 
``ocean dumping capital of the world.''
  It has taken years of work to clean up our oceans and our beaches, 
and S. 362 will help ensure that we never go back to where we were.
  I applaud my colleagues on the Transportation and Infrastructure 
Committee, especially the chairman, Don Young, and the ranking member, 
Jim Oberstar, and Resources Committee chairman, Richard Pombo, and the 
ranking member, Nick Rahall, for their support in clearing this 
important legislation for the floor. And I also thank my colleague from 
San Diego and my colleague, the chairman of our Subcommittee on 
Resources from Maryland, for helping clear this important legislation.
  Mr. Speaker, I introduced the House companion version of this bill, 
H.R. 3692, not only because marine debris is bad for human health and 
the environment but also because it can be incredibly harmful to our 
tourism economy in New Jersey and across the country.
  By building on the recommendations of the U.S. Commission on Ocean 
Policy, S. 362 will provide additional coordination to prevent and 
reduce marine debris through the establishment of an interagency 
coordinating committee. The bill will also strengthen and enhance 
specific program activities carried out by NOAA and the U.S. Coast 
Guard.
  This legislation will provide additional grant resources to reduce 
the volume of marine debris, track the origination and subsequent 
dispersal of this trash, and stimulate new education strategies to 
build public awareness of the problem. Marine debris is an issue that 
we ignore at our own peril, and I urge adoption of this legislation to 
finally establish an effective and coordinated Federal response to the 
problem.
  Mr. FILNER. Mr. Speaker, I think everything has been said, and I urge 
support for the bill.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise today in strong support of S. 362, the Marine 
Debris Research, Prevention, and Reduction Act.
  America's beaches are littered with garbage washed ashore. At a time 
when more and more people are enjoying being outdoors, we're finding 
more debris on our coasts that can pose a serious threat to beachgoers, 
boaters, and divers.
  Congress has already passed many laws that attempt to address this 
issue including the Clean Water Act, the Act to Prevent Pollution from 
Ships, the Ocean Dumping Act, the Driftnet Impact Monitoring, 
Assessment, and Control Act, and the Marine Plastic Pollution Research 
and Control Act. Yet the problem persists.
  S. 362 attempts to address these issues by having the National 
Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) undertake various 
initiatives to reduce and prevent the use and adverse impact of debris 
on the marine environment including--
  Assessing the impact of marine debris found in the navigable waters 
of the United States and our 200-mile Exclusive Economic Zone.
  Mapping and removing marine debris from our coastal waters.
  Requiring measures to prevent the loss of fishing gear that can kill 
fish and marine mammals for years after they are lost from a ship.
  Establishing outreach and education programs to help those that live 
on and along our waters to understand the impact of marine debris on 
our environment.
  Under this legislation, the Coast Guard is required to enforce 
existing laws and treaties related to marine pollution and to develop 
new regulations on the disposal of plastics and fishing gear.
  Plastic and other materials that are not biodegradable threaten the 
health of our oceans. Therefore, we must find a way to make sure they 
don't get into the water in the first place. As someone who represents 
a coastal district, I look forward to the day when I can walk down the 
beach without seeing it polluted by marine debris that has washed 
ashore.
  Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank Chairman Young, Chairman LoBiondo 
and Ranking Member Oberstar for the bipartisan approach that they took 
to develop this legislation. This legislation is another step forward 
in protecting the world's oceans from marine debris.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  Mr. GILCHREST. Mr. Speaker, I want to thank my colleagues on the 
other side of the aisle, especially the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. 
Pallone) for his work on this issue.
  To use another term, marine debris is trash and garbage which is 
massively discharged into our oceans. Some of it is degraded within a 
few days, others will last for hundreds if not thousands of years.
  As Mr. Pallone mentioned, the Ocean Commission dedicates an entire 
chapter to the problems of marine debris. This legislation, with the 
help of the staff on the Transportation Committee and the Resources 
Committee, will go a long way to solve this problem.
  Mr. Speaker, I urge an ``aye'' vote on the legislation.
  Mr. OBERSTAR. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in strong support of S. 362, 
the Marine Debris Research, Prevention, and Reduction Act. This bill 
has been developed in a very bipartisan manner.
  The purpose of this legislation is to help fill in the gaps between 
existing maritime pollution laws such as the Act to Prevent Pollution 
from Ships. Our oceans are becoming the garbage pit for the world. Each 
year, tons of marine debris, such as plastics and garbage from vessels, 
is discarded into the oceans. It's killing the animals in our oceans 
and with it the oceans themselves.
  The coastlines of islands in the middle of the Pacific Ocean are 
littered with debris that washes up including massive fishing nets that 
are lost each year.
  S. 362, introduced by Senator Inouye, will help address these 
problems. This legislation requires the Administrator of the National 
Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration to map debris fields, to assess 
the impact of this debris on the living marine resources and 
navigational safety, and to develop strategies to prevent and remove 
marine debris from the navigable waters of the United States and our 
200-mile exclusive economic zone.
  S. 362 also requires the Commandant of the Coast Guard to take 
actions to reduce violations of and improve implementation of MARPOL 
Annex V and the Act to Prevent Pollution from Ships. Under the bill, 
the Coast Guard will also have to develop and implement a plan to 
improve ship-board waste management and to make sure that U.S. ports 
and terminals maintain and monitor the adequacy of receptacles for the 
disposal of plastics and other garbage that are brought into our ports 
each year on ships.
  The oceans are our lifelines. We cannot let human activity kill them. 
S. 362 will help to prevent thousands of tons of debris from entering 
the ocean each year from vessels.
  I urge my colleagues to join me in supporting S. 362, the Marine 
Debris Research, Prevention, and Reduction Act.
  Mr. POMBO. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of S. 362, the Marine 
Debris Research, Prevention and Reduction Act.
  S. 362 is an important piece of environmental legislation. People in 
the U.S. and world-wide generate a lot of trash. While every effort is 
made to ensure the trash is sent to the appropriate place, improperly 
used trash receptacles, storm runoff, and outright littering send trash 
into rivers and oceans daily. All of this loose trash becomes marine 
debris. In return this marine debris has become a pervasive threat in 
our world's oceans adversely harming marine animals and their habitat.
  S. 362 follows up on recommendations made by the U.S. Commission on 
Ocean Policy which called for action to reduce marine debris. Most 
importantly it would help identify, determine sources of, assess, 
reduce, and prevent marine debris and its adverse impacts on the marine 
environment and navigation safety. It would re-establish the 
Interagency Marine Debris Coordinating Committee to help ensure a 
coordinated government response across Federal agencies. In addition, 
it would also develop a Federal information clearing house to enable 
researchers to study the sources, scale and impact of marine debris 
more efficiently.
  S. 362 is an important step in reducing, and hopefully some day 
eliminating, marine debris

[[Page 20208]]

from our ocean environment. S. 362 is a good bill and should receive 
the support of Members and pass the House today.
  Mr. GILCHREST. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the 
gentleman from Maryland (Mr. Gilchrest) that the House suspend the 
rules and pass the Senate bill, S. 362, as amended.
  The question was taken; and (two-thirds having voted in favor 
thereof) the rules were suspended and the Senate bill, as amended, was 
passed.
  A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.

                          ____________________