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Water Resources: Problems in Managing Disposal of Material Dredged From San Francisco Bay

RCED-90-18 Published: Nov 08, 1989. Publicly Released: Nov 17, 1989.
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Highlights

Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO reviewed Corps of Engineers and Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) efforts to designate new disposal sites for dredged material in the San Francisco Bay area and ensure that environmental damage at existing ocean and bay disposal sites was within acceptable limits.

Recommendations

Recommendations for Executive Action

Agency Affected Recommendation Status
Department of the Army To prevent future delays in the process for designating ocean disposal sites, the Secretary of the Army should direct the Chief, Corps of Engineers, to: (1) evaluate alternative mechanisms for ensuring the safety of disposal operations on and off the continental shelf; and (2) review and validate the model used as the basis for cost estimates.
Closed – Implemented
The Zone of Siting Feasibility report, released in March 1991, included safety and monitoring among operational considerations addressed. It recommended that disposal be limited to periods of certain wave heights and intervals. All identified constraints were surmountable by existing technology and should not prohibit ocean disposal in any areas being considered.
Department of the Army To ensure that disposal in the ocean or bay is limited to safe material, the Administrator, EPA, and the Secretary of the Army should reach agreement on, and issue revised guidance for, the biological testing needed to predict the toxicity of contaminated dredged material.
Closed – Implemented
The revised manual includes the following substantive changes to procedures: (1) an amphipod test species required as the national standard for whole sediment bioassays to ensure programmatic consistency; and (2) exposure time for bioaccumulation tests, where certain contaminants are present, was increased from 10 to 28 days.
Environmental Protection Agency To ensure that disposal in the ocean or bay is limited to safe material, the Administrator, EPA, and the Secretary of the Army should reach agreement on, and issue revised guidance for, the biological testing needed to predict the toxicity of contaminated dredged material.
Closed – Implemented
The February 1991 revised testing manual, "Evaluation of Dredged Material Proposed for Ocean Disposal," is being used by EPA regions and Corps districts.
Department of the Army To ensure that environmental damage is within acceptable levels, the Secretary of the Army should direct the Chief, Corps of Engineers, to: (1) regularly inspect laboratories that test sediment for the Corps, expand inspections to include biological testing, and implement procedures to ensure that permittees use qualified laboratories; (2) systematically inspect permitted dredging activities and perform surveillance of disposal sites when they are being used; and (3) develop and implement monitoring programs for bay disposal sites.
Closed – Implemented
A technical report addressing the need for inspections, biological testing, and procedures to ensure permittees use of qualified labs was published in September 1990. Inspections of permitted dredging activities are being conducted.

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Topics

DredgingEnvironmental impact statementsEnvironmental monitoringHarborsInspectionMarine engineeringSite selectionWaste collectionWaste disposalWaste managementWaterway costsWater supply