With reference to the Federal program on unconventional automobile engines (now the Advanced Automobile Power Systems [AAPS] Program), the Secretary explicitly accepted the responsibility for: "(1) taking the lead agency role with respect to the mass production phase of the program, and "(2) monitoring HEW's efforts and advising that Department to assure that transportation considerations other than the emission characteristics are appropriately included in the total effort." Other topics for consideration by the working group will include: 1. socio-economic impacts of replacement of the internal combustion engine, and 2. the extent and nature of this Department's support for the Federal AAPS Program. MEMORANDUM Subject: Unconventional Automobile Engine R. & D. From: The Secretary ROBERT M. CANNON, Jr. To: Assistant Secretary for Systems Development and Technology. In my letter of June 17, 1970, to Chairman Train of the Council on Environmental Quality, I stated that I would designate a Departmental representative to coordinate our activities with HEW in the unconventional automobile engine R&D program area. I hereby designate you as this representative with the additional responsibility for internal coordination within the Department with the Assistant Secretary for Policy and International Affairs, the Assistant Secretary for Environment and Urban Systems, the Director of the NHSB, and any other offices who may have interest in this particular program. I would expect you to assign a member of your staff to serve as our technical expert to work directly with the HEW technical people on a day-to-day basis. I will look to you to coordinate our own work focusing on potential unconventional automobile engines as they relate not only to technological considerations but also to economic and social impacts. The Assistant Secretary for Environment & Urban Systems will continue to serve as the Departmental liaison with HEW in the broad field of environmental policy. ATTACHMENT 7 Hon. RUSSELL E. TRAIN Chairman, Council on Environmental Quality. DEAR CHAIRMAN TRAIN: Under Secretary Boyce has asked me to reply to your letter of June 23, 1970 in his behalf. You requested a representative from the Department of Transportation for your Advisory Committee on Advanced Power Systems and indicated a preference for Dr. Richard Strombetes of my staff. I agree with your suggestion and hereby appoint Dr. Strombetes as the Department of Transportation representative. His extension is 13-27361. This Department expects to cooperate fully with you and the Department of Health, Education and Welfare along the lines of Secretary Volpe's letter of June 17, 1970 to achieve the objectives of the program on Unconventionally Powered Automobiles. Sincerely, ROBERT H. CANNON, Jr., Assistant Secretary for Systems Development and Technology. ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH PROGRAM OF OFFICE OF THE ASSISTANT SECRETARY FOR ENVIRONMENT AND URBAN SYSTEMS, DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION 1. The Office of the Assistant Secretary for Environment and Urban Systems is a focal point for policy and program development, for coordination, and for education relating to environmental and urban transportation matters. The office seeks to encourage metropolitan areas to develop their own governmental institutional mechanisms for planning balanced transportation systems, for responding to a broad range of transportation needs within the communities, for facilitatig the development of integrated transportation systems, and for responding sensitively to the broad public and private concern for the preservation and enhancement of the quality of the environment. While this office has no laboratory, it has an Office of Environmental and Urban Research. The mission of this office is to improve the state of knowledge on the relationship between transportation and urban and environmental goals and problems, and to assist in the development of planning methods which will insure that national urban and environmental policies are effectively implemented through Federal transportation programs. This office has a staff of fifteen people including nine professionals. 2. The field of specialization and the degrees held by our staff are as follows: Field of specialization Urban and Environmental Systems Planning- Civil Engineering--- City and Regional Planning---. Business Administration/Systems Analysis- Political Scientist. Library Science_-_ Degree Ph.D Ph.D M.S (2) M.S. M.B.A. B.S. B.S. B.S. B.S. 3. The fiscal year 1971 appropriation for Environmental and Urban Research for this office is $750,000. Approximately $305,000 of that amount is being used for Environmental Research projects. All fiscal year 1971 funds have been committed. 4. The environmental research program conducted by this office is aimed at; refining, testing and demonstrating specific techniques for assessing the environmental, aesthetic, and economic impacts of transportation improvements; developing, testing, and demonstrating the application of environmental factors to intermodal transportation planning techniques; and, evaluation of ongoing departmental programs with respect to a national urban growth policy and the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969, particularly those associated with relocation housing, joint development, interdisciplinary team planning, and environmental impact. This office does not sponsor or conduct basic research. Our projects are actionoriented and designed for near term implementation. Our environmental research is not focussed upon analyzing technology development. Rather, it is designed to develop practical techniques for use in the transportation planning process for assessing the social, economic and environmental impacts of all modes of transportation systems. In this respect, transportation technology is assessed in terms of its impact on these factors. 5. The nature of our research program is such that ecosystems per se are not thoroughly investigated. However, as we develop comprehensive tools for assessing environmental impacts, ecology is one of the main categories in which we are doing analysis. 6. A relatively minor but significant proportion of our research program is being conducted in-house. In order to develop a framework for overall research planning, investigation is being made into a systematic method of dealing with environmental factors which must be considered in all phases of transportation planning, construction, and operation. The major proportion of the environmental research managed by the Office of Environmental and Urban Research is performed under contract. The present proportions of institutional contractors are as follows: Private Consultants, 50 percent. Local Governments, 34 percent. 7. Our principal mechanism in this regard is the capability of our own professioal staff within the office. As an interdisciplinary group, the staff, through the in-house research, identifies and addresses comprehensive environmental issues which require research. In addition, we have sponsored mechanisms for identifying and addressing large-scale transportation environmental questions by interdisciplinary (design concept) teams. Coordination activities with the Environmental Protection Agency is achieved through continual discussions and exchange of information with EPA staff. There are no documents of agreement. 8. The existing research structure of the Office of Environmental and Urban Research permits, within the given resource constraints, wide latitude to investigate the comprehensive research of important environmental questions relating to transportation. ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH PROGRAM OF OFFICE OF SUPERSONIC TRANSPORT DEVELOPMENT DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION The Office of Supersonic Transport Development (G. T. Haugan, SS-300, ext. 68410) has submitted information concerning its projects in the areas of sonic boom, radiation, noise pollution, and air pollution research for inclusion in the OST response to Senator Muskie's request of 14 May 1971, for information concerning DOT's environmental research. Attachment 1 is the summary provided by SS-300 of obligations by fiscal year for environment-related studies performed under the SST Program. Small additional amounts from the prime contracts of Boeing and GE would also be included, but the information could not be assembled within the necessary time frame. The fiscal year 1971 studies can be further clarified: (a) Total fiscal year 1971 obligations for environment-related studies performed under the SST program=$147,000. (b) See table below. (c) Place research is performed and percentage of fiscal year 1971 expeditures: Percent DOT facilities. Other Government facilities (including interagency transfers) – Outside Contracts: 73 Percent Universities Nonprofit Industry.. Profit Industry-- Total SUPERSONIC TRANSPORT PROGRAM-SONIC BOOM/RADIATION/ENVIRONMENTAL STUDIES Sonic boom studies: 100 1963-64 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 Total 1 Study of public reaction to sonic booms, Oklahoma City area, February 3 to July 30, 1964. * Contractor-technical assessment. 3 Sonic boom structural study, White Sands Proving Ground, November 1964 to February 1965. • Study to determine public acceptability to sonic boom, Edwards AFB, June 1966 to January 1967. ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH PROGRAM OF UNITED STATES Coast Guard DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION 1. Coast Guard environmental research is accomplished by the Applied Sciences and the Pollution Control Project Branch of the Office of Research and Development, and the Coast Guard Oceanographic Unit. Specific environmental research activities of those components are performed in support of operational requirements of Coast Guard missions. Primary areas of research include maritime pollution prevention and control, arctic research for polar operations, and oceanography in support of improved search and rescue capability. Some laboratory and field support for environmental research is also provided by the Coast Guard Field Testing and Development Center at Baltimore, Maryland. This paper is concerned with environmental pollution research only. If further information concerning work performed for other agencies and general oceanographic work is desired, I would be glad to supply it at a later time. 2. Fields of specialization and advanced degrees held are as follows: Applied Sciences Division Chemical Oceanography: Ph. D, Analytic Chemistry. Ph. D, Geology. MS, Geology. Physical Oceanography: Ph. D, Physical Oceanography. Applied Meterology: Ph. D, Oceanography. Remote Sensing: MS, Electronics Engineering. Pollution Control Branch Remote Sensing: Ph. D, Physics. MS, Physics. MS, Naval Architecture (3 each). MS, Mechanical Engineering. Air Pollution: MS Nuclear Effects. Hazardous Chemical Pollution: MS, Chemical Engineering. 3. Coast Guard funding for environmental research and development is appropriated on an annual basis. Funding may be conveniently divided into two major categories: Pollution R. & D. Activity: Fiscal Year 1971, $5,384,000. Fiscal Year 1972, $5,992,000. General Environmental Research: Fiscal Year 1971, $200,000. Fiscal Year 1972, $1,000,000. 4. Projects being pursued are designed to: (a) Develop methods to prevent and cleanup oil and hazardous pollutant spills in the navigable waters and coastal high seas. (b) Develop a fundamental understanding of the movement of surface currents. (c) Develop all weather remote sensing techniques to detect pollutant spills and thereby improve Coast Guard maritime law enforcement capability. (d) Develop marine sanitation devices that are capable of meeting sewage treatment standards, for use in Coast Guard vessels. None of the Coast Guard's R. & D. activity can be classified as "basic" research. All of our work is directed towards meeting specific end objectives to assist in "problem solving". Approximately 90 percent of the total R. & D. effort is directed towards technology development. Ten percent is directed towards technology assessment. 64-737-71-pt. 2- -43 5. Not generally applicable to Coast Guard R. & D. 6. Approximately 20 percent of Coast Guard environmental R. & D. is conducted in-house. The remaining 80 percent is contracted to other institutions. The distribution of contracted activity is 10 percent to universities, 10 percent to other government labs and the remainder to private industry. 7. Overall coordination of Coast Guard response to large-scale environmental questions is provided by the Marine Environmental Protection Coordinator in Coast Guard Headquarters. He is assisted by representatives from each of the major staff components such as Legal, Merchant Marine Safety, and Research and Development. From a scientific/technical standpoint, the Coast Guard has formed a scientific rapid response team to respond to major pollution incidents. The purpose of this team is two-fold. It provides on site expertise to the On Scene Commander and procures scientific data for input to Coast Guard R. & D. programs. The purpose of the Task Group is to avoid duplication of R. & D. effort and to foster mutual support of member agency R. & D. programs. Two working agreements were developed by the Task Group. One agreement, dated 7 December 1970, defines member agency responsibilities for R. & D. regarding Hazardous Polluting Substances Polluting Control. The other agreement, dated 17 February 1969, delineates responsibilities for Oil Pollution Control. Copies of these agreements are attached. 8. The Coast Guard has adequate resources to meet existing program objectives. Future ability to meet research needs is, however, dependent on future appropriations. The Coast Guard's Five-year Plan for Environmental Pollution Research for Marine Law Enforcement is also attached. ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY, MEMORANDUM To: William D. Ruckelshaus, Chairman, National Interagency Committee for the Control of Pollution by Oil & Hazardous Materials. From: Allen Cywin, Chairman, NIC Task Group on Research and Development. Subject: Transmittal of Agreement on Responsibility for Hazardous Polluting Substances Pollution Control Research and Development. Enclosed are copies of agreements consumated by the NIS Task Group on Research and Development for oil and hazardous polluting substances research and development activities. The Task Group on Research and Development was formed in November, 1968, for the purpose of: providing a common ground for the exchange of information on research and development programs; advising the NIC of program needs; and coordinating future research and development efforts to insure optimum utilization of available funds by NIC agencies. Initially, the efforts were limited to oil pollution control technology activities. On February 17, 1969, the Task Group approved an agreement for categories of oil pollution control research and development indicating the Federal agencies which should take the lead in satisfying needs in each category. During the early meetings emphasis was placed on oil pollution control technology as a result of demands for new concepts and methods to control the frequent spills of oils. Recently, separate sessions have been devoted to hazardous polluting substances spill control technology. The primary interest in the recent sessions on hazardous polluting substances has been the development of an agreement on responsibility for research and development efforts similar to the one on oil pollution control. The Hazardous Polluting Substances Agreements was approved by the Task Group on November 24, 1970. MEMORANDUM To: Chairman, National Interagency Committee for Control of Pollution by Oil and Hazardous Materials. From: Allen Cywin, Chairman, NIC Task Group on Research and Development. Subject: Responsibility for Research and Development Activities, Hazardous Polluting Substances Pollution Control. |