Sewer Question: You note that original funds for the Yap sewer were reprogrammed in FY 1980 to roads and electrical projects. Are you sure now that you can begin work on the sewer facility? Answer: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) procedures require completion and approval of a sewer facilities study and prioritization of sewer projects before grant funds can be committed. This stage has just been completed so actual projects for which EPA grants will be provided have been identified and design is now underway. As a result we are now certain that required work can now proceed upon receipt of requested fiscal year 1980 funds. Question: How much will EPA provide, and is that money guaranteed? Give us all cost estimates for the record. Answer: EPA plans to provide up to 75% grant for all TTPI sewer projects. The total amount is $18,297,000 and it is guaranteed. The CIP sewer project estimates and EPA grants for each district is as follows: Senator STEVENS. Thank you, to all of you who made the trip in. We will reconvene at 10 o'clock tomorrow morning. And thank you very much. [Whereupon, at 2:50 p.m., Wednesday, March 21, the subcommittee was recessed, to reconvene at 10 a.m., Thursday, March 22.] SUBCOMMITTEE OF THE COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS, Washington, D.C. The subcommittee met at 10:10 a.m., in room 1224, Everett McKinley Dirksen Office Building, Hon. J. Bennett Johnston presiding. Present: Senators Johnston, Burdick, Stevens, Young, and Bell mon. DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR STATEMENTS OF: U.S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY JOAN DAVENPORT, ASSISTANT SECRETARY, ENERGY AND MINERALS, U.S. DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR H. WILLIAM MENARD, DIRECTOR, U.S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY BUDGET REQUEST Senator JOHNSTON. Good morning. Today is the time scheduled to hear the fiscal 1980 budget estimates for the U.S. Geological Survey. These estimates total $455 million, a reduction of $184.7 million below appropriations to date for fiscal 1979. The Survey has $10.4 million in pay costs, and $1.7 million in program supplementals pending for fiscal 1979. If these are included in the comparison, the 1980 reduction is $196.8 million. It should be noted that the major reduction in the President's budget request is $226.6 million in the National Petroleum Reserve in Alaska, where the administration recommends abandonment of the exploration program. For its regular operating account the Survey is requesting $451 million, and this is an increase over 1979 of $29.8 million. The justification has been included in the record. PREPARED STATEMENT Secretary Davenport, Director Menard, welcome before the committee. We will print your full prepared statements in the record. At this time we would ask you to highlight them very briefly for the committee so that we can get to questions. [The statements follow:] STATEMENT OF DR. H. WILLIAM MENARD It is a privilege to be here today to discuss with you the fiscal year 1980 budget proposal for the Geological Survey. The request involves two appropriations: Surveys, Investigations, and Research for programs which provide basic scientific data about the land, water, and mineral resources of the Nation and for mineral evaluation and lease management activities on Federal and Indian lands; and Exploration of the National Petroleum Reserve in Alaska which will, in January 1980, provide an assessment of the petroleum potential within the Reserve, maintain the supply of natural gas to natives and government installations in the Barrow Area, and continue environmental restoration of the Reserve. One hundred years ago, my predecessors we were requesting funds to replace mules, picks, and hammers for their scientific endeavors. Today, we are here requesting funds to add to the vast store of knowledge about our Earth by means of satellite data relay, remote sensing of the Earth's features by satellite and laser profiler, and automated digital data systems dramatic evidence of the evolution that has occurred within the Survey since its original organization. Today's world and its problems are just as challenging as and, depending on historical perspective, even more critical than those of 100 years ago. Our budget request today is presented, however, with the same basic goal as in the Survey's first budget to provide the Earth science information and knowledge that is needed to help solve problems. The Survey continues as the principal fact-gathering agency, to focus on the parallel national needs for energy and mineral resources while preserving environmental integrity and incorporating environmental constraints, such as natural hazards, into decisions regarding the use of the land. SURVEYS, INVESTIGATIONS, AND RESEARCH The proposed program changes in the Survey's budget for FY 1980 are summarized in Exhibit 1. The budget request for Surveys, Investigations, and Research is $451 million, an increase of $42 million above the current FY 1979 authorization of $409 million. Two supplemental requests for FY 1979 have been transmitted; one for increased pay costs of $10.4 million and the other for $1.7 million for the start-up costs related to the Natural Gas Policy Act of 1978. The remaining increases for FY 1980 are $0.2 million for pay-cost annualization and $29.7 million for programmatic increases. Topographic Surveys and Mapping The FY 1980 budget request for Topographic Surveys and Mapping is $68.4 million, an increase of $2.4 million, to continue the development of a prototype airborne system for profiling terrain. The system is intended to provide a cost effective surveying capability to rapidly and accurately collect large volumes of terrain information. The new system will support programs in areas of high national concern, including flood plain mapping and other water resources investigations, topographic mapping, coastal zone studies, surface subsidence, and monitoring of surface mining. Geologic and Mineral Resource Surveys and Mapping The FY 1980 budget request for Geologic and Mineral Resource Surveys and Mapping is for $135.3 million, a net decrease of $0.3 million which includes an increase of $1.7 million for the environmental-geologic aspects of coal development and an increase of $2.7 million to conduct mineral surveys of Forest Service lands being considered for Wilderness withdrawal as a result of the second Roadless Area Review and Evaluation (RARE II) recently completed by the Forest Service. Offsetting reductions of $4.7 million are proposed in the Geologic Framework, Geomagnetism, Resource Processes and Techniques, and Geothermal Investigations programs. The increase requested for Environmental Aspects of Coal Development is needed to evaluate the geologic constraints to coal development, including geologic hazards, sensitive features such as alluvial valley floors, and chemical trace elements which would be released into the environment by mining. The additional funds also allow for the preparation of analyses on 85 priority areas in western lands being considered for coal leasing and will support planning efforts by Federal, State, and local agencies as well as the private sector in addressing mining and reclamation objectives. The Wilderness Surveys increase will permit an additional 1.5 million acres to be surveyed over the FY 1979 level of 3.5 million, and is directly associated with new workload arising from the Forest Service's RARE II findings. Water Resources Investigations The FY 1980 budget request for Water Resources Investigations is $108.1 million, an increase of $10.7 million. An additional $4.2 million is requested to continue the Regional Aquifer Systems Analyses Program, initiated in 1978 through the Congress' interest and direction, which will provide data and understanding needed for the protection and wise management of ground water resources. Analyses will begin in three new regions: the Atlantic Coastal Plain, the Central Midwest Carbonates, and the Southeastern Coastal Plain. Also during FY 1980, the Madison Limestone Aquifer study and report will be completed and assessments will continue on the three aquifer systems begun in FY 1978 and the three begun in FY 1979. The requested increase of $0.8 million for Improved Instrumentation will accelerate the implementation of satellite relay of hydrologic data and development of improved sensors to be used in the water data collection network. A pilot program of 150 stations for real-time data collection is scheduled for completion by the end of FY 1980. The formulation of national and regional water policies and analysis of water management options depends in part upon knowledge of the potential demand for additional water supplies. To this end, the National WaterUse Data Program was begun in 1978 and now includes cooperative programs with 35 States. The Survey is requesting an additional $1.0 million in FY 1980 to bring the total number of cooperating States to 44. An increase of $4.7 million is requested to provide hydrologic information needed by coal mining applicants as well as the regulatory authority under the provisions of the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977. The increase will expand water monitoring in the Eastern and Interior Coal Provinces and provide information required to assess and predict the hydrologic impact of coal mining and reclamation. Conservation of Lands and Minerals The request for Conservation of Lands and Minerals is $102.0 million, an increase of $15.6 million, which is needed mainly to address the Survey's increased responsibilities which derive from the OCS Lands Act Amendments and the Natural Gas Policy Act, both passed by Congress this past year. For the Outer Continental Shelf Program, $14.1 million of the requested increase will be necessary to provide geological and geophysical information in the form of indices and summary reports to each affected State, and as required, to local governments; to accelerate platform inspection; to address royalty accounting requirements associated with the alternative bidding systems required under the OCS legislation; to involve the States in decisionmaking regarding industry's proposed exploration, development, and production activities; to acquire additional data to analyze geologic hazards or potential lease tracts; to study the adequacy of safety regulations; and to design a safety training program. A supplemental request of $1.7 million in FY 1979 has been submitted for your consideration to allow the funding and staff necessary to address the requirements of the Natural Gas Policy Act. An additional $1.3 million, for a total of $3.0 million, is included in the FY 1980 request to cover the estimated full-year workload. In FY 1979, the Survey will being making well category determinations both onshore and on the OCS in support of the gas price deregulation program being conducted by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission. Further workload will begin in FY 1979 to account for royalties on a well-by-well rather than lease basis as new category determinations are made. Of the total $3.0 million request in FY 1980, $0.9 million is for the OCS Program and $2.1 million for the Onshore Oil and Gas on Federal and Indian Lands. The balance of the $1.5 million net increase for Federal and Indian Lands is associated with other workload in the Onshore Oil and Gas and Coal Programs and also proposes a reduction associated with certain functions to be performed in FY 1980 by the Office of Surface Mining. An increase of $1.0 million is requested to respond to increased oil and gas exploration and development activity on Federal lands including the Overthrust Belt. If coal leasing is renewed, emphasis within the Coal Program will be directed to acquire an adequate amount of data for the selection and evaluation of tracts which will be competitively offered for lease. The requested increase of $0.8 million for Coal Tract Selection will be offset by a reduction of $1.3 million budgeted in FY 1979 for the preparation of environmental impact analyses and review and approval of coal mining plans, and for reclamation inspections to be performed in FY 1980 and beyond by the Office of Surface Mining. Land Information and Analysis The funding request for Land Information and Analysis is $21.7 million, a net increase of $1.3 millión. Within the EROS Program, an increase of $1.7 million is required to initiate transition activities for the processing of Thematic Mapper data from Landsat-D, which is scheduled for launch in March 1981, to improve quality and delivery time of MultiSpectral data from the Landsat series of satellites, and to increase the involvement of academic institutions in remote sensing technology transfer and training. To partially offset the increase for EROS, it is proposed that multidisciplinary studies in the Land Resources Data Applications Program be reduced by $0.4 million, although efforts will be made to maintain the current level of activity through increased reimbursable or cooperative funding. EXPLORATION OF NATIONAL PETROLEUM RESERVE IN ALASKA The FY 1980 budget request for the appropriation, Exploration of National Petroleum Reserve in Alaska, is $4.4 million, a decrease of $226.6 million. Unless favorable indications of hydrocarbon resources result from wells already in process, the drilling program is scheduled to be terminated during FY 1980 with funds already appropriated. Over the 5-year life of the program, a total of 19 exploratory wells will |