Figure 2 Traffic Tonnage on the Delaware River from Trenton, New Jersey, to the Sea (consolidated report) and Number of Tankers and Barges Using Big Stone Beach Anchorage Area in the Bay

While lightering is a simple bulk liquid transfer process in theory, in practice it is a business which requires good equipment and skillful crews. Further, severe wind and wave conditions increase the difficulty of operations as each vessel rises and falls at different rates due to its different shape and

mass.

Other Methods to Bring Crude Oil to the Delaware Valley

The Delaware Valley is not served by any pipelines for crude oil transportation. Neither railroad tank cars nor tank trucks are used to bring crude oil into the Delaware Valley due to their higher cost over tanker movement.

The Delaware Valley, however, is served by pipelines which deliver refined products. The Colonial pipeline is one example.

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5.

(a) Describe briefly what interstate, state or local government entities in your state have authority to:

(1) regulate or otherwise oversee harbor or terminal planning,
siting, development and operation?

The State Planning Office has authority pursuant to the Delaware Coastal Zone Act (copy of which is attached, Attachment 1). Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control has authority under Delaware law to lease stateowned subaqueous lands. Presumably, a port would necessitate the leasing of some stateowned land. The City of Wilmington owns and operates the Wilmington Marine Terminal as a department of city government. The Delaware River and Bay Authority an interstate authority, which operates the Delaware Memorial Bridges and the Cape May-Lewes Ferry, between Delaware and New Jersey, has certain responsibilities relative to port development and could, perhaps, develop a port if the decision were made to do so.

(2) coordinate this planning with that being conducted by
agencies of the federal government concerning such
activities:

The State Planning Office has this responsibility since it is liaison with the federal government relative to the National Coastal Zone Management Act of 1972.

(b) Is your state, in the near future, expected to consider legislation or to follow some other course of action which would provide for any of the above?

I am attaching, for your Information, copies of the following statutes of the State of Delaware that relate to port planning and development:

-the Coastal Zone Act (Attachment 1),

-the Wetlands Act (Attachment 2), and

-the Act outlining the authorities of the Secretary of the Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control (Attachment 3).

In addition, I am enclosing the following legislation that has been proposed and that is currently being considered by the General Assembly:

-the Coastal Zone Management Act (Attachment 4), and -the Act regulating the transfer of oil and hazardous substance (Attachment 5).

6. What percentage of your state's coastal area which is set aside, preserved or otherwise protected, or which, because of consistent and predominant use, can be characterized as having significant scenic or recreational value:

Delaware's mainland coastal zone, Including small tidal bays, contains approximately 283,000 acres. The State has preserved, through public

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purchase, some 18,300 acres for park and conservation purposes in its coastal zone. All of these areas have significant scenic and recreation value. In addition, private conservation interests have preserved some 12,000 acres of significant scenic and recreational value.

Of the remaining 252,700 acres in the coastal zone, some 29,700 acres are owned by the federal government as part of federal wildlife refuges or Corps of Engineers' lands. All of these lands have scenic and recreational value.

The privately owned 222,000 acres in the coastal zone are in both passive and active uses. We estimate that 40,000 acres of these lands are in residential and other urban uses. Of the passively used 182,000 acres, approximately 80 percent possess significant scenic, recreational, and conservation value.

In summary, all of the public and private conservation lands (60,000 acres or 21.2% of the coastal zone), plus about 80% of the private passively used lands in the coastal zone (another 145,600 acres or 51.4% of the coastal zone) possess significant scenic, conservation or recreational value. Therefore, a total of 205,600 acres or 72.6% of the Delaware coastal zone is of such value.

1. (a) What, in summary, are your state's laws and policies toward the preservation or development of coastal lands, estuaries, and submerged lands which could be expected to have some bearing on the planning, siting, development, construction, or operation of deepwater port facilities?

I will refer you to the legislation listed under my response to question 5. (b). As a point of emphasis, I wish to point out that our Coastal Zone Act prohibits deepwater ports in Delaware's coastal zone.

Furthermore, under Title 7, Chapter 60, of the Delaware Code, the State provides for the protection of land, water, and air resources. This law precludes, without benefit of a permit, any activity which may contribute to or cause air, water, or solid waste pollution. In addition, no device for withdrawal of ground or surface water, no pipeline nor any highway corridor may be constructed without a permit from the State.

Title 7, Chapter 61, Delaware Code, sets forth the laws and policies relating to activities in submerged lands including mineral exploration. Submerged lands are defined as those lying below the line of mean low tide in the beds of all tidal waters within the boundaries of the State. No activity, such as bulkheading, dredging, or mineral exploration can proceed until a permit is issued by the State.

For those low lands subject to tidal action, such as swamps and marshes,

Title 7, Chapter 66, Delaware Code, requires that a permit be obtained
for any activity within these areas. Very few exceptions from the permit
requirements are specified in the law and these are of little environmental
consequence. The construction of wildlife nesting structures and the
grazing of domestic animals are offered as an example of the foregoing.

Public input is actively sought in all of the permit procedures related to in the foregoing discussion.

(b) Is your state, in the near future, expected to consider legislation or to follow some other course of action which would provide for any of the above?

As indicated in my response to question 5. (b), the State is considering several pieces of legislation that reflect our concern relative to petroleum transportation and terminal facilities in Delaware.

8. Should the federal government enact a measure to authorize the development of offshore deepwater port facilities:

(a) What economic, environmental or social impacts could your state expect to result from the location and operation of such a facility off its shores?

The attached paper (Attachment 6) outlines our assessment of the landside impacts of the development of an offshore deepwater port near Delaware. This assessment was based on information from the Corps of Engineers for their Atlantic Coast Deepwater Port Facility Study. The paper presents this assessment in some detail. I would add briefly that the impact would dramatically and completely change the life style of Lower Delaware in a manner totally inconsistent with the desires and goals of the citizens of Delaware.

(b) What role would you view for your state in the planning, construction, and operation of deepwater port facilities in connection with the implementation of the federal lav?

It is my sincere hope that we would have the right to review all deepwater port plans and to veto the construction of a deepwater port that would adversely impact Delaware.

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