33 U.S.C. § 1476 — Emergencies

Page 628 TITLE 33—NAVIGATION AND NAVIGABLE WATERS § 1473 § 1473. Consultations and determinations re- specting creation of hazards to human health, etc.; criteria for determinations re- specting grave and imminent dangers of major harmful consequences to United States coastline or related interests (a) The Secretary, after consultation with the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency and the Secretary of Commerce, shall determine when a substance other than those enumerated in the protocol is liable to create a hazard to human health, to harm living re- sources, to damage amenities, or to interfere with other legitimate uses of the sea. (b) In determining whether there is grave and imminent danger of major harmful consequences to the coastline or related interests of the United States, the Secretary shall consider the interests of the United States directly threat- ened or affected including but not limited to, human health, fish, shellfish, and other living marine resources, wildlife, coastal zone and es- tuarine activities, and public and private shore- lines and beaches. (Pub. L. 93–248, § 4, Feb. 5, 1974, 88 Stat. 9; Pub. L. 95–302, § 1(3), June 26, 1978, 92 Stat. 344.) Editorial Notes AMENDMENTS 1978—Pub. L. 95–302 added subsec. (a), designated ex- isting provisions as subsec. (b), and inserted ‘‘human health,’’ before ‘‘fish’’. Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries EFFECTIVE DATE OF 1978 AMENDMENT For effective date of amendment by Pub. L. 95–302, see section 2 of Pub. L. 95–302, set out as a note under section 1487 of this title. § 1474. Federal intervention actions Upon a determination under section 1472 of this title of a grave and imminent danger to the coastline or related interests of the United States, the Secretary may— (1) coordinate and direct all public and pri- vate efforts directed at the removal or elimi- nation of the threatened pollution damage; (2) directly or indirectly undertake the whole or any part of any salvage or other ac- tion he could require or direct under sub- section (1) of this section; and (3) remove, and, if necessary, destroy the ship and cargo which is the source of the dan- ger. (Pub. L. 93–248, § 5, Feb. 5, 1974, 88 Stat. 9.) § 1475. Consultation procedure Before taking any measure under section 1474 of this title, the Secretary shall— (1) consult, through the Secretary of State, with other countries affected by the marine casualty, and particularly with the flag coun- try of any ship involved; (2) notify without delay the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency and any other persons known to the Secretary, or of whom he later becomes aware, who have in- terests which can reasonably be expected to be affected by any proposed measures; and (3) consider any views submitted in response to the consultation or notification required by subsections (1) and (2) of this section. (Pub. L. 93–248, § 6, Feb. 5, 1974, 88 Stat. 9.) § 1476. Emergencies In cases of extreme urgency requiring meas- ures to be taken immediately, the Secretary may take those measures rendered necessary by the urgency of the situation without the prior consultation or notification as required by sec- tion 1475 of this title or without the continu- ation of consultations already begun. (Pub. L. 93–248, § 7, Feb. 5, 1974, 88 Stat. 9.) § 1477. Reasonable measures; considerations (a) Measures directed or conducted under this chapter shall be proportionate to the damage, actual or threatened, to the coastline or related interests of the United States and may not go beyond what is reasonably necessary to prevent, mitigate, or eliminate that damage. (b) In considering whether measures are pro- portionate to the damage the Secretary shall, among other things, consider— (1) the extent and probability of imminent damage if those measures are not taken; (2) the likelihood of effectiveness of those measures; and (3) the extent of the damage which may be caused by those measures. (Pub. L. 93–248, § 8, Feb. 5, 1974, 88 Stat. 9.) § 1478. Personal, flag state, and foreign state con- siderations In the direction and conduct of measures under this chapter the Secretary shall use his best endeavors to— (1) assure the avoidance of risk to human life; (2) render all possible aid to distressed per- sons, including facilitating repatriation of ships’ crews; and (3) not unnecessarily interfere with rights and interests of others, including the flag state of any ship involved, other foreign states threatened by damage, and persons otherwise concerned. (Pub. L. 93–248, § 9, Feb. 5, 1974, 88 Stat. 9.) § 1479. Federal liability for unreasonable dam- ages (a) Payment of compensation The United States shall be obliged to pay com- pensation to the extent of the damage caused by measures which exceed those reasonably nec- essary to achieve the end mentioned in section 1472 of this title. (b) Jurisdiction Actions against the United States seeking compensation for any excessive measures may be brought in the United States Court of Federal Claims, in any district court of the United States, and in those courts enumerated in sec- tion 460 of title 28. For purposes of this chapter, American Samoa shall be included within the judicial district of the District Court of the