Theodore M.
Tell me about this study that you say Jamie
requested on science and
technology and the impact on water resources or something of that sort? Can
you tell me? That sounds like an interesting one to me.
Yes, it was very interesting. Jamie
wrote it into the appropriations act
for EPA, million. EPA was directed to contract with the National Academy
of Sciences for a study of how scientific and technical information is used in
environmental decisionmaking. While he was at the Legislative Reference
Service, I think Dick Carpenter had been requested to help Jamie
We May Live. This was a stirring
develop material for his book called
defense of the use of pesticides to keep up agricultural production. Knowing
that Dick would be in charge may be what led Congressman
to request
that the study be done. I don't know whether he came to Dick to get help with
the wording of the legislation for the study, but usually the members would
consult with us before they would write legislation. We had to tell them that the
Congress could not direct the academy to do a study because the academy is not
a government agency. It's an independent corporation, not for profit, created
in 1863 and chartered by the Congress.
Anyway, the request was directed to us and Dick and I developed a very good
rationale for the study. We proposed about a ten-study program, including
generic studies in areas like research, decisionmaking, and manpower, and a
number of specific study areas like noise pollution and sludge management.
There were several others that I don't remember. All of these studies would be
done by committees under general control of the Commission on Natural
Resources through a master steering committee which would be directing the
whole study and would put together the final summary report.
At that time, million would pay for a big study. It was probably about 10
percent of the National Academy of Sciences' annual budget. Although it was
not a one-year study, it was a big study and the Commission on Natural
Resources was brand new. It had just been set up for a short time. This was
Phil Handler's reorganization of the National Research Council as the operating
body of the National Academies. It was divided into four commissions and four
assemblies-assemblies being disciplinary oriented and commissions being
multidisciplinary.
There were some clashes obviously because you can't divide the scientific
world up that way. So Phil Handler, even though he had a great deal of faith
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