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estuaries in the economic and social environment and the effects 

 of pollution on the natural ecosystem. A discussion of the 

 major economic, social, and ecological trends was to show what 

 the future might hold; and recommendations were to be made for 

 research and study to acquire basic knowledge needed to manage 

 future trends. 



EXTENT OF THE ESTUARINE ZONE 



The geographical scope of this study was stated in the Clean 

 Water Restoration Act in this manner: "... the term 'estu- 

 arine zones' means an environmental system consisting of an 

 estuary and those transitional areas which are consistently 

 influenced or affected by water from an estuary such as, but 

 not limited to, salt marshes, coastal and intertidal areas, 

 bays, harbors, lagoons, inshore waters, and channels, and the 

 term 'estuary' means all or part of the mouth of a navigable 

 or interstate river or stream or other body of water having 

 unimpaired natural connection with open sea and within which 

 the sea water is measurably diluted with fresh water derived 

 from land drainage." 



Explicitly included in these definitions is all of the strip 

 of land and water where the continent and the islands meet 

 the sea, except those few stretches of coast where there 



