VI-6 



present and historical uses; sources of pollution; and damages to use 

 from pollution and other causes. 



Second, there must be technical management information which includes 

 those aspects of management v/hich determine best use of an estuarine 

 system from a scientific and technical standpoint. For example, it 

 would be useless to manage an estuary for oyster production if the 

 habitat in its natural state were not suitable for oysters. To 

 resolve questions of best estuarine use, necessary information v;ould 

 include the following: size and shape; existing water quality; amount 

 of water quality degradation; sources and types of wastes; climate, 

 hydrology, circulation, ecology, present and potential habitat value; 

 physical modification, batiiymetry, and bottom conditions. The list of 

 required management information, both institutional and technical, is • 

 organized into 14 Handbook of Descriptors sections. A brief descrip- 

 tion of each of these sections and the types of information they are 

 designed to contain follows: 



Section 1 identifies each estuarine subdivision accordino to its type, 

 location in the United States, including States, counties, congres- 

 sional districts, and the systems to which it is tributary. 



Section 2 describes the physical structure of each estuarine subdivision; 

 including its size, shape, total water area, area of marshland, climate, 

 and any artificial circulation-modifying structures in the system. 



