VI-48 



SECTION 8. SUMMARY 



The Inventory is desiqned to serve management bv nrovidinq infor- 

 mation over the wide ranae of subject areas required for satisfac- 

 tory manaqement persoectJve, whereas in-deoth data on individual 

 subjects is the focus of most other information svstems. 



It beqan as a means to organize and coordinate the great variety 

 and volume of available information pertinent to estuarine manage- 

 ment. As the program of data qatherinn and analysis progressed, 

 large data gaps beqan to appear, and it became apparent that the 

 Inventory would be valuable not only as a source of data but also 

 as a delineator of data needs. 



These needs fall into two categories: that for data which exist and 

 are available though widely scattered, and that for information 

 which has never been developed. Sources to fill the first need 

 have been located and must be tapped and a consistent program of 

 data gatherinq must be developed to fill the second need. 



The highly compressed tabular data presented throughout this report 

 consists of national and regional summaries of information stored 

 in the Inventory on ,a local qeograohic basis. A continuinq estuarine 

 management information system can provide a local. State, regional, 

 and national management similar current information upon which to 

 base a program for the preservation, use, study, and development of 

 the estuarine zone of the United States. 



