VI-206 



criteria for the technical management of estuarine areas to qualify 

 for any Federal aid program. Additional Federal funds might be 

 made available to encourage even higher standards or tp assire 

 non-degradation policies. 



Key Management Roles 



The problems of estuarine pollution are essentially of an ecological 

 nature. The resources which we are most anxious to exploit and the 

 nuisances which we wish to prevent are primarily biologically based. 

 The technical management of estuarine systems must be consistent 

 with natural processes; biological, physical, and chemical, Man's 

 activities must be fitted into the natural system -- not forced upon 

 it. All too frequently, the natural environment is mechanically 

 manipulated for narrowly defined economic purposes, and the value of 

 natural areas such as estuaries is threatened or destroyed forever, 

 due to ignoring sound ecological practices. This approach does not 

 deprecate the essentiality of any discipline, for many of the solu- 

 tions to biological problems can be achieved only through engineer- 

 ing expertise. The very framework within which all estuarine uses 

 occur is the institutional arrangements of the law. It is only the 

 economist who can recognize market and nonmarket values and supply 

 administrators this information so necessary for resource evaluation 

 and allocation. 



