IV-120 



The relative intensity of recreational use of the estuarine zone 

 varies in different sections of the country. Data pertaining 

 specifically to the estuaries are not available; however, some 

 information on the importance of recreation in the coastal area, 

 which serves as an index to estuary potential, is given in Table 

 IV. 2. 4. This table presents a breakdown of recreation shoreline 

 by shore type, ownership, and degree of development. The recrea- 

 tion shoreline 1s defined according to accessibility and useful- 

 ness for recreational pursuits. It comprises about one-third of 

 the entire tidal shoreline of the United States. 



Analysis of the data in the table shows the differences in shore- 

 line development in various sections of the country. The heavily 

 populated northeast section of the country, including the North 

 Atlantic and Middle Atlantic regions, has a fairly well -developed 

 coastal area. Of the total 5,912 recreation shoreline miles 

 (including the Great Lakes portion of New York) there are 5,654 

 miles under private or restricted public ownership, meaning that 

 97 per cent of the shore 1s Inaccessible to the general public 

 (Figure IV. 2. 14). In the Chesapeake and South Atlantic regions 

 the state of shoreline development is low to moderate. Of the 

 total 4,315 miles of recreation shoreline for the two regions, 

 only 154 miles are public recreational areas, a mere 4 per cent 

 of the total. The level of development of the Gulf coast is 



