To place 1980 progress in context, certain 1979 activities, 
fully described in the Commission's previous Annual Report, 
are briefly summarized. Late in the summer of 1979, the 
Commission learned that it had been appropriated $100,000 in 
fiscal year 1980 for work on the manatee. The Commission 
and its Committee of Scientific Advisors immediately organized 
and convened a planning group composed of representatives 
from relevant State agencies in Florida, the Fish and Wildlife 
Service, the scientific community, and environmental organiza- 
tions to review needed research and management activities 
and to provide suggestions on ways in which the appropriation 
could most profitably be invested. 
In addition, an on-site re-evaluation of the situation 
was done by the Commission's Executive Director who met with 
research and management officials from a number of Federal 
and State agencies as well as representiatives of the scientific 
community, industry, and environmental groups in Florida in 
December. As a result of these discussions and reviews, the 
Commission concluded that: (1) steps to improve the management 
of activities related to manatee protection were more urgently 
needed than additional research as a prerequisite to making 
good use of research already done and to be done; (2) the 
Fish and Wildlife Service needed an informed, competent, 
full-time manatee program coordinator/facilitator to work : 
with all interested parties to further protection and recovery 
efforts; (3) a manatee program coordinator/facilitator was 
needed to maintain an on-site overview of manatee-related 
activities and facilitate planning for and implementation of 
the Service's manatee recovery activities; and (4) the 
Florida Department of Natural Resources had the interest and 
competence to undertake critically needed regulatory, enforcement, 
and educational activities and should be assisted in doing 
so. Incorporating these thoughts and others, the Commission 
developed a plan to maximize returns on the $100,000 appropriation. 
The Commission also sought and received Congressional approval 
to invest a portion of the money in management~-related 
activities as well as research programs. 
To summarize, at the end of 1979, the Commission had 
identified steps which it believed necessary to address the 
broad range of manatee problems and had discussed these 
steps with Federal officials, State officials, and other 
interested persons. To further ensure that progress be 
realized, the Commission and its entire Committee of Scientific 
Advisors on Marine Mammals met in Florida in late February 
1980 with representatives of: various Federal agencies 
including the Fish and Wildlife Service, the Corps of Engineers, 
and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration; 
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