Decade of Ocean Exploration 



the greatest benefits are derived from the pooUng of resources and the 

 sharing of responsibihties through planning and implementing specific 

 collaborative projects. This is particularly true in the deep oceans where, 

 because of the high cost of operations, it is desirable to coordinate plans 

 internationally to insure that areas with the highest potential interest to 

 the most users are given priority attention. 



Planning in the United States 



In the United States, the National Council on Marine Resources and 

 Engineering Development has been assigned the responsibility by the Presi- 

 dent for coordinating on a government-wide basis ocean exploration activi- 

 ties and for developing a coordinated national exploration plan. As an 

 initial step, the Council has turned to the scientific and engineering com- 

 munities to assist in developing specific proposals. The Council contracted 

 for the National Academy of Sciences and National Academy of Engineer- 

 ing to conduct a study and prepare recommendations concerning: 



(1) scientific and ocean engineering goals for the Decade; 



(2) priorities among these goals; 



(3) capabilities required to achieve these goals in terms of man- 

 power, marine data (including standards as appropriate), instrumen- 

 tation (including calibration as appropriate), sea and shore facilities, 

 and funds; 



(4) program elements of the Decade including objectives, milestones, 

 priorities, and timing ; and 



(5) end products of the Decade such as charts, maps, research 

 reports, atlases, and benefits to be expected in terms of advancements in 

 science and engineering as well as contributions toward the goals and 

 objectives of P.L. 89-454. 



The Academies have preliminarily identified the following exploration 

 programs to be of particular interest during the next ten years: 

 1. Geology and N on-Living Resources: 

 — geological-geophysical surveys of North American Continental Shelves 



and the eastern Atlantic continental margin; 

 — assessment of the mineral resource potential of small ocean basins, 

 such as the Gulf of Mexico, Caribbean, Mediterranean, and the East 

 Indies area; 

 — dredging, coring, profiling, and related studies of oceanic ridges and 

 trenches, such as the Mid-Atlantic Ridge and the Peru-Chile Trench ; 

 and 

 — surveys of selected Pacific sites of manganese nodules and phosphorite 

 deposits. 



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329-46« O — 69 10 



