tories, heat from powerplants, domestic wastes and sewage from cities and 

 towns, insecticides and fertilizers from land runoff, atmospheric fallout 

 of gasoline vapors, low level radioactive wastes from reactors, laboratories, 

 and hospitals are all flowing into the ocean. The sheer bulk of the material 

 disposed of and the presence of new types of nondegradable waste products 

 are now beginning to affect the ocean at an increasing rate; the wastes 

 can no longer so readily be diluted, dispersed, or degraded. 



Dumpings and discharges into the water are only part of the problem. 

 Physical changes in the coastal environment result from erosion due to 

 wind, waves, tides, storms, and man's uses and misuses of coastal lands. 

 Erosion introduces pollutants into" the water; the material moved and 

 deposited clogs navigation channels and suffocates marine life. Modifica- 

 tions of submarine areas by dredging and mining disturbs the habitat of 

 marine and marsh life. Upstream dams and river diversions permit saline 

 water intrusions from ocean to estuary to the detriment of marine life. 



As a consequence of these actions and activities, ocean pollution — once of 

 little concern because the ocean was considered so large as to be unlimited 

 in its capacity to absorb wastes — is recognized as a growing problem. We 

 have found today, as we found earlier with our rivers and lakes, that every 

 body of water, including the ocean, has limited capacity to absorb and 

 neutralize inflowing materials. 



Pressures are mounting which will aggravate these problems. The world's 

 rapidly growing population is clustering near the coastlines. In the United 

 States, 75 percent of our population inhabits States bordering on a 17,000- 

 mile shore; 45 percent of our population lives in coastal communities, and 

 coastal urban development is mounting. By the year 2000, the U.S. popula- 

 tion will increase by about 60 percent and most of our major megalopoli will 

 crowd the Nation's coastal zone. Other areas of the world face similar 

 pressures of man and his technology on the environment — of the world's 

 10 largest metropolitan areas, seven lie on major oceanic estuaries. 



The growth of population and its migration to the shore have led to 

 expanded activities on and uses of the sea, worsening the pollution problem. 

 A preponderance of the Nation's heavy industrial investment is located 

 along the coast. It is estimated that, despite abatement efforts, industrial 

 pollution of the ocean alone is growing at a rate of 4.5 percent annually — 

 three times faster than the growth of population. New uses of the coastal 

 zone are foreseen — offshore airports, oil terminals, nuclear power generation 

 plants and trunk sewers. The 16,000- ton tanker of 25 years ago has given 

 way to today's 300,000-ton supertanker, with the potential for massive oil 

 spills resulting from accidental breakups. With more ships on the sealanes, 

 more accidents are likely. With more offshore oil drilling, the threat of 

 well blowouts increases. Some 16,000 oil wells have already been drilled 

 off U.S. coasts, and the number is augmented by 1,000 each year. The Presi- 

 dent's Panel on the Santa Barbara, Calif., oil spill concluded we may expect 

 an average of one major oil spill each year after 1980. 



In 1969 a number of serious incidents signaled future dangers of ocean 

 pollution. The Santa Barbara oil spill, described in chapter III, destroyed 

 waterfowl and property. The Food and Drug Administration was forced to 

 condemn some 700,000 coho salmon caught in Lake Michigan because they 



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