research, mostly in academic institutions, that is designed to aid in 

 the protection and rehabilitation of estuarine resources and to 

 ensure their best use. 



The Office of Saline Water is in the process of terminating most 

 activities devoted to seawater desalination, seawater brine disposal, 

 operation of pilot plants, and associated environmental 

 investigations that have previously been included in the Federal 

 Ocean Program. 



The Bureau of Reclamation is cooperating with the State of 

 California in preliminary design and cost studies of a seafloor 

 aqueduct to deliver water from the northern to the southern parts of 

 the State. 



In the coastal zone, the expanding National Wildlife Refuge 

 System, administered by the Department's Bureau of Sports 

 Fisheries and Wildlife, and the growing number of National Parks, 

 Monuments, Seashores, and Historical Sites, maintained by 

 Interior's National Park Service, are among the Nation's most 

 popular tourist and vacation attractions. Between June 1971 and 

 May 1973, Congress authorized expansion of one national monument 

 in the coastal zone and the addition of 4 refuges, 1 national 

 monument, 3 national seashores, and 2 recreation areas (near New 

 York and San Francisco). The shorelines and adjacent waters of 

 these public coastal lands provide sites for marine research by many 

 investigators and serve as demonstration laboratories for the public. 



To protect and enhance national gamefish and wildlife values, 

 both within and outside refuges, the Bureau of Sports Fisheries and 

 Wildlife maintains 12 fish hatcheries, is constructing 2 new ones to 

 serve Great Lakes and marine areas, and operates five hatcheries for 

 the National Marine Fisheries Service. The Bureau also reviews 

 applications submitted to the Corps of Engineers for dredging and 

 filling to assure safety of local gamefish and wildlife, and it 

 undertakes studies and institutes control measures where habitats 

 or associated resource values are threatened. 



Department of the Interior activities that are not classified as part 

 of the Federal Ocean Program, but which contribute to the 

 advancement of marine science and engineering and to the 

 development of offshore resources, include: 



1. Geological Survey investigations of land resources and of 

 geological, geochemical, geophysical, and hydrological conditions 

 and processes that aid in identification and evaluation of potential 

 offshore resources, and which are fundamental to recognition of 

 natural hazards to resource development; 



2. Bureau of Mines and Office of Oil and Gas studies that provide 

 marine mineral and fossil fuel production statistics and analyses, 

 and develop technology applicable to marine mining and ore 

 processing; 



3. Office of Saline Water general desalination and materials 

 research that can be adapted to seawater processing and corrosion as 



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