48 



Mr. Weldon. Thank you, Dr. Lane, for your testimony. 

 Dr. Jim Baker? 



STATEMENT OF DR. D. JAMES BAKER, UNDER SECRETARY 

 FOR OCEANS AND ATMOSPHERE, AND ADMINISTRATOR, NA- 

 TIONAL OCEANIC AND ATMOSPHERIC ADMINISTRATION, 

 U.S. DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 



Dr. Baker. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. 



I have to say we're very glad to see you back in the chair as a 

 very strong supporter of oceans issues across the government. 



So congratulations on your successful recovery. 



And also to Chairman Rohrabacher, who shares a common Long 

 Beach heritage with me. We've had some interesting discussions 

 back and forth and his advice has been very helpful to us in NCAA 

 as we adjust our priorities. 



And to Chairman Saxton, who also has been a long-term sup- 

 porter of ocean issues, particularly ocean and coastal issues. It's 

 been great to work with you and we're looking forward to trying 

 to develop these issues further. 



And I want to say to Congressman Kennedy that I appreciate the 

 opportiinity to work with you on the Rhode Island oil spill. As you 

 know, I think we're putting together the fastest federal response to 

 ■get funding out to those people who are affected as fast as we can. 



I think it shows what we can do with support of the congres- 

 sional delegation and all the science agencies. Coast Guard is the 

 lead and NCAA has been working very closely with the Coast 

 Guard there. 



Thank you for the opportunity to testify about the cooperative 

 role that's played by NOAA in the nation's oceans programs. 



We recently celebrated our 25th year of service to the nation as 

 a focus for management and conservation of ocean resources for 

 providing ocean services and civilian ocean research. 



And as you know, we cooperate with other federal and state 

 agencies, with the academic community, with private industry, 

 with nongovernmental organizations, in order to carry out those re- 

 sponsibilities. 



NOAA was created as a result of the Stratton Commission re- 

 view that envisioned that NOAA would provide vital services to in- 

 dustry and the public according to its core mission to describe and 

 monitor and predict changes in the earth's environment. And that 

 it v/ould promote conservation and wise management of the na- 

 tion's marine and coastal resource, so that we could enhance sus- 

 tainable economic opportunities. 



The Stratton Commission characterized the earth as a dynamic 

 system in which the ocean and atmosphere are linked. 



In carrying out our respective missions over the last quarter cen- 

 tury, NOAA and its partners have learned the truth of that linkage 

 and our knowledge continues to grow. 



As a result, many practical benefits have been achieved. 



But the public has yet to reap the full benefit of the commission's 

 vision. During the last 25 years, the scale and importance of oceans 

 issues have increased dramatically. We've learned a lot about how 

 the system works and where the pressures on the system are. 



