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'Treserve a robust 'at-sea' research and survey capability, including a Navy 

 survey fleet of no less than eight ships to meet the critical data 

 requirements of the fleet commanders. 



FLEET ISSUES 



The productivity of oceanographic research, the comparative advemtage of our 

 navad defense forces, our understanding of climate, and ability to develop new 

 marine products depends on the ability of scientists to conduct experiments at sea. 

 Research at sea provides an invaluable opportunity to collect data and make real- 

 time observations. Most research cruises also include graduate students, training 

 the future leaders in ocean science. While the oceanographic fleet is as large and 

 modem as it has ever been, many federal agencies are funding fewer at-sea research 

 projects. This threatens the long-term health of the academic oceanographic fleet, as 

 well as, the country's ability to maintain a vibrant research program in the oceans. 



Scripps ships are part the University-National Oceamographic Laboratory System 

 (UNOLS) fleet. UNOLS, a valuable tool for efficiently distributing capabilities and 

 sccirce resources, is an association of institutions that operate and conduct research 

 on the academic fleet. LTsIOLS provides open access to all vessels by federal, state, 

 and local research programs. "liie UNOLS fleet is primarily supported by federal 

 funding (attached please find a summary of UNOLS federal support). NSF provides 

 75% of the funding for the UNOLS operations; the remainder of the funding comes 

 from the Office of Naval Research (ONR), the National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

 Administration (NOAA), other federal and state agencies, industrial, institutional, 

 foreign, and private support. UNOLS institutions also make significant 

 contributions to the fleet. The University of Washington annually contributes 45 

 ship days on the Thomas Thompson . Scripps contributes about $1.5 million per 

 year for ship support. 



The UNOLS fleet is completing an aggressive program of modeniization. Plarming 

 and funding of this modemizafion was undertaken cooperatively by the federal 

 government and academic community. An interagency group developed a 

 coherent plan for fleet modernization and retirement which decreases the number 

 of ships. The configuration and justification for the current fleet were driven by the 

 scientific requirements and predicated upon funding agency projections. The 

 competition for the new AGOR was peer-reviewed and supported by all the relevant 

 federal agencies. 



During this period of modernization, the United States Navy funded construction 

 of three Class I vessels and supported extensive modifications of two other vessels. 

 In total, the Navy's capital investment over this p>eriod is in excess of $150 million. 

 The National Science Foundation also contributed sigiuficantly to improving our 



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