198 



scions interference, for example, by silver 

 iodide seeding to change rainfall. 



The scientific community is increasingly 

 confident that it is now possible, rationally 

 and systematically, to investigate a wide 

 range of environmental modification possi- 

 bilities. 



Environmental modification problems are 

 inseparable from those of environmental 

 monitoring and predicting. Several recent 

 reports on weather modification, issued by a 

 special Commission on Weather Modification 

 of the National Science Foundation (NSF) 

 and by the National Academy of Sciences 

 Committee on Atmospheric Sciences, have 

 suggested the need for the Federal Govern- 

 ment to undertake the research, development, 

 and experimentation required to explore the 

 broad spectrum of weather modification pos- 

 sibilities. More recently, in amending the 

 enabling legislation of the National Science 

 Foundation, the Congress eliminated NSF's 

 statutory responsibilities in the field of 

 weather modification, apparently because of 

 the view that these responsibilities should be 

 assumed by ESSA. 



Man is already in the process of modifying 

 his ocean environment, both consciously and 

 inadvertently. By the construction of break- 

 waters he has modified the flow of nearshore 

 ocean current systems. As a result of the 

 introduction of pollution into estuaries and 

 the near coastal zones, he has modified the 

 quality of the water. There have been nu- 

 merous proposals for the creation of artificial 

 upwellings to enhance the productivity of 

 certain ocean areas. Studies of the biological 

 consequences of man's major manipulations 

 of the environment by thermal additions, con- 

 struction of sea level canals, dredging of 

 waterways through marsh areas, and con- 

 struction of major highways on the seashores 

 have become essential. Recent analjiiical re- 

 finements have established beyond doubt that 



manmade pollution already has affected the 

 entire ocean. Prime examples of this are the 

 finding of DDT and products of DDT de- 

 gradation (probably distributed by air into 

 the oceans) in the organs of animals through- 

 out the oceans and the identification of lead 

 from lead-treated gasoline burned by internal 

 combustion engines in the surface layers of 

 the ocean. 



The Commission recommends that the 

 National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

 Agency (ESSA) undertake a comprehen- 

 sive program of research and development 

 to explore the feasibility of beneficial 

 modification of environmental conditions 

 and the effects of inadvertent interference 

 with natural environmental processes. 



An International Framework: 

 Organizational and Legal 



The case for deploying an operational sys- 

 tem for global environmental monitoring 

 re.sts basically on the proposition that only 

 through such a system is there any possibility 

 of being able to advance substantially our 

 ability to provide reliable forecasts of tran- 

 sient oceanic and atmospheric phenomena. It 

 must be global, because the physical systems 

 under observation are linked around the 

 globe. It must provide for frequent synoptic 

 observations to establish the initial state 

 from which future states can be predicted. It 

 must be integrated from sensor to finished 

 forecast, because the vast amount of data 

 permit no other approach, and it must oper- 

 ate in real time, for there are real-time needs 

 for its products. 



Because of the high cost of such a global 

 system, the building of which would be pro- 

 hibitive for even the United States to imder- 

 take alone, it is essential that the system be 

 multilaterally planned and supported. Many 



