2il 



Environmental Science Services 

 Administration 



Tlie formation of ESSA brought under 

 single management tlie U.S. Weatlier Bureau, 

 the U.S. Coast and Geodetic Survey, and the 

 Central Radio Propagation Laboratory of 

 the National Bureau of Standards. In this 

 way, a consolidation was effected of the U.S. 

 Department of Commerce's programs con- 

 cerned with the description, understanding, 

 and prediction of the state of the oceans and 

 atmosphere and the size and shape of the 

 earth. 



Like the Coast Guard, ESSA provides a 

 great variety of services to the general public 

 and specialized users. ESSA conducts both 

 research and technical service programs to 

 provide : 



• Weather and marine forecasts and 

 warnings 



• River and flood forecasts and warnings 



• Earth description, mapping, and charting 



• Marine description, mapping, and charting 



• Telecommunications and space services 



• A national environmental satellite system. 



ESSA also {>erforms work for other agen- 

 cies and non-Federal organizations on a re- 

 imbursable basis and has well-established 

 relationships with NASA, the Department 

 of Defense, and other agencies. It has im- 

 portant land responsibilities stemming from 

 its role as the central weather, flood, seismo- 

 logical, geodetic, and geomagnetic agency. 



ESSA would provide NOAA with a broad 

 capability in atmospheric, oceanic, and other 

 geophysical activities. The agency maintains 

 a close working relationship with its counter- 

 part organizations in other nations of the 

 world and represents the United States in 

 the World Meteorological Organization, 

 which coordinates all of the atmospheric and 

 many of the marine forecasting services for 

 the entire world. 



Under the Commission's proposed orga- 

 nization, ESSA would provide the base for 

 conducting ocean surveys to map and chart 

 the sea. By consolidation of several existing 

 fleets of ships and aircraft, NOAA could ex- 

 pand its essential charting and mapping serv- 

 ices with great efficiency in use of facilities 

 and manpower. NOAA's obligation to sur- 

 vey the geology of the seabed, as outlined in 

 Chapter 4, would fit very well with ESSA's 

 present responsibilities in geodesy, seismol- 

 ogy, geomagnetics, and geophysics. 



Joining ESSA's monitoring and predic- 

 tion capabilities with those of the U.S. Coast 

 Guard and the Bureau of Commercial Fish- 

 eries would enable the Nation to develop and 

 manage rationally the National Environ- 

 mental Monitoring and Prediction System, 

 as recommended by the Commission. 



U.S. Lake Survey 



The U.S. Lake Survey of the U.S. Corps 

 of Engineers is concerned with charting and 

 studying the waters of the Great Lakes. It 

 undertakes: 



• To prepare and publish navigational 

 charts and related materials 



• To study elements affecting lake levels and 

 river flow 



• To advise international bodies charged 

 with managing the use of border waters 



• To conduct scientific investigations of the 

 physical aspects of fresh water 



• To compile maps for the Army Map 

 Service. 



All these activities, except the last, are con- 

 fined to the Great Lakes and nearby navi- 

 gable waters. In brief, the Lake Survey does 

 in the Great Lakes about what ESSA, in 

 part, does in the salt waters. It is a small or- 

 ganization with a large mission. 



The Great Lakes need more concentrated 

 attention than the Lake Survey alone can 



