53 



STATEMENT OF DAVID WALLACE, DIEECTOR, MARINE AND 

 COASTAL RESOURCES, STATE OE NEW YORK 



Mr. Wallace. Mr. Chairman, ladies and gentlemen, m_y role here 

 apparently is one which is more or less the median between the two 

 earlier speakers, Mr. Dolan of California speaking on pretty much 

 the intrastate problem, and Mr. Gregg, speaking on the interstate 

 aspects of this coastal zone management. 



It seems to me that we have a role which lies somevrhat in between 

 both of these viewpoints and my discussion will be along these lines. 



The management of the coastal resources of the United States his- 

 torically has been the responsibility of the individual States. I am 

 emphasizing management and development. Federal and State laws 

 have recognized the States' role. However, as interstate problems liave 

 arisen with increasing frequency in the coastal waters and resources 

 have become shared by more than one State, the interstate compact has 

 become fashionable to have in such matters. 



Many of these efforts have been confined to planning activities with 

 little delegation of management authority. 



Some compact commissions have no authority at all either to plan 

 or to manage as for example the three marine fisheries commissions 

 along our three coasts. In other river basin commissions the structure 

 and thrust has been strongly federally oriented, even though again 

 the resources are considered to belong to and be the property and 

 responsibility of the individual States. 



The States have attempted to cope with the coastal management 

 problem in many ways. Efforts from State to State have varied widely 

 depending upon the financial resources and the legal structure in 

 existence there. 



Some States have given low priority to their marine matters since 

 many people have had the mistaken idea that the marine resources 

 were inexhaustable and the bays and the adjacent seas were capable 

 of absorbing unlimited quantities of wastes and dealing with other 

 concentrated abuses. 



Usually numerous agencies within a State have varying interests 

 in the coastal zone. Often in the furtherance of one goal by one agency 

 the basic resources controlled by another are damaged or destroyed. 



Local government has frequently tended to disregard altogether 

 the importance of its marine resources and has failed to use whateA^er 

 mechanisms that might be available to it in preserving the various 

 values. 



It seems to me that the concepts enunciated in the report of the Com- 

 mission on Marine Science and Engineering and Resources having 

 to do with the role of the various levels of government, are sound 

 and should be heeded. It is my strong feeling that the States must 

 take broad steps immediately to structure themselves so that they can 

 bring all of their resources to bear on the multiple-use concept. 



The Commission called these units coastal zone authorities and for 

 want of a better name, this would seem a useful title at this point. 

 The fmiction of this agency and it seems to me it should be a domi- 

 nant role, would be to develop coordina.tecl plans for the preservation 

 of our coastal environment and the conservation of our renewable and 

 nonrenewable natural resources. 



