the waters are safe for body contact or not. Also the role of the estu- 

 arine zone as a nursery for some fish, passage for others, and a resi- 

 dence for still more is readily apparent although its full implications 

 in the energy conversion chain are not understood. For these reasons 

 the long-range achievable water quality goal of estuarine manage- 

 ment should be to keep all waters safe for direct contact by humans and 

 also usable as a fish and wildlife habitat. 



Management and Knowledge 



A great deal of technical and socioeconomic knowledge is necessary 

 to support a comprehensive program of estuarine management. This 

 knowledge must be supplied through multidisciplinary efforts. The 

 knowledge thus developed must include: (1) Knowledge and under- 

 standing of the biological, physical, and chemical factors of the estua- 

 rine zone, (2) knowledge of the institutional framework governing 

 each portion of the estuarine zone, (3) knowledge of the demographic, 

 social, and economic factors and their trends, (4) establishment of 

 goals and uses so that future studies can be relevantly oriented, and 

 (5) an augmentation and synthesis of all this knowledge. 



The available pertinent information on these subjects has been 

 gathered, organized, and coordinated into the National Estuarine In- 

 ventory. This compilation revealed many areas in which information is 

 poor or is lacking; some can be obtained by^ careful, routine monitor- 

 mg of the estuarine environment. The acquisition of other knowledge 

 requires an integrated, multidisciplinary research and study program. 



The most important knowledge to be gained is an understanding of 

 the estuarine environment adequate to permit the recognition and 

 interpretation of interrelatonships which, in turn, provides the capa- 

 bility to predict the effects of natural and human activities in the estu- 

 arine zone. The research and study programs which will yield this 

 information are in the categories of : 



(1) Ecology, taken to include base line information, broad 

 ecological studies, biology, water quality, natural variability, and 

 interface factors. 



(2) Toxicity, taken to include bioassay needs and methodology, 

 sublethal effects, and mortality phenomena. 



(3) Microbiology, taken to include the regeneration of plant 

 nutrients, biodegradation of organic wastes, eutrophication, and 

 pathogens. 



(4) Physics and mathematics, taken to include hydraulics, sedi- 

 mentation, effects of structures and physical modifications, and 

 physical and mathematical modeling. 



(5) Planning, taken to include economics, law, social and de- 

 mographic factors and trends, resource evaluation and allocation, 

 and the role of technical research and study in supporting a com- 

 prehensive management program. 



(6) Needs of researchers, taken to include environmental mod- 

 eling, methodology (both laboratory and field techniques), data 

 processing, training needs, and estuarine zone laboratories. 



The various agencies and institutions working in estuaries should 

 coordinate their activities; results of research should be widely dis- 



