46 



The strategic State position is also a direct result of the on-scene 

 nature of the State function — the interface between the forces of 

 politics, business, and people and their respective ambitions for put- 

 ting to use the storehouse of available estuarine and coastal resources. 

 It IS in the State Capitols that many of the major decisions will be 

 made that will determine the success of a national estuarine and coastal 

 management program. 



THE STATE RESPONSIBILITIES 



Seven aspects of the States' possession of this residual sovereignty 

 which relate more specifically to the management of estuarine and 

 coastal resources, help underscore the States' strategic and primary 

 responsibility. First, although the Federal role has expanded in recent 

 years, the States retain primary authority and responsibility for the 

 prevention and control of water pollution. Second, they hold title to 

 wholly or partially submerged lands and mineral resources in the 

 estuarine and coastal zone and are responsible for administering these, 

 through retention by the State or through their disposal or lease, in 

 the public interest. Third, the States possess primary authority to 

 decide, either directly or through their local subdivisions, how the 

 shoreline and related uplands in the estuarine and coastal zones are 

 to be used for various purposes, that is, trade and commerce, industry, 

 parks, recreation, et cetera. Fourth, the authority of local govern- 

 ments generally in managing the water and land resources in estuaries 

 is determined by the States. Fifth, the exploitation of the fisheries and 

 other living estuarine and coastal resources is under State control to 

 the seaward boundary of U.S. territorial seas. Sixth, the nature and 

 forms of interstate cooperation in managing the Nation's estuaries is 

 a matter which the States largely decide. And, finally, each State 

 presides over the common law which governs private relations in the 

 development and use of estuarine and coastal resources, and resolves 

 the conflicting rights, interests, and privileges of its citizens in using 

 these resources. 



THE RECOMMENDED STATE ROLE 



Clearly, therefore, it is upon the States that the Nation must place 

 its major reliance in achieving that reasonable compromise between 

 private rights and expectations, on the one hand, and the collective or 

 public interest, on the other. It is also upon the States that the Nation 

 must rely primarily for the integration of Federal service functions 

 into State programs and, even more important, for the development 

 of suggested reconciliations where the regulatory or service programs 

 of dili'erent Federal agencies in a specific estuary are in conflict, rhese 

 are the heart of this study's recommendations for sound management 

 of the estuarine and coastal resources. 



Responsibilities inherent in this strategic and primary role of the 

 States in improving management of the Nation's coastal resources are 

 both immediate and of a more long-range nature. The immediate role 

 to be played by the States includes : 



(1) Vigorous implementation of water quality standards es- 

 tablished for each State's estuarine and coastal waters. 



(2) Maximum use of the States' available existing authority 



