337 



All of the 25 estuarine systems listed above also show some ecologi- 

 cal damage, but in 38 percent of the estuarine systems of the United 

 States there is not sufficient information to decide whether there is no 

 ecological damage, or whether there is just no easily identifiable 

 pollution problem present. 



The complex nature of pollution in the estuarine zone prevents the 

 separation of sources of pollution, kinds of pollution, and types of 

 environmental damage into neat compartments of cause and effect. All 

 of human activities in the estuarine zone can damage the environment 

 and most of them do. 



Wherever people live, work, and play in the estuarine zone the 

 demands of their social and economic activities place stresses on the 

 biophysical environment. These stresses frequently result in degrada- 

 tion of that environment, perhaps not immediately or even in a few 

 years, but nonetheless certain in their devastating final impact. 



Section 4. Use Conflicts and Damages: Man's Battle With 

 Himself and Nature 



The consequence of damage to the biophysical environment is loss of 

 u^e either immediately or at some time in the future. Loss of use, how- 

 ever, may also be associated with the appropriation of part of the 

 estuarine resource for one exclusive use even when no damage to the 

 environment itself occurs. 



Institutional management must cope with the problems of re- 

 sponsibility and authority in achieving maximum multiple use of the 

 estuarine resource. Within this comprehensive framework technical 

 management must resolve the problems surrounding conflicts of use, 

 competition for the resources of the estuarine zone, and environmental 

 damage. The primary objective of technical management is to achieve 

 the best possible combination of uses to serve the needs of society while 

 protecting, preserving, and enhancing the biophysical environment for 

 the continuing benefit of present and future generations. 



The uses of the estuarine zone grew and changed in consonance with 

 population growth and industrial development. Not until recent years 

 was a concerted attempt made to understand and resolve the conflicts 

 that arose in the competition to use and exploit these land and water 

 resources. During the past 300 years of growth and industrial expan- 

 sion with its emphasis on economic growth and direct monetary gain, 

 large parts of the estuarine zone were preempted or usurped to serve 

 the individual needs of commercial enterprises. The net result has been 

 less a conflict in existing uses than an exclusion of some uses. 



Nearly all estuarine uses involve both land and water, either directly 

 or indirectly. For example, the construction of a manufacturing plant 

 on the shore of an estuarine system may not involve any direct use of 

 the water (even for waste disposal), yet it limits access by its occupa- 

 tion of the shoreline and so may interfere with other uses. Conversely, 

 the disposal of liquid wastes into the water may make the shoreline 

 unusable for recreation as well as making the water itself unsafe. 



The impact of one estuarine use on another may be either "prohibi- 

 tive" or "restrictive" depending on the kind of use and sometimes on 

 the manner in which it is carried out. 



