559 



problems on a firsthand basis : The scientists, engineers, planners, and 

 economists in the various universities, institutions, and State and local 

 governments who will actually do the research suggested liere. In 

 order to take direct advantage of this vast reservoir of knowledge and 

 experience throughout the country, each region of the Federal Water 

 Pollution Control Administration was instructed to contact individ- 

 uals and institutions in its vicinity who are knowledgeable and were 

 interested in supplying information to the National Estuar'ine Pollu- 

 tion Study. The response to this call for information was generous 

 and provided an extremely valuable and diversified array of research 

 needs. This group also supplied many valuable concepts towards estab- 

 lishing a system of management of research. 



In order to sample the thinking of the many organizations of 

 learned men, letters were written to 15 selected professional societies 

 and organizations requesting their official opinions on research needs. 

 This group was selected as being representative of those societies 

 whose memberships are closely concerned with the problems of estua- 

 rine water pollution and its abatement. A more comprehensive list 

 would have introduced considerable redundancy because of the many 

 other sources of information used. The organizations contacted were : 



(1) Atlantic Estuarine Research Society. 



(2) The American Fisheries Society. 



(3) American Society of Ichthyologists and Herpetologists. 



(4) American Society of Limnology and Oceanography. 



(5) American Institute of Biological Sciences. 



(6) Ecological Society of America. 



(7) American Water Resources Association. 



(8) Water Pollution Control Federation. 



(9) American Society of Civil Engineers. 



(10) American Chemical Society. 



(11) American Geological Institute. 



(12) Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission. 



(13) Gulf States Marine Fisheries Conmiission. 



(14) Pacific Marine Fisheries Commission. 



(15) Gulf and Caribbean Fisheries Commission. 



As discussed in detail elsewhere in the report, 30 public meetings 

 were held throughout the country to learn what the public desired 

 for their estuaries. Each of these meetings contained many statements 

 of importance to the development of a research and study program. 

 The transcripts of these meetings were analyzed in detail. The re- 

 search and study needs so identified have been incorporated into this 

 chapter of the report. 



In the course of the National Estuarian Pollution Study, many spe- 

 cial study contracts were let. Many of these requested a discussion of the 

 research and study needs in the specific area under consideration. In- 

 formation so derived has been incorporated into the preparation of 

 this chapter. 



The Office of Research and Development of the Federal Water 

 Pollution Control Administration supplied to the study a statement 



