560 



of research needs. This statement was broad in scope yet detailed 

 where needed. This information also has been incorporated into this 

 chapter. 



Many of the Federal Government agency profiles presented else- 

 where in this study had a component concerning research activities 

 and study needs. This information has been incorporated into this 

 chapter. 



Each State profile has a comparable research activities and needs 

 component. 



The National Academy of Sciences and the National Academy of 

 Engineering has prepared, through their respective Committee on 

 Oceanography and Conmiittee on Ocean Engineering, a statement on 

 the research needed for coastal waste management. Because of the ini- 

 portance of these groups and the excellence of their suggestions, this 

 contribution has been included as its own section within this chapter. 

 This section represents the thinking of a consortium of established 

 and recognized authorities and tends to supply a cohesive and in- 

 terpretive overview of the research and study needed in the estuarine 

 zones. To a lesser extent, they also supply a scheme of priorities that 

 will serve all beneficial uses of the estuarine zones most effectively and 

 serve as a guide in the implementation of the recommendations of the 

 National Estuarine Pollution Study. 



The purpose of this broadly diversified program of data acquisition 

 was to insure that each of the user groups and conservation interests 

 would have an opportunity to be heard and to have their recommenda- 

 tions for a program of research and study needs presented. The sections 

 that follow will propose as many of these study needs as possible and 

 will relate them to the comprehensive program of estuarine manage- 

 ment presented earlier in this report. 



Section 2. The Data Base Necessary for Effective Technical 



Management 



It is becoming generally recognized that the basic need in estuarine 

 zones is a comprehensive management system designed to maximize 

 the net benefits possible. A great deal of technical and socioeconomic 

 information is necessary for developing and implementing such a 

 management system. Unfortunately, present knowledge is inadequate 

 for most estuarine areas. 



The knowledge required for wise and effective estuarine mana^- 

 ment must be supplied through cooperative efforts of engineers, biol- 

 ogists, economists, and others and incorporated into a conventionalized 

 system of data processing and storage. The availability of data from 

 engineering and ecological studies for socioeconomic analysis should 

 not be merely coincidental, but should be a carefully planned objective 

 incorporated into research designs through multidisciplinary interac- 

 tion and planning. 



The range of estuarine information needed transcends the scope of 

 biological, physical, and chemical data; it must also include specific 



