case of marine technology, however, we already have a mechanism 

 within the Federal Council for Science and Technology, namely, 

 the Interagency Committee on Marine Science and Engineering 

 (ICMSE) which is dealing with this problem and on which the 

 Navy and other agencies are represented. The outstanding capability 

 of the Navy in ocean engineering has been and will continue to be 

 of great value to the Nation's civil ocean engineering programs, and 

 this use should be more extensively encouraged. 



The concern of the Committee for the national effort in ocean 

 engineering is appreciated. I agree that ocean engineering is a key 

 to broad scale ocean development. One of the more difficult ques- 

 tions, however, is the extent to which the Federal Government 

 should engage in and support civil ocean engineering activities. I 

 believe that the Committee could provide help in the formation of 

 the Nation's ocean engineering effort by undertaking a compre- 

 hensive study of the national needs and the appropriate role of the 

 Federal Government in meeting them. I have asked the Chairman 

 of NACOA to undertake such a study. 



ENERGY AND THE OCEANS 



I have studied with great interest the Committee's views on 

 energy and the oceans and the vital role of the oceans in meeting 

 the energy needs of the Nation. 



The Committee correctly points out that the most promising way 

 to increase our domestic discovery rate for oil and gas is to intensify 

 exploration and drilling offshore on the continental margins of the 

 United States. The President has recognized this imperative in his 

 recent energy message in which he directed that the rate of leasing 

 of offshore lands be tripled. A leasing schedule designed to fulfill 

 this directive has been issued. 



The problem of safeguarding the environment while developing 

 the Nation's offshore oil and gas resources is a major concern of 

 the Administration. I agree fully that there is no basic inconsistency 

 in developing the Nation's oil and gas resources while retaining a 

 quality environment. The technology needed to accomplish this 

 objective is under development and for many purposes already 

 available. In meeting our energy needs, we must continue to insure 

 that the necessary scientific and environmental knowledge is avail- 

 able so that decisions can be made with all factors known. The 

 Committee points out that one of the top priority Government 



