REPORT OF THE COMMISSION ON MARINE 

 SCIENCE, ENGINEERING AND RESOURCES 



Summary 



In June 1966, Congress passed the Marine Resources and 

 Engineering Development Act of 1966. In addition to estab- 

 lishing the National Council on Marine Resources and Engin- 

 eering Development in the Executive Office of the President, it 

 directed the President to establish a Commission which v^^ould 

 "make a comprehensive investigation and study of all aspects 

 of marine science in order to recommend an overall plan for an 

 adequate national oceanographic program that will meet the 

 present and future national needs." 



The President appointed the fifteen member Commission 

 with Dr. Julius A. Stratton as chairman in January 1967; their 

 report was completed and released in January 1969. The Com- 

 mission considered the issues within the framework of seven 

 panels: basic science; environmental monitoring and man- 

 agement and development of the coastal zone; manpower, edu- 

 cation, and training; industry and private investment; marine 

 engineering and technology; marine resources; and internation- 

 al issues. 



The major recommendation of the Commission was the 

 creation of a strong new civil agency with adequate authority 

 and resources to meet the objectives outlined in the report. 

 It suggested that the organization be called the National Oceanic 

 and Atmospheric Agency (NOAA) and begin with an annual 

 budget of about $800 million which would increase to almost 

 $2 billion by 1980, resulting in a new $8 billion program over 

 the next ten years. 



There were a wide variety of other recommendations with- 

 in the areas covered by the panels listed above. Due to time and 

 resource constraints, the capabilities of the U. S. Navy and 

 Merchant Marine were not examined. Regarding international 

 agreements, the Commission did not feel that a single frame- 

 work for the management of all the uses of the oceans was feas- 

 ible or desirable in the immediate future. They did, however, 

 recommend that the U. S. take the initiative to propose new 

 international framework for the exploration and exploitation 

 of mineral resources and the conduct of scientific inquiry, and to 

 improve and extend the existing network of international fish- 

 ing agreements. 



The Proposed National Oceanic and Atmospheric Agency 



One of the primary responsibilities of NOAA would be to 

 support and increase the nation's capability for ocean research. 

 The Commission did not propose any crash programs but advo- 

 cated "orderly and evolutionary progress into the sea." Dr. 

 Stratton has pointed out that the situation facing the space 



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