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Appendix 1 

 Department of the Interior — Geological Survey-Marine Geology Program 



Geologic information is fundamental to appraisal of resource potential, to effec- 

 tive management of an as yet incompletely specified public domain, to engineer- 

 ing development of coastal zone, and to policy decisions for international 

 agreements regarding limits of sovereignty and use of oceanic resources beyond 

 national limits. Tlie rapidly increasing use of tbe seabed and its resources, and in- 

 creasing concern v^ith the effects of extraction of resources on other uses, re- 

 quires a broad understanding of the geologic framework of the Nation's con- 

 tinental margins and the deep ocean beyond. This understanding is growing very 

 slowly and needs to be substantially accelerated. 



The proposed Marine Geology Program is planned to accomplish in 5 years 

 a regional understanding of the Nation's continental margins and their transition 

 into the deep ocean floor, and in 20 years the systematic geologic analysis and 

 mapping of all the continental margin of the United States at a scale of 1 :2.50,000, 

 adequate for general and regional resource assessment, and for preliminary 

 planning related to foundation problems, geologic hazards, and land use. 



To achieve a regional understanding of the continental margins during the first 

 6 years of the program, the Geological 'Survey will : 



(1) Investigate and map 10 areas at the scale of 1:250,000, using the Coast 

 and Geodetic Survey bathymetric maps as bases. The areas are selected where 

 resource targets are known or where investigation will give information needed 

 to understand regional geologic patterns. 



(2) Make regional reconnaissance traverses and investigations across the con- 

 tinental margin-ocean transition zone where required for the regional synthesis 

 (scale 1 :1,000,000 or smaller) . 



(3) Study in more detail (scale 1:62,500 or greater) those areas or geologic 

 processes for which information is critically needed for the broader compilations 

 and interpretations. 



Results to be expected by the end of 5 years will include : 



A regional synthesis, at a scale of 1 :1,000,000 or smaller, of the geology 

 of the U.S. Continental Margin and ocean interface. 



Geologic maps and analyses of the 10 high priority areas at a scale of 



1 :250,000. 



Numerous reports on economic and scientific aspects of the program will be 



published each year. Preliminary maps of most of the areas and some of the 



regional syntheses will be available in three to five years ; most final maps and 



analyses will be published within two years after completion of the 5-year phase. 



The results of the first 5-years will determine priorities for selecting areas and 



investigations for the remainder of the 20-year program. Investigations requiring 



ship time are carried out in several ways : 



(1) Through cooperative programs with other Federal agencies, especially 

 Navy Oceanographic Ofl&ce, ESSA, Coast Guard, and Bureau of Commercial 

 Fisheries. For the 5- and 20-year program, about half the required ship time will 

 be Federal ship time utilized through such cooperative programs. The proposed 

 funding does not include money for Federal ship time. 



(2) Through research contracts with universities. Geological Survey scientists 

 work jointly with university scientists and graduate students on these programs. 

 About one-quarter of the funds for the 5- and 20-year program will be in university 

 contracts, and these will provide about one quarter of the total ship time. ♦ 



(3) The remaining one-quarter of the ship time for the program will be ac- 

 quired by charter of industry ships. Much geophysical data, most coredrilling, 

 and use of research submersibles will also be by contract with industry. 



Appendix 2 

 Brief Description of U.S. Geological Survey Projects in Marine Geology 



ATLANTIC CONTINENTAL MARGIN 



A broad reconnaissance of the Atlantic shelf recently completed by the Geo- 

 logical Survey has identified several areas that require intermediate scale map- 

 ping for assessment of their resource potential, and has delineated areas where 



