390 



concentrate, should not be authorized. Purchase of the product by Gov- 

 ernment contract would be the much preferred approach. 



Where resources are involved, and there are not pressing security 

 considerations, economics should be the determining factor in deciding 

 whether, for instance, fish is the cheapest source for protein or is there 

 some more economical product. The test of whether the land or sea is 

 the cheaper source for any resource must, naturally, be applied to 

 minerals, chemicals, and drugs, as well as oil and gas. 



It is clear that the petroleum industry is by far the largest natural 

 resource factor in oceanography. It is now well recognized that more 

 stringent offshort drilling regulations are not only required but must 

 be strictly enforced. They should be practical and not punitive so as to 

 encourage development of the extensive oil and gas reserves off our 

 continental shelves. 



Larger lease blocks should probably be offered in strictly exploratory 

 areas, such as off the east coast, than the present 5,760-acre blocks. 

 After all, the prospective structures do not stop at the Canadian line 

 of our Continental Shelf. A lot of leases have been granted north of the 

 border and further drilling is planned off Nova Scotia and Newfound- 

 land. 



Programs for conservation and development of our coastal areas, 

 both lake and ocean, are urgently needed. Here, the cooperation of 

 State and municipal authorities is essential together with the invest- 

 ment community. 



One approach would be to form quasi-public corporations, at least, 

 partially financed by revenue or even discount bonds which might have 

 preferred tax-exempt status. Here, the initiative and leadership of the 

 Federal Government are vital to energize such programs for the vari- 

 ous regions concerned such as the Atlantic, gulf, and west coasts, and 

 the Great Lakes. 



Urban renewal in many of our large cities, pollution control, and 

 marine recreation are all involved here. 



Although controversial, still having merit, at least, part of the sub- 

 stantial funds received by the Federal Government and many coastal 

 States from offshore bonuses on lease sales and royalties on production, 

 be used to assist in funding oceanographic research and development, 

 pollution control, as well as all the excellent objectives to be achieved 

 by the proposed Coastal Management act and State coastal zone 

 authorities. 



It is also very important to clarify, as soon as possible, the many 

 open jurisdictional questions of who owns what, where. I would per- 

 haps take exception to the 50-mile or 200-meter depth limit proposed 

 by the Commission in reference to the natural resources a country 

 could claim as under its sovereignty off its shores. 



It might be more practical to operate under the principles estab- 

 lished by the United Nations Convention for the Continental Shelf, 

 namely, determining a jurisdiction beyond the depth of 200 meters by 

 the technical ability to exploit the ocean bed. 



I would not like to see us give up a claim to the sovereignty of the 

 ocean bed embraced by the Continental Shelf, the slope, and the land- 

 ward portion of the rise. I would be much more inclined to support the 

 proposals on jurisdiction over the natural resources of the ocean bed 



