195 



most productive regions of the world. Most estuarine areas equal or 

 double the production rates of the best upland agiicultural areas ; from 

 15 to 30 times the productivity of the oi^en oceans. 



DtSiKr 

 I 





Comparative production rates among terrestrial and aquatic systems. Source: 

 Redrawn from Teal and Teal, 1969, in "Man in the Living Environment". Re- 

 port of the Workshop on Global Ecological Problems. The Institute of Ecology, 

 1971 



Recognizing the importance of the coastal zone, the Commission on 

 Marine Science, Engineering and Resources devoted its first substan- 

 tive chapter of "Our Nation and the Sea" to management in tliis im- 

 portant area. The opening paragraphs of that chapter quickly focus 

 on the basic needs and problems of coastal and estuarine zone man- 

 agement : 



The coast of the United States is, in many respects, the 

 Nation's most valuable geographic feature. It is at the junc- 

 ture of the land and sea that the great part of this Nation's 

 trade and industry takes place. The waters off the shore are 

 among the most biologicail}' productive regions of the Nation. 



The uses of valuable coastal areas generate issues of intense 

 State and local interest, but the effectiveness with which the 

 resources of the coastal zone are used and protected often is a 

 matter of national importance. Navigation and military uses 

 of the coasts and waters off-shore clearly are direct Federal 

 responsibilities: economic development, recreation, and con- 

 servation interests are shared by the Federal Government 

 and the States. 



Rapidly intensifying use of coastal areas already has out- 

 run the capabilities of local governments to plan their orderly 

 development and to resolve conflict. The division of responsi- 

 bilities among the several levels of government is unclear, and 

 the knowledge and procedures for formulating sound deci- 

 sions are lacking. * * * "Our Nation and the Sea", GPO 1969, 

 at p. 19) 



More recently the National Governors' Conference adopted a strong 

 policy on coastal zone management, stating in part: 



The coastal zone presents one of the most perplexing en- 

 vironmental management challenges. The 3 States which bor- 

 der on the oceans and the Great Lakes contain 75 percent of 

 our Nation's population. The pressures of population and eco- 

 nomic development threaten to overwhelm the balanced and 



