Apart from acquisition of more land, which will 

 be discussed elsewhere, it appears that a number of 

 other actions should be taken. 



First, apparently little or no research has been 

 done on just how many people can be comfortably 

 accommodated on a mile of beach. Is the figure of 

 150 square feet per person adopted by various 

 local planning commissions and ORRRC realistic? 

 However difficult is may be to obtain, sound 

 information of this type is essential if realistic 

 planning is to be accomplished. 



Second, much of the 581 miles of pubUcly-held 

 shoreline with recreation potential presently under 

 military or other restricted usage is within fairly 

 close proximity to urban areas. It would add a 

 most useful increment to the supply of recrea- 

 tional areas if it could be opened to the public at 

 least on weekends. 



Recommendation : 



A survey should be made of publicly-held restric- 

 ted shoreline areas to determine what areas could 

 be opened to the public for recreational purposes, 

 at least on weekends and holidays. Special atten- 

 tion should be given those areas near urban 

 centers. The Bureau of Outdoor Recreation, work- 

 ing in cooperation with the military or other 

 groups controlling the coastal area involved, 

 should have responsibility for making the survey. 

 Steps should then be taken to open whatever areas 

 are found to be available to the public. 



In many areas it may be possible to increase the 

 amount of shoreline substantially by excavation. 

 Such a procedure could appreciably enliance the 

 value of high-density play areas near urban centers. 



Recommendation : 



In places where it is physically feasible and 

 where a real need exists, new shoreline should be 

 created by excavation. Excavating might in many 

 cases be integrated with various public and private 

 dredging and filling operations conducted for 

 other purposes. 



Apart from the shorelines required for general 

 recreational purposes, there is need to preserve 

 areas of outstanding, representative, or unique 

 scientific, cultural, or aesthetic interest. Althougli 

 the supply is no doubt ample, such underwater 



wilderness areas or sanctuaries have not yet been 

 identified or defined. 



More than any other, these types of resource 

 use require early reservation, and decisions to 

 commit the areas to competing purposes are 

 irreversible. It is therefore essential to define and 

 set aside such areas well in advance of actual need. 

 These areas will also need to be identified by 

 careful surveys and their preservation and develop- 

 ment planned in the context of the overall 

 development and exploitation of our marine re- 

 sources. 



IV. GOVERNMENT PROGRAMS 



A. Federal 



During the past few years the whole field of 

 outdoor recreation has been significantly strength- 

 ened and given top-level recognition at the Federal 

 level of government. The recommendations of the 

 ORRRC led to Government actions and programs 

 designed to: 



—Accelerate tlie preservation of open space 



—Formulate National pohcies emphasizing that 

 recreation should be more people-oriented, es- 

 peciaUy in urban areas 



-Promote greater action by State and local gov- 

 ernments 



-Foster better coordination among Federal agen- 

 cies with recreational interests. 



Discussion of specific actions and programs 

 follows. 



1. Land and Water Conservation Fund 



One of the most important programs resulting 

 from the ORRRC recommendations was the Land 

 and Water Conservation Fund authorized by Con- 

 gress in 1964. This fund, administered by the 

 Bureau of Outdoor Recreation, is designed to 

 provide financial assistance to local. State, and 

 Federal agencies in planning, acquiring, and devel- 

 oping recreational projects. 



Sixty per cent of the fund's resources are 

 available to the States on a 50-50 ma telling basis, 

 and 40 per cent goes to National Park Service, 



VII-242 



