understand the effects of change upon fish habi- 

 tats, we need natural laboratories in which we can 

 study the rhythms and relationships governing the 

 physical and biological environment of the estua- 

 rine zones, over a period of time. 



Untouched estuarine and near-coastal zones are 

 rapidly disappearing. It is urgent that the Nation 

 set aside and preserve a sufficient number of such 

 estuaries to provide the natural laboratories re- 

 quired to generate the information and under- 

 standing that will increasingly be needed. This 

 information will have predictive value essential to 

 evaluation of the possible effects of planned 

 enviroiunental changes and will also provide in- 

 sight for the correction of existing adverse condi- 

 tions. 



The National Academy of Sciences Committee 

 on Oceanography recommended the establishment 

 of large scale laboratory facilities for study of the 

 survival requirements of young fish and shellfish.' 

 In a letter to the panel, the Committee reviewed 

 its previous recommendation and reiterated its 

 view. 



Unspoiled study areas must be set aside for 

 permanent scientific use. As many as five such 

 preserves will be required: one in the cool water 

 regions and one in the warm water regions of both 

 East and West Coasts and one on the Gulf Coast. 



Recommendation : 



Specific representative sites should be selected for 

 careful, prolonged study to permit the accumula- 

 tion of basic knowledge essential for under- 

 standing the statics and dynamics of the coastal 

 regime. 



II. DEVELOPMENT OF LIVING RESOURCES 



The living resources of the sea have historically 

 been a staple of man's diet. Today, the technology 

 of catching and marketing fish has revolutionized 

 the ways in which the riches of the sea are 

 harvested. 



The National policy implications for, and the 

 role of United States fisheries in the context of 

 these rapidly-changing conditions are treated ex- 

 tensively in the report of the Panel on Marine 

 Resources. This panel, therefore, has sought to 



learn whether basic science problems exist which 

 are critical to the expansion of our national 

 fisheries. 



It is generally admitted that providing food for 

 a burgeoning population is one of the most critical 

 problems facing mankind over the next 20 years. 

 The quality and very existence of human life for 

 millions of persons depend upon its success, and 

 man must turn to the oceans for part of the 

 answer to this vital question. 



The report of the Panel on the World Food 

 Supply of the President's Science Advisory Com- 

 mittee Usted as its first basic conclusion:^ 



The scale, severity, and duration of the world food 

 problem are so great that a massive, long-range, 

 innovative effort unprecedented in human history 

 will be required to master it 



Fish is consumed in a number of ways: indi- 

 rectly in enormous quantities, both in the United 

 States and abroad, through the medium of fish 

 meal used in the production of poultry and pork; 

 and directly, as a source of protein. Although it 

 does not appear that the sea can supply the needed 

 increase in carbohydrates, food from the sea can 

 help supply the badly needed increased amount of 

 protein. Among the sources of food additives now 

 being developed are leaf and oil protein, fish 

 protein concentrate, and cultured marine algae. 

 Presently, the animal protein additives contain the 

 largest number of badly needed essential amino 

 acids. 



Fish protein concentrate production has begun 

 but there are numerous problems to be solved in 

 adapting the process to other species. Further, if it 

 is to be used in the tropics, the technology must 

 be developed for making FPC from multiple- 

 species catches. 



For all these reasons, the problem of insuring 

 adequate supplies of raw fish is of critical concern, 

 especially in the face of fish stocks which are finite 

 in size. 



A. Fisheries— Traditional and New 



Efficient management of traditional fisheries 

 depends upon the Nation's adding to its basic 

 understanding. Particularly needed is an under- 



Oceanography 1966, National Academy of Sciences, 

 National Research Council, Pub. No. 1492, 1967. 



The World Food Problem, Report of the President's 

 Science Advisory Committee, 1967. 



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