Chapter 6 The Role of Basic Research 



I. THE NEEDS 



The near-shore environment is modified by 

 nature in a continuous and rapid way. Of all 

 natural aquatic habitats the coatal zone is the most 

 variable. It is this susceptibiUty to change, coupled 

 with intensive, multiple, and often conflicting uses 

 which has made its utilization so difficult to 

 regulate. Good management of the inshore envi- 

 ronment, however, is essential to assuring its 

 maximum rational employment. Effective manage- 

 ment, in turn, will largely depend on the abiUty to 

 predict the results of man-made changes. 



It is not that we are completely ignorant of the 

 processes that occur in the coastal zone. If 

 research grants by the National Science Founda- 

 tion can be used as a yardstick, basic science in the 

 coastal zone has more than doubled in the past 10 

 years.' However, although much has been learned 

 in recent years, much remains to be learned. As 

 the development of the coastal zone continues, 

 and as the pressures increase, the problems become 

 more difficult. Yesterday's level of understanding 

 is inadequate for the kinds of decisions that need 

 to be made today. 



To gain the maximum benefit for each user of 

 the near-shore areas, it will be necessary to provide 

 a quantitative answer to the question: By how 

 much can man alter a given estuary (or shoreline) 

 without destroying one or more of its uses?^ We 

 need the answers to such questions as: What is the 

 capacity of a given estuary to accept particular 

 wastes, and can this capacity be increased? Can we 

 develop artificial habitats and techniques for grow- 

 ing organisms either commercially or for other 

 reasons? How will a wider or deeper channel affect 

 circulation or sedimentation pattern? 



Ecologists understand the importance of estu- 

 aries and marshlands as the nursery grounds of 

 many varieties of sport and commercial fish, but 

 the level of understanding is usually insufficient to 



Report of the National Science Foundation at panel 

 hearings, Oct. 10, 1967. See also Oceanography, The 10 

 Years Ahead, Interagency Committee on Oceanography 

 Pamphlet No. 10, June 1963, and Table 1, Chapter 7. 



This question and the ones immediately following 

 were those most frequently raised at the panel hearings 

 with the scientific community. Details of the hearings are 

 given in an appendix to the Panel Reports. 



Figure 1. Estuarine research into the life cycle 

 of salmon. (U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service photo) 



answer such questions as how much of a given 

 marsh area can be filled before a fishery is 

 destroyed: 10 per cent? 50 per cent? 90 per cent? 

 How can an estuary be managed to increase its 

 productivity? 



It is well known that the shoreline is continu- 

 ally changing. Recent charts of Cape Cod show a 

 different land distribution than those of the past. 

 Some coasts erode while others buUd. When the 

 shoreline was sparsely settled beach erosion was 

 largely an academic problem, but as beach pro- 

 perty increases in value the problems of surf zone 

 dynamics and sediment transport are of increasing 

 importance. 



Not all the problems are in engineering and the 

 natural sciences. Community planning and resource 

 economics are among the additional skills that 

 need to be applied to the coastal zone. 



In the future the possibilities as well as the 

 problems of coastal zone management will in- 

 crease. Intentional modification of factors deter- 

 mining organic production is possible. Some 

 coastal areas will be set aside for intensive aquacul- 

 ture. In some circumstances, it is desirable to store 

 and release river water; to divert large volumes; to 

 alter channels, currents, and tides; or in other ways 

 to introduce major alterations into the coastal 

 zone. Proponents of such bold concepts must be 

 able to evaluate the total results of the changes 

 they seek. On the other hand, those who oppose 

 such suggestions are often expressing fear of the 

 unpredictable consequences, and their position 

 might be altered if there were sufficient knowledge 

 to permit accurate prediction and evaluation of all 

 the results. 



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