Appendix F Suggested Sample Legislation to Accomplish the Goals of 

 Coastal Zone Management 



An Act 



To provide for the optimum management and development of the Nation's coastal and estuarine areas 

 through the establishment of State, regional, and local Management Authorities. 



Short Title 

 SECTION 1. This Act may be cited as the "Coastal and Estuarine Management and Development Act." 



Statement of Policy 



SECTION 2. The Congress finds that man's past actions affecting estuaries and shorelines have been 

 poorly and incompletely planned, unimaginative, and frequently destructive. In view of the many 

 important uses served by these waters and the growing pressures on them, it is imperative that there be 

 sound planning and intelligent management of this vital national resource. It is thereby declared to be 

 the poUcy of Congress to encourage the conservation, development, and utilization of these areas to the 

 best standards of pubUc good through the medium of State and local authorities with the assistance and 

 cooperation of the Federal Government. 



Effect on Existing Laws 

 SECTION 3. Nothing in this Act shall be construed— 



(a) to expand or diminish either Federal or State jurisdiction, responsibility, or rights in the field of 

 water resources planning, development, or control; nor to displace, supersede, limit, or modify any 

 interstate compact or the jurisdiction or responsibility of any legally established joint or common agency 

 of two or more States, or of two or more States and the Federal Goverimient; or to Umit the authority 

 of Congress to authorize and fund projects; 



(b) as superseding, modifying, or repealing existing laws applicable to the various Federal agencies 

 which are authorized to develop or participate in the development of water and related land resources or 

 to exercise Ucensing or regulatory functions in relation thereto, except as required to carry out the 

 provisions of this Act. 



Definitions 



SECTION 4. For the purposes of this Act: 



(a) the term "estuarine areas" means an environmental system consisting of an estuary and those 

 transitional areas which are constantly influenced or affected by water from an estuary such as, but not 

 limited to, salt marshes, coastal and intertidal areas, sounds, embayments, harbors, lagoons, inshore 

 waters, and channels. 



(b) the term "estuary" means all or part of the mouth of a navigable or interstate river or stream or 

 other body of water, including, but not limited to, a bay, sound, and channel, having unimpaired natural 

 connection with the open sea and within which the sea water is measurably diluted with fresh water 

 derived from land drainage. 



(c) the term "coastal area" means the lands, waters, and lands beneath the water in close proximity to 

 the coastUne (including Great Lakes) and strongly influenced by each other. 



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