tries. Other than the resource management services 
and scientific research provided by many Govern- 
ment agencies, several additional areas are ex- 
tremely important to industrial ocean operations. 
These include weather forecasting and charting 
operations of ESSA, geological survey work of the 
Department of the Interior, maintenance of navi- 
gable waterways by the Corps of Engineers, and 
navigational aids and life and property protection 
services of the Coast Guard. The Navy also provides 
important services in salvage, environmental pre- 
diction, and mapping and charting. The National 
Oceanographic Data Center provides the function 
of soliciting and disseminating those marine data 
capable of being machine processed. 
Although the many Government services are 
not discussed in detail in this report, they are 
considered important. Indeed, the panel finds 
Government support services assist a great variety 
of ocean operations and often are critical to the 
success of industry efforts. 
Some specific recommendations affecting pres- 
ent and future needs for these services are found in 
other sections of this report. Supporting services 
are discussed in more detail in the report of the 
full Commission. In general, it is essential that 
support services provided by the Federal and State 
governments for a variety of ocean operations be 
continued and increased wherever growing activity 
warrants. The effectiveness of these services can be 
increased by improved coordination and in some 
cases consolidation of effort and facilities. 
Il. JURISDICTION AND LEASING POLICIES 
Government and industry interests are inti- 
mately involved in the terms under which public 
lands are assigned for private use. 
Almost all ocean mineral resources are located 
on public lands. The seabed and its resources fall 
within the sovereignty of the States along the 
coast out a distance of three miles except in two 
States.* Most of these lands have been retained 
under State ownership but in some _ instances 
development rights have been ceded to counties, 
townships, and private individuals. 
Beyond the zone of State jurisdiction and out 
to a depth of 200 meters or beyond to where the 
8 Off Texas and the Gulf Coast of Florida the distance 
is three leagues (about nine miles). It should be noted that 
the boundary is not always precise due to a lack of 
agreement as to the coastal base line. 
V-14 
depth of the superjacent waters allows exploita- 
tion, the seabed and its resources are under the 
jurisdiction of the Federal Government. Although 
submerged lands beyond 200 meters in depth have 
been leased to private industry by the Govern- 
ment, the United States has not officially claimed 
jurisdiction over natural resources in the seabed 
and subsoil beyond the 200 meter line. US. 
jurisdiction over fisheries extends out to 12 miles. 
A. Definition of State Boundaries and Baselines 
The boundaries dividing seabed areas of Fed- 
eral, State, and local jurisdiction; those dividing 
privately-owned areas from the public domain; and 
those dividing the area appertaining to the United 
States and the ocean beds falling beyond U.S. 
jurisdiction are beset with ambiguities. These 
uncertainties already are troublesome for business 
operations and appear certain to grow more severe. 
The problems are complex and varied. In many 
locations the definition of the shoreline itself is 
unclear due to the character of the terrain; 
marshlands, floating islands, tidal effects, and 
migrating sand bars all complicate boundary prob- 
lems. Many instances are recorded of private 
property washed away or submerged by storms, 
where resulting doubts about title must be re- 
solved in court. In other cases, the uncertainty of 
shoreline location and the manner in which base- 
lines should be drawn across bays and between 
islands creates an ambiguity in locating the bound- 
ary between State and Federal jurisdiction. 
A second major source of uncertainty is the 
historical claim for States’ rights beyond the 
three-mile limit. Jurisdiction of three leagues 
(more than nine miles) from shore has been 
recognized by the Federal Government for Texas 
and the Gulf of Mexico shoreline of Florida. In the 
case of Florida, the lack of a definitive boundary 
between the Atlantic and Gulf Coasts at the south- 
ern end of Florida further complicates the issue. 
Maine, citing a pre-Revolutionary War charter as 
justification, recently claimed jurisdiction as dis- 
tant as 200 miles from its coast and has sold oil 
and natural gas exploration rights within this zone, 
an action which the Federal Government is ex- 
pected to challenge. 
A myriad of local arrangements to develop 
nearshore resources, particularly shellfish, has 
caused further confusion. Among the States there 
is a great variety of legal conventions regarding 
