CONTINENTAL SHELF PROGRAM OF THE GEOLOGICAL SURVEY 



by 



Gilbert Corwin 

 Marine Geology and Hydrology 

 Geological Survey, U. S. Department of The Interior 



A major goal of the Department of the Interior is the determination, 

 evaluation, development, and conservation of the Nation's natural resources. 

 This morning Mr. Barry spoke on the Department's responsibilities for off- 

 shore leasing and the supervision of development and conservation of mineral 

 resources on the Continental Shelves; Mr. Gwinn presented data on mineral 

 development and exploitation. The Geological Survey has the mission of 

 determining and evaluating the Nation's mineral resources. It is also re- 

 sponsible for classifying the mineral resources, including potable water, of 

 the public lands of the United States, which include the outer Continental 

 Shelf beyond the limits of State ownership. A small group within the Survey 

 has responsibility for regulating development and conservation of these 

 offshore mineral resources. 



Objectives of the Geological Survey's marine program are to locate and 

 evaluate mineral resources on and beneath the ocean floor, to extend sea- 

 ward our three dimensional knowledge of the land, and to gain information 

 needed for use in the search for resources on land, many of which were formed 

 beneath ancient seas. Initially emphasis of the program is on the Continental 

 Shelves and Slopes bordering the United States. We divide the Continental 

 Shelves and Slopes into five regions: 1. the Atlantic; 2. the Gulf; 3. the 

 Pacific from Mexico to the Canadian border; 4. Alaska; and 5. Hawaii and all 

 possessions and territories. Up to now effort has been concentrated on a 

 joint study of the Atlantic margin with the Woods Hole Oceanographic Insti- 

 tution, the Bureau of Commercial Fisheries and other organizations; modest 

 efforts are underway along other coasts. 



The Atlantic program illustrates our approach to the study of offshore 

 areas. The Atlantic Continental Shelf and Slope was picked as the first 

 area for study, because, oddly enough, less was known about it than about 

 most others. Academic institutions have done a great deal of exploration 

 off the coasts of southern California, Washington, and Oregon, some of which 

 has been supported by Office of Naval Research and the National Science 

 Foundation. Petroleum exploration along the Gulf Coast has provided much 

 information concerning that area. Universities such as Texas A&M , have made 

 other contributions along that coast. 



The first requirement for mapping resources is a base map. On land, 

 the U. S. Coast and Geodetic Survey provides the geodetic control and the 

 Geological Survey does the mapping. Along the coasts and on the shelf the 

 Coast Survey has the responsibility of charting relief of the ocean floor. 

 Therefore, the first effort within the Atlantic program was to produce 

 base maps from charts compiled by the Coast Survey, and, in areas where 



30 



