COASTAL ZONE MANAGEMENT

TUESDAY, JUNE 22, 1971

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES,
STBOOMMITTEE ON OCEANOGRAPHY OF THE
COMMITTEE ON MERCHANT MARINE AND FISHERIES,

Washington, D.C. The subcommittee met in room 1334, Longworth Building, Hon. Alton Lennon (chairman) presiding.

Mr. LExxox. The Chair observes that a quorum is present and under the circumstances we will start our hearing.

The Subcommittee on Oceanography this morning opens hearings on coastal zone management legislation. The specific bills before us are H.R. 2492 and H.R. 2193. In addition, I hope that the witnesses will be able to direct their attention to specific provisions of H.R. 9229, which was introduced last week and which adds additional features to H.R. 2493.

The proposed legislation deals with a problem which we recognize as a very basic one in the field of ocean concerns—how is our Nation to handle the mounting pressures which threaten the rational conservation, utilization, and development of our coastal zone resources? Are we to continue to sit idly by without establishing a national policy on coastal zone management, are we to wait until the problem is resolved through the establishment of a Federal land-use policy covering the entire United States, with coastal zone policy as one element of that policy, or shall we now take action to pass legislation which will provide a rational approach to managing this, perhaps the most threatened area of national concern?

We look forward with interest to the witnesses who will appear before us during the next 3 days. They represent various elements of State and local governments, interested oceanographic and conservation organizations, and departments of the Federal Government. As the hearings develop, it may become apparent that a day or two of additional testimony may be necessary in order to hear all the witnesses that desire to be heard. We will have to decide that issue if and when it arises.

The first witness this morning is Dr. William J. Hargis, Jr., Virginia Institute of Marine Science, Gloucester Point, Va., representing the Coastal States Organization. (The bills and departmental reports follow :)

JANUARY 29, 1971
Mr. LENNON introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Com-

mittee on Merchant Marine and Fisheries

A BILL
To provide for the effective management of the Nation's coastal

and estuarine areas.
1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-

2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,

3 That the Act entitled “An Act to provide for a compre

4 hensive, long-range, and coordinated national program in

5 marine science, to establish a National Council on Marine

6 Resources and Engineering Development, and a Comunisī sion on Marine Science, Engineering, and Resources, and 8 for other purposes”, approved June 17, 1966 (80 Stat. 203, 9 33 U.S.C. 1101-1124), is amended by adding at the end

10 thereof the following new title:

4 "SEC. 301. This title may be cited as the 'Coastal and 5 Estuarine Area Management Act'.

7 "SEC. 302. The Congress finds that rapidly intensifying 8 use of coastal and estuarine areas has outrun the capabilities 9 of Federal, State, and local machinery to plan their orderly 10 development and to resolve conflicts. The key to more ef

11 fective use of our coastal and estuarine areas is the introduc

12 tion of a management system permitting conscious and in13 formed choices among development alternatives, providing 14 for proper planning, and encouraging recognition of the long15 term importance of maintaining the quality of these produc16 tive regions in order to insure both its enjoyment and the 17 sound utilization of its resources. It is thereby declared to be 18 the policy of the Congress to foster the effective utilization of

19 coastal and estuarine areas through assistance to coastal 20 States in their management. .

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“Sec. 303. (a) Subject to the limitations in section 304

1

23 (a) (1), the Administrator of the National Oceanic and At24 mospheric Agency (hereafter referred to in this title as the

25 'Administrator') may make grants to any coastal authority

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1 for the purpose of defraying the operating expenses incurred
2 by such coastal authority.
3 “(b) The Administrator shall review any proposal for
4 long-range planning with respect to coastal and estuarine area
5

management, or for the implementation of such a plan, sub-
6 mitted to him by a coastal authority. Upon approval by him
7 of such a proposal, the Administrator may, subject to the
8 limitations in section 304 (a) (1), make grants to such coastal
9 authority to enable it to carry out such long-range planning
10 or implementation, but no proposal may be approved by the
11 Administrator unless he finds that it fulfills the objectives of
12 this title, taking into consideration the degree to which the

13 proposal 14

“(1) identifies the coastal areas requiring con15 certed attention, and develops a plan for their most

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“(2) provides machinery for the resolution of conflicts arising from multiple use;

“(3) fosters the widest possible variety of beneficial uses to maximize social return, achieving a balance

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between the need for conservation and for economic

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development;

“(4) provides for necessary enforcement powers

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through zoning, permits, licenses, easements, acquisition