Chapter IV

MARINE RECREATION

Outdoor recreation has become a major part of the American way of life. The increase in leisure time, mobility, and affluence among our population during the past 30 years has opened ever-growing opportunities for people to use the Nation's outdoor resources. As a consequence, outdoor recreation management has become increasingly more complex.

In addition to the increased demand for outdoor recreation, substantial changes have occurred in people's habits. With more leisure, people have greater opportunity to participate in new activities. Technical advances in recreational equipment and clothing have also placed an additional burden upon our resources by increasing recreational skills. Coastal areas historically have had great attraction as places for living and working. They now are taking much of the brunt of the increased demand for recreation.

The four coasts of the United States-Atlantic, Gulf, Pacific, and Great Lakes-offer almost limitless opportunities for recreational use of water. The United States, excluding Alaska, has 36,900 miles of coastline, of which 23 percent is in public ownership (Federal: 11 percent; State: 12 percent). Expressed another way, 59 percent of our coastline is undeveloped, 16 percent is used for nonrecreational purposes, and 25 percent is used for recreation. (Nine percent is public, and 16 percent is private.)

Planning

As a result of the extensive changes that have taken place in outdoor recreation, it was inevitable that more consideration would be given to the development and management of new outdoor recreation areas and facilities. Public Law (P.L.) 88-29 directs the Secretary of the Interior to formulate and maintain a comprehensive nationwide outdoor recreation plan. The Bureau of Outdoor

Recreation (BOR) in DOI was delegated the responsibility for developing the nationwide plan. BOR is also responsible for providing technical assistance on outdoor recreation to the States, their political subdivisions, and the private sector. It is also charged with responsibility for coordinating outdoor recreation programs, research, and education.

BOR published its Nationwide Outdoor Recreation Plan on November 16, 1973, under the title "Outdoor Recreation-A Legacy for America." In developing the plan, BOR received assistance from all facets of Government and private expertise. The plan concerns itself with

(1) Major leisure-time recreation activities that occur out of doors (2) Guides for coordinating Federal efforts

(3) Strengthening the cooperative relationships between Federal and non-Federal efforts

The Nationwide plan called for the following Federal actions regarding coastal recreation programs:

In order to take full advantage of the recreation and fish and wildlife opportunities afforded by shoreline resources, Federal agencies are called upon to accelerate the evaluation of their holdings in the coastal zone to determine which beaches and shorelines can be made available for increased public recreation use.

States can complement this Federal action by evaluating present laws relating to ownership and access and, where necessary, taking steps to provide public access to beaches and shorelines.

State and local Governments also should develop plans and programs to utilize Land and Water Conservation Fund monies for acquisition of beaches, shorelines, and estuaries with recreation values, and should encourage and assist conservation organizations in purchasing and obtaining donations of key parcels of shorelines.

Management Support

NOAA assists States in the development of coastal management programs and supports university projects that indirectly benefit recreational interests. NOAA's OCZM provides grants to coastal States, to assist in the development of management programs for the land and water resources of their coastal zones, and subsequent grants to coastal States for administering these management programs and for the acquisition, development, and operation of estuarine sanctuaries. The Office of Sea Grant, also in NOAA, issues grants to universities for research, education, training, and extension services. Grants for nonrecreational research may often benefit recreational interests. Of some 700 projects supported by the Sea Grant Program, only 21 are directly related to marine recreation. California, New York, Rhode Island, and Texas have taken the lead

in this respect, and have been concerned with boating and marina operations and the economic impact of recreation and tourism on the coasts.

DOI is the Federal Government's major natural-resource managing agency. Its multidisciplinary program offers numerous opportunities to the outdoor recreation seeker. The National Park Service currently manages 28 coastal areas that provide a wide variety of recreational choices. These areas include eight on the Atlantic, four on the Gulf, seven on the Pacific coasts, five along the Great Lakes, and two each in the Caribbean and Hawaii. They offer the recreationist experience in marine environments that vary from the megalopolis gateways of New York and San Francisco to the rockbound coast of Maine, the Everglades of Florida, and the underwater trails of the Virgin Islands.

BLM, the Nation's largest landholder, offers considerable shoreline for the recreation seeker on all coasts, particularly on the Pacific, which includes the King Range National Conservation Area. In addition to Pacific holdings, BLM owns some fine beaches on the Gulf of Mexico.

The third major DOI landholder, FWS, offers a wide assortment of National Wildlife Refuges on all four coasts. Although the primary purpose of these areas is to provide nesting, resting, and wintering areas for waterfowl, shore birds, and other bird or other animal species, such areas do afford great opportunity for the outdoor lover who is interested in boating, photography, nature trails, and other outdoor activities.

FWS also administers the Pitman-Robinson Act of 1937 and the Dingell-Johnson Act of 1950. These acts provide matching monies to the States to enhance and manage their fish and wildlife resources by acquisition and development of lands and waters for hunting and fishing. Over the years, these two Federal assistance programs have contributed greatly to increasing the State coffer of lands and waters available for outdoor recreation. Although the primary purpose of these acts was oriented to fish and wildlife programs, other outdoor activities that have benefited include wildlife photography, boating, swimming, birdwatching, and many other activities. Of equal importance, however, money through these acts has been used to acquire lands and waters for the protection of many of our unique areas such as estuaries and wetlands.

DOI also provides much indirect support to recreation programs. For example, the Office of Water Research and Technology, in fiscal year 1975, supported eight research projects that related to such matters as the impact of pesticides and logging on water quality, control of mosquito larvae, eutrophication, and groundwater

resources.

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By far the most important support for marine recreation, however, comes through the Land and Water Conservation Fund Act of 1965 (L&WCF), as amended. The objective of the State portion of this act is to provide financial assistance to the States and their political subdivisions for the acquisition and development of outdoor recreation areas and facilities. The program is administered through BOR and provides acquisition and development grants that may be used for a wide range of outdoor recreation projects. All assisted areas must be open to the general public and not limited to special groups. Development of basic rather than elaborate facilities is favored, and priority consideration generally is given to projects serving urban populations. Fund monies are not available for the operation and maintenance of facilities. A State, to qualify for the L&WCF program, is required to prepare and maintain a statewide comprehensive outdoor recreation plan. These plans, in addition to being required by the L&WCF program, have broad utility for meeting all State outdoor recreation needs. Federal grants of over $1 billion have been made to the States, territories, and the District of Columbia since the inception of the program. Well over 50 percent of these monies have benefited water-oriented recreation projects, with a major portion being used in the four coastal areas.

Other Federal agencies that provide for outdoor recreation opportunity in marine regions include the Forest Service in the Department of Agriculture, DOD, and Department of Transportation (DOT).

The Forest Service manages extensive amounts of land on our coasts, particularly on the Pacific Coast and along the Great Lakes. Much of this land offers a wide assortment of outdoor recreation opportunity as well as access to the coastal waters.

DOD manages or controls coastal lands and waters on all four coasts. The lands held by DOD at various military reservations possess a variety of outdoor recreational attributes, although there are restrictions on public access. In recent years, however, DOD has made a concerted effort to make a substantial portion of their lands, including some key beaches, available for public use.

Through its program on Small Beach Erosion Control projects, COE has made a substantial contribution to the outdoor recreation effort in the marine environment. COE in this program offers financial assistance to the States and local governments for erosion control and beach stabilization projects. The States or local governments must in turn provide for a part of the financial assistance as well as the necessary lands, continued public ownership, access roads, and maintenance.

DOT provides assistance in a number of ways to the marine. recreation effort through the highway acts. Principally, these DOT