source of magnesium and bromine with lesser amounts of sodium, calcium, and potassium compounds being recovered as byproducts of extraction processes. With the development of improved desalting techniques, the chemical industry is looking to sea brine for possible new commercial opportunities.

Federal Research Activities

Whether the ultimate consumer of research and survey data be a fisherman or an oil firm, the movement of the water, the nature of the sea bottom, and our ability to determine precisely locations in and below the water surface are of key importance. The Federal Government, as shown in Table XIII, is currently engaged in a variety of marine science information-gathering activities on the shelf. These include reconnaissance studies of the Atlantic Continental Shelf and its margin which have already suggested new sources of phosphate and manganese (Fig. 15). New petrogeological structures have been identified off the northeast coast; underwater seismic areas have been studied along the Alaska and California coasts; systematic studies of the Gulf Stream and other coastal currents, and geophysical mapping of offshore sand are leading to understanding of the stability of seafloor sediments.

TABLE XIII.—Marine science activities on the Continental Shelf

Federal research programs in support of shipping activities along the coasts include improvements in the quality and detail of nautical charts, enabling ships to operate at maximum efficiency and reducing navigational hazards along coasts and in harbors. The understanding and control of marine boring and fouling organisms will save millions of dollars of damage to underwater structures.

The Future

As worldwide mineral demands increase and suppliers turn to lowergrade ores, costs are likely to rise. Such increases, however, may be prevented by the discovery of new sources of minerals that can

Source: Department of Interior.

margin.

be economically exploited. Many of these will, of course, continue to be found on land. But geological samplings have already demonstrated the presence of many minerals on and near the Continental Shelf. These are newly discovered deposits of sulphur in the Gulf of Mexico, manganese off the Atlantic and Pacific coasts, and phosphorite off our Southeast and California coasts.

silver, platinum, and tin in placer deposits along the Pacific and Alaskan coasts.

New mining technology may be required as these programs move ahead, with unusual opportunities for invention and innovation.

A stable legal framework must go hand-in-hand with technology to reflect a judicious balance of public and private interests in order that industry can extend the present geographical boundaries of the exploitable resources. The Council is working with the Departments of Interior, State, and Justice, the Public Land Law Review Commission, and other concerned organizations in supporting legal studies to identify alternative Federal policies and consequences of each.

In looking to the future, the Council identified as an area for special emphasis the acceleration of Government-wide planning, surveys, and survey methodology designed to assist the extractive industries on the shelf. Included in this expanded effort to assess mineral resources will be:

expansion of marine science activities of the Geological Survey; -extension of technological studies of the Bureau of Mines; -use of Coast and Geodetic Survey ships and other federally supported ships to conduct pilot surveys of promising areas; -automation of the data processing capability of these ships; economic analyses of identified deposits.

Fiscal year 1968 efforts will be devoted primarily to planning the expanded effort and to initial work in limited areas of the shelf. Intensive pilot investigations of limited areas should provide useful experience in planning investigations of broader areas of the shelf.

Chapter X

OCEAN OBSERVATIONS FOR WEATHER AND SEA STATE PREDICTION

Environmental Prediction

A very substantial part of the Federal effort in marine sciences and technology is devoted to observation and prediction of the ocean environment. Every agency is engaged to some extent, but the Navy and the Environmental Science Services Administration (ESSA) support the greater part of the effort. Many surveys are conducted to meet explicit mission requirements; others contribute to the full spectrum of objectives of the Nation's marine science interests: defense, fishing, shoreline protection, etc. Where surveys are to be conducted, by whom, with what instruments, with what priority, and to what effect could not be evaluated in the short time since the Council was established, but appropriate steps are being considered in each agency and across the Government to improve such analyses.

In the meantime, however, one area of civilian need, heretofore relatively undersupported, has gained emphasis by the Council-the broadening of an environmental observation and prediction system of marine data and collection procedures for the purpose of describing and predicting both the state of the oceans and conditions in the atmosphere.

Benefits

The economic impact of improved environmental prediction is substantial. Industrial, commercial, agricultural, and other land activities directly affected by weather will be better served: building construction; aviation and marine transportation; and recreation. Better ice prediction on the Great Lakes would be of economic benefit. More accurate and longer range warning of tropical storms and hurricanes would save lives and property, as suggested by data in Table XIV and Figure 16.

Improved understanding of the causes of drought conditions and long-range weather predictions would permit better planning of water conservation measures for crops and management of municipal water supplies. Similarly, improved prediction of rainfall will assist in improving flood warnings which would allow advance application of necessary control measures.

Improved predictions of many ocean conditions would directly benefit coastal communities, shipping and offshore oil, gas, and other resource exploitation activities. Predictions of ocean temperatures, currents, ice, and sea state conditions in the open sea aid fishing, maritime commerce, and naval operations. Forecasts of subsurface ocean conditions are equally important for fishing, naval activities, and exploitation of the Continental Shelf.

Improved accuracy and time range of weather forecasts and improved predictions of the state of the oceans depend on a deep understanding of the mutual interactions of ocean and atmosphere.

For these purposes, the atmosphere and the oceans can be considered as continually interacting parts of a single global fluid system. The oceans, as solar-heated reservoirs of moisture, critically influence weather and climate. The weather in turn plays a role in driving the currents of the oceans and determining the sea state. In turn, the oceans determine the patterns of climate as demonstrated, for instance, by the influence of the Gulf Stream in moderating the weather and climate of Western Europe.

Technological Tools

Technology is beginning to provide new tools to observe and measure the global state of the atmosphere and oceans and the relationships between oceanic conditions and the weather. Meteorological satellites detect and track hurricanes and other ocean storms. Seismological instruments detect undersea earthquakes that cause tsunamis. Radar and other remote probing devices detect squalls and storms.

Modern computers and data processing techniques have considerably improved our capability for handling the increasingly large volumes