The Coastal and Marine Geology Program Web site of the US Geological Survey is a clearinghouse of coastal related information and scientific research. Visitors will find a link to the monthly newsletter "Sound Waves;" information on topics of study such as corals, pollution, erosion, and sonar mapping; and goals and plans for the program.

The General Land Office of Texas, the state's oldest agency, strives to balance economic development with preservation of its natural resources. The Coastal Erosion Planning and Response Program of the agency has an interesting Web site with information about the state's shorelines and its continuous efforts to slow erosion and maintain its beaches. Although many of the links on the page are about...

The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has recently released this report on the condition of coastal ecosystems. The report combines data from a variety of government agencies conducting ongoing monitoring to "present a broad baseline picture of the condition of coastal waters." The report finds that the "[o]verall condition of the nation's estuaries was fair based on seven basic indicators...

Established in 1972 through the Coastal Zone Management Act (CZMA), the National Estuarine Research Reserve System (NERR) is a network of protected areas representing different types of estuaries and biogeographic regions. Operated by coastal states with input from local communities and regional groups, NERR studies address coastal watershed management issues. The homepage provides an overview of...

Established in 1972 through the Coastal Zone Management Act (CZMA), the National Estuarine Research Reserve System (NERR) is a network of protected areas representing different types of estuaries and biogeographic regions. Operated by coastal states with input from local communities and regional groups, NERR studies address coastal watershed management issues. For reserve data and data on water...

As Americans head for the beach, the Natural Resource Defense Council (NRDC) issues its twelfth annual report on the status of beach and recreational water quality. Entitled Testing the Waters, the report offers readers a fifty-fifty appraisal of the nation's lake and ocean recreational beach sites. That is, while water quality overall is indeed improving in the United States, beach water quality...