Establishment of operational guidelines for Texas coastal zone management : interim report on biological uses criteria

The purpose of this interdisciplinary project is to formulate the criteria for coastal zone use and development. The portion assigned to our group is to develop Biological Use Criteria. Biological Use Criteria are defined here as the environmental quality which will permit natural communities of flora and fauna and the natural productivity of the Texas bays and estuaries, including their shoreline areas. Biological use then may be identified in terms of environmental quality where known inputs may cause changes in the natural balance of living systems. Such criteria are difficult to estimate or identify because of the diversity of communities and the continual natural variations in environmental conditions in our estuarine systems.

May 1973

Coordinated through Division of Natural Resources and Environment, University of Texas at Austin

Prepared for Research Applied to National Needs Program, National Science Foundation. GI-34870X

Prepared for Division of Planning Coordination, Office of the Governor of Texas Interagency Cooperation. IAC(72-73)-806