Focusing on helping the state of California towards implementation of the strategy entitled California's Ocean Resources: An Agenda for the Future, 237 papers address issues of the state's marine resources including tourism, port and vessel traffic safety, regional and international fisheries management, coastal resource economics, design of marine managed areas, science and decision making in ocean resource governance, oil spill prevention, sources and impacts of storm water runoff, wetlands and intertidal planning, sediments and dredging, public and private property rights, and threats to biodiversity. Annotation copyrighted by Book News, Inc., Portland, OR

We all rely on a familiar set of indicators - interest rates, unemployment, inflation, the Dow Jones index, and GDP, for example - to gauge the performance of national economies. No such measures are currently available to describe the environment. This book lays out a blueprint for periodic reporting on the condition and use of ecosystems in the United States. Developed by experts from businesses, environmental organizations, universities, and federal, state, and local government agencies, it is designed to provide policymakers and the general public with a succinct and comprehensive - yet scientifically sound and non-partisan - view of 'how we are doing'. This book should prove invaluable for decision makers in natural resource management and environmental policy in government and environmental organizations, businesses, and trade associations; academics with a research or teaching interest in environmental issues; and the general public interested in the continued well-being of American ecosystems.