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Building maintenance and repair will continue to be emphasized during the planning period. The welcome burden of large attendance has strained existing resources. Additional resources will be sought for these needs over the next five years, as well as for the Museum's activities at its restoration and preservation facility at Suitland, Maryland.

[[underlined]] Chesapeake Bay Center for Environmental Studies [[/underlined]]. The Chesapeake Bay Center is a 2,600-acre natural area established to conduct research on how man's activities affect ecological systems, particularly where alterations in land use are involved. In recognition of the Center's location and excellent site characteristics for this research, it has been proposed for designation as a National Estuarine Sanctuary under provisions of the Coastal Zone Management Act of 1972. It is expected that programs associated with this designation will be defined and implemented over the planning period.

Long-term studies of how large-scale changes in land use affect plant and animal communities will be emphasized over the planning period. It is anticipated that some staff additions and significant support for scientific equipment and supplies will be needed to conduct this research. These resources will be focused on studies of the recovery of abandoned agricultural lands to ascertain how plant and animal communities develop following extended periods of agricultural use.

Also anticipated is an expanded effort to investigate the ecology of estuarine waters at the Center. The goal of this work is to determine the exchange of materials (fish, crabs, plankton, nutrients, and sediments) between Rhode River and Chesapeake Bay and, thereby, to understand the importance of subestuaries to the overall biological health of Chesapeake Bay. This research program will require the installation of water quality monitoring stations and fish entrapment devices in addition to equipment, supplies and some staff. In order to assist in the refinement of data already collected, a new interactive computer system was installed in FY 1982.

Educational research and public information activities are aimed at improving the quality and effectiveness of outdoor-centered education and achieving maximum utilization of the Center's research findings. In FY 1983, the Center will begin exploring options for additional education activities in order to support increased demands for visitation which may result from the Center's designation as a National Estuarine Sanctuary. It is anticipated that funds may be available from the State of Maryland to construct a joint-use education center for the Sanctuary. In addition, fund-raising efforts will be directed towards providing field tours and to assembling a slide presentation to introduce visitors to basic principles of estuarine ecology. A small computer-based exhibit also may be planned. Over the next five years, the Center also expects to expand its educational research activities with the assistance of outside funds, particularly the publication and dissemination of current studies on how informal educational institutions can improve the utilization of their facilities for public purposes. Some professional staff additions will be sought during the planning period for this program over the next several years.