Executive Summary - Department of Invertebrate Zoology

and epifauna . The investigators associated with the zooplankton and
physical oceanographic and meteorological aspects of the Norfolk
Canyon Study are program element principal investigators for the
comparable element in the BLM benchmark study .
BLM Pers onnel
Contract monitoring personnel within BLM recpoasible for these
studies were Contracting Officers Authorized Representatives - Drs . J .
Snyder and A . Horowitz and Mr . P . Thomas ; and Contracting Officers -
Mssrs . W . Hamm, F . Galinsky, A . Guida, and P . Lubetkin . LiAison with
the Branch of Environmental Studies, BLM, was the resFonsib'_l+ty of
Dr . R. Beauchamp and Mr . J . Cimato .
The Study Area and Study Plan
The region studied during the benchmark program covers an area of
over 13,000 square nautical miles, or about 45,000 km2, extending off
New Jersey, Delaware, Maryland, and Virginia over the broad
continental shelf and upper slope (Figure 2) . Sampling had to be
extensive enough tu characterize this expansive environment and also
intensive enough to characterize the diversity of environments within
regions of this topographically complex continental shelf . General
requirements of the sampling scheme, including number of stations,
were set forth by BLM in the contract ; VIMS was responsible for
selection of the actual location of stations in consultation with USGS
and `sLM .
1975-1°i 6 Sampling Year
Tn order to provide both the extensive coverage required of the
area i-nrier consideration for lea3ing and tha intensive coverage
desired .n the portion of the lease area of most interest to industry,
51 benthic stations (A's through L's, Figure 2) were allocated as
followb :
- 24 stations (A's through F's), grouped in 6 clusters, each
containing 4 stations, primarily concentrated in the outer
shelf area but extending into central and inner shelf areas
were located in a corridor bounded roughly by 38 .5°N and
39 .5°N .
-- A 7 station transect (G series) positioned r .ear the northern
border (40°N) of the lease area .
-- A 6 station t-ansect (K series) positioned along the southern
border (38°N) of the lease area .
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