FOR RELEASE: April 11, 1995                CONTACT:    Lee Scurry
                                                  (202) 208-3983

               MMS RELEASES ATLANTIC SAND AND GRAVEL MAPS 

     The U.S. Department of the Interior's Minerals Management
Service (MMS) announced today that a set of four maps depicting
sand and gravel deposits on the Atlantic Outer Continental Shelf
(OCS) and an accompanying report have been published and are
available from the agency.

     Coastal erosion affects all 30 coastal states and all U.S.
island territories.  OCS sand and gravel is the preferable,
longer-term and ultimately less expensive solution for beach and
wetlands restoration and onshore public works projects.  Offshore
resources can be used to help solve onshore problems while
maintaining high environmental standards and sensitivity to the
ecosystem.  These maps will provide valuable information for
pinpointing potential sources of sand on the Atlantic coast.

     The maps are full-color and at a scale of 1:1,000,000; they
show grain size (from gravel to silt) and basic mineralogy
(quartz and calcium carbonate content).  The report describes the
four map areas and includes estimates of sand and gravel volumes
for each area.  The maps were completed by MMS' Marine Minerals
Program in cooperation with 13 of 14 East Coast States.

     Copies of Sand and Gravel Maps of the Atlantic Continental
Shelf with Explanatory Text are available free of charge by
writing, faxing or calling MMS at: 381 Elden St., MS 4810,
Herndon, VA 22070-4817, Ph: (703) 787-1080, Fax: (703) 787-1284. 
Specify: OCS Monograph 93-0037.

     MMS is the federal agency that manages and regulates the
nation's natural gas, oil and other mineral resources on the OCS,
and collects and disburses revenues from offshore federal mineral
leases and from onshore mineral leases on federal and Indian
lands.

                              -MMS-