FOR RELEASE:  September 27, 1994           CONTACT:  Lee Scurry
                                                 (202) 208-3983

               MMS EXTENDS COOPERATIVE AGREEMENT 
              WITH DELAWARE TO STUDY SAND RESOURCES (#40067)

     The Department of the Interior's Minerals Management Service
(MMS) has awarded $44,000 to the Delaware Geological Survey for
further studies and inventories of federal sand resources along the
state's coastline, MMS officials announced today.

     "This contract is a continuation of a three-party agreement
between MMS and the states of Delaware and Maryland to examine sand
and gravel resources on the Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) between
Ocean City, MD and Cape Henlopen, DE," said acting MMS Director
Cynthia Quarterman.  "Researchers are in their third year of
assessing OCS sand deposits for suitability as beach nourishment
sand."

     Work will include acquiring and analyzing additional
geological and geophysical data and making an archeological survey
of the areas offshore Delaware having potential for beach quality
sand.

     "Sand from state waters -- from the coastline to three miles
offshore -- has been used for nourishment of Delaware beaches for
a number of years.  However, sand taken from federal waters is
preferable as a longer-term and ultimately less expensive
solution," Quarterman said.

     Similar efforts to evaluate marine mineral resources --
including other nonenergy minerals -- in federal waters have been
initiated with all other states on the East coast and the Gulf of
Mexico.  As with MMS' other cooperative programs, the focus is on
the assessment of selected sand deposits, and the evaluation of
environmental, engineering and economic aspects related to sand
extraction and placement.

     MMS administers the federal offshore minerals program and
manages the mineral royalty program for federal and Indian lands. 
The MMS Office of International Activities and Marine Minerals
(INTERMAR) is responsible for the management of OCS sand and other
nonenergy mineral resources.  For more information contact INTERMAR
at (703) 787-1300.

                              -MMS-

Subject: PR-09/27/94 Delaware Contract/MMS Extends Cooperative
Agreement with Delaware to Study Sand Resources (#40067)