ST. LOUIS - The U.S. Coast Guard announced the formation of a Maritime Recovery and Restoration Task Force here to assist incident commanders engaged in Hurricane Katrina relief efforts. The task force, headed by Rear Adm. Larry Hereth, will identify maritime issues affecting people, the environment, infrastructure and the economy. By working in concert with local, state and federal partners as well as maritime industry and other stakeholders, the task force will be able to identify those actions necessary for the short-term recovery and long-term restoration of the Maritime Transportation System (MTS). The task force uses a variety of measurements to quantify the short-term recovery rate for the MTS while also identifying actions needed for long-term restoration of the MTS.