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Strategic Planning Document -
Environment and Natural Resources
Chapter 3. Charting New Directions for Research
The Committee on Environment and Natural Resources (CENR) is leading the
effort to coordinate all federal environmental and natural resource
research and development (R&D) activities and to improve
the links between the science and policy components of the executive
branch. A unique aspect of the CENR is that subcommittees are organized
by key environmental policy areas. This structure was
created recognizing that coordinated, interdisciplinary, multiagency R&D
efforts are required to respond effectively to complicated environmental
problems.
The CENR Challenge
The overarching policy challenge that the CENR addresses is: how to
ensure the compatibility of long-term economic growth while protecting
the environment and quality of life? For each environmental issue, the
policy questions are similar:
What are the natural phenomena and human activities that cause
environmental change?
When, where, by how much, and at what rates will the environment
change as a result of human activities? Who will be most affected?
How will natural and human systems be affected by environmental
change, including extreme events?
What are present and prospective technical options and policy
responses for mitigation and restoration of, and adaptation to,
environmental changes?
What are institutional, economic, and attitudinal barriers to
implementing available options, and what are the costs and benefits of
implementation?
The strength of the CENR, and its subcommittees, is active participation
from all relevant agencies and offices of the White House, including the
Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) and the Office of
Management and Budget (OMB), during all phases of the budget process.
The CENR is not a top-down, decision-making entity of the White House.
The CENR is working because there is buy-in at all levels of the
agencies, from program managers to agency heads. R&D priorities must,
and will, explicitly take into account Administration priorities,
environmental statutes, and international conventions. Agency agendas
that are consistent with the priorities of the interagency process are
likely to have highest priority in the budget process. Our recently
completed 1996 budget process demonstrated that agencies responded with
their budget planning to the top priorities developed across the federal
government and in concert with stakeholder guidance received through the
national forum and external reviews.
Obtaining the scientific and technical information required for policy
formulation will require understanding (1) the state of the natural
system and its susceptibility to changes, (2) the socioeconomic
dimensions of environmental changes, (3) the human health consequences
of environmental changes; and (4) the vulnerability of socioeconomic and
ecological systems to environmental changes.
For the first time ever, priority issues such as biodiversity, ecosystem
dynamics, resource use and management, and water resources are being
fully coordinated in an interagency program. Other issues, such as
global change and elements of air and water quality, have benefitted for
a decade or more from interagency coordination. The segments of this
chapter that follow reflect those differences in maturity as they
describe the goals, current research programs, and key policies and
legislation supported by research in each of the issue areas (see box on
the following page). Also described are areas of enhanced research
emphasis in FY 1996 and beyond, selected milestones expected in the near
term (3 to 5 years), and selected examples of recent research
accomplishments illustrating the importance of research in each of these
important issue areas. The milestones listed are representative but are
not a comprehensive listing of activities required to accomplish the
goals of the program. A comprehensive listing of milestones is
associated with separate strategy and implementation plans for each of
the issue areas, which are also to be published.
Relevant Environmental Policies and Legislation
To guide national policy, a number of federal laws aim to preserve
environmental quality and natural resources. The United States has also
entered into international agreements to address regional and global
environmental issues.
Major Environmental Health and Pollution Related U.S. Laws
Toxic Substances Control Act
Comprehensive Environmental Response
Federal Water Pollution Control Act
Compensation, and Liability Act
Oil Pollution Act
Resources Conservation and Recovery Act
Safe Drinking Water Act
Pollution Prevention Act
Clean Air Act
Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act
Occupational Safety and Health Act
Public Health Service Act
Major Natural Resource Related Laws
National Environmental Policy Act
Coastal Zone Management Act
Endangered Species Act
Marine Protection, Research and Sanctuaries Act
Resource Conservation Planning Act
Forest Land Management Planning Act
Ocean Dumping Ban Act
Magnuson Fisheries Conservation and Management Act
Shore Protection Act
Marine Plastics Pollution Research and Control Act
Energy Policy Act
Global Climate Change Protection Act
Global Change Research Act
Renewable Natural Resources Planning Act
Atomic Energy Act
Natural Disaster Related U.S. Laws
Disaster Relief Act
National Flood Insurance Act
National Earthquake Hazards Reduction Act
Flood Disaster Protection Act
National Flood Insurance Reform Act
Weather Service Modernization Act
Regional and Global Initiatives, Agreements, or Conventions
Convention on Long-Range Transboundary Air Pollution
Vienna Convention to Protect the Ozone Layer and the Montreal
Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer
United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change
Convention on Biological Diversity (signed, not ratified)
International Decade for Natural Disaster Reduction
London Dumping Convention
International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution from Ships
Basel Convention on the Control of Transboundary Movements of
Hazardous Wastes and their Disposal (signed, not ratified)
Global Forestry Agreement
Agenda 21 and Follow-On Activities (e.g., United Nations Council on
Sustainable Development)
North American Free Trade Agreement
General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade
Air Quality
The goal of the federal air quality research program is to help protect
human health and the environment from air pollution by providing the
scientific and technical information needed to evaluate options for
improving air quality in timely and cost-effective ways.
Research characterizes the sources of air pollution, builds a predictive
understanding of the phenomena involved, quantifies the human-related
effects and impacts, and assesses the state of knowledge in
policy-relevant terms. The five air quality issues are: (1) ground-level
ozone, its precursors, and other ambient air pollutants; (2) acidic
deposition; (3) hazardous toxic air pollutants; (4) visibility and
health-related airborne particles; and (5) indoor air quality.
Relevant Policies, Issues, and Legislation
Clean Air Act Amendments (CAAA) of 1990
Characterization of the relative risks and sources of air pollution
that are not covered by comprehensive legislation or regulation,
such as degraded indoor air
Current State of Understanding
Many air quality issues face legislative mandated assessments,
regulatory actions, or other important policy decisions within coming
years. The environmental issues pose potentially large, but often
unquantified, risks to human health and well-being. At the same
time, however, implementation of planned or potential control measures
can have very large socioeconomic impacts. For example, the
states are preparing their plans for implementation of the CAA
requirements regarding urban ozone attainment, and the magnitude of
the challenge is apparent. Hence, a demonstrable and defensible
scientific understanding of the phenomena involved is a key input
to prudent courses of action or inaction.
High levels of surface ozone are occurring in numerous urban areas and
are known to have adverse health effects, particularly on more
susceptible citizens. The clear cause of this urban pollution is
human-generated emissions, notably from automobiles and electric
power plants. Despite requirements to reduce emissions, abatement of
urban ozone levels has been less than anticipated, and the full
scientific explanation as to why is not in hand. Crop damage by elevated
rural ozone levels is moderately well characterized, but recent research
points to a need to revisit the strategies for reducing such levels.
Ozone damage and growth retardation relations for forests are poorly
understood, particularly from the standpoint of exposure to multiple stresses.
Similarly, sources of acidic deposition are also clearly related to
human activities. Trends in wet acidic deposition are now fairly well
defined and show declines over the past few years associated with
emission reductions. However, the amount and changes in dry
deposition are poorly characterized. Further, responses of aquatic
life, forests, soils, and materials to exposure levels are not well
quantified, which limits decisions regarding appropriate future emission
reductions.
Several studies clearly show an association between airborne fine
particles and human health, but plausible biological mechanisms linking
such factors have not been identified, making it difficult to determine
which aspects of particular matter (PM) could be the most harmful.
Moreover, measurement techniques are expensive and crude. Certain
clearly toxic compounds (e.g, lead and asbestos) are well understood and
are being addressed by specific regulations. Trends in visibility in
public lands show that deterioration is easily noted by the public
seeking to enjoy those areas, but the sources of the pollution involved
cannot always be determined.
People spend 90% of their time indoors, and the indoor levels of many
pollutants, both human made (e.g., organics) and natural (e.g., radon)
are often much higher than those outdoors. Qualitative association of
poor health and sick buildings is clear to many workers. However,
widespread quantitative evaluation of indoor air quality is still in its
infancy, and even well-known issues such as radon still have debatable
aspects, all of which limit the ability to carry out meaningful
cost-benefit analyses.
Research Program
Current air quality research focuses on observing what is changing and
understanding why in order to better predict environmental responses to a
spectrum of possible choices that face decision makers.
Important ongoing research activities that continue to receive strong
emphasis include:
Long-term observations and analysis to evaluate the
effectiveness of recent regulatory initiatives aimed at improving urban
air pollution, acid rain, and visibility in our national parks.
Identification of emerging health or environmental problems
associated with susceptible human populations; long-term exposures in
the home or workplace; and crop, forest, and material damage, which are
required to set appropriate standards and actions.
Characterization of the processes involved in air quality
changes to improve inventories of emissions, chemical and
meteorological processes that link source and receptor areas, and the
testing and improvement of predictive air quality models, all of which
focus on providing scientifically defensible options for decisions.
Assessing the state of knowledge on understanding air quality
issues, which includes the knowns and unknowns of the science and
the costs and benefits of potential actions or inaction.
Areas of Enhanced Emphasis
Understanding the formation of ground-level ozone in urban and
rural areas. Elevated ozone causes considerable cost to the
nation in health care and lost agricultural and forest productivity.
Expanded research on the causes of ground-level ozone is needed to
determine how well current regulations are meeting their objectives and
to provide critical input to the midcourse state implementation
plans of the CAAA. This information will help determine whether current
and future regulatory actions reduce ground-level ozone in the most
cost-effective way.
Specific activities will include: (1) field observations and networks to
improve the characterization of human-made and natural sources of ozone
precursors, formation and loss processes, exposure levels and impacts,
and overall predictive capabilities and (2) an integrated
state-of-understanding assessment of ground-level ozone, its
consequences, and mitigation options. These activities will
be coordinated under the new North American Research Strategy for
Tropospheric Ozone (NARSTO) Program, which involves federal, state, and
local agencies; Canada and Mexico; utilities and other companies;
academic institutions; and private and national laboratories.
Characterization of the health impacts of airborne fine
particles. Epidemiological studies indicate significant
associations between fine airborne particles (PM) and adverse human health
effects at PM levels below current standards. The biological mechanisms
of health effects are not well understood. New methods will be developed
to effectively and inexpensively measure PM concentrations to facilitate
better characterization of population exposures. Additional scientific
data will be collected to ensure that current and future actions are
effective.
Research is conducted to understand the risks and causal mechanisms by
which particles adversely affect human health, with particular foci on
exposure levels, size and chemical content, role of exposure to multiple
stresses, and identification of particularly susceptible human populations.
Selected Milestones, 1995 - 1998
Provide scientific input to air quality management planning for the
highly stressed Great Smoky Mountains National Park by completing an
extensive field study with diagnostic modeling to understand the extent,
causes, and processes involved in local visibility problems.
Characterize the roles of production and movement of ground-level
ozone precursors and the role of meteorology on ozone formation in a
region of high natural hydrocarbon emissions and a region of high
complexity (Nashville Field Campaign-Southern Oxidants Study) to help
formulate more effective emission-abatement applications for specific
regions of the country.
Quantitatively compare the effects of anthropogenic fine particles
to those of coarse, windblown dust particles on human health. This
information will better identify the sources that could be most effectively
addressed to lower health risks.
Conduct a National Acid Precipitation Assessment Program (NAPAP)
assessment of (1) the reduction in deposition rates necessary to prevent
adverse ecological effects and (2) the costs, benefits, and effectiveness
of the current acid deposition control strategies mandated under Title
IV of the CAAA of 1990.
Create Great Waters and Urban Toxics Inventories to characterize the
major risks faced by Native Americans from their basic fish stocks and
by inner-city individuals from airborne toxics in the urban environment.
These inventories will help to design impact evaluation methods and
appropriate amelioration strategies.
Conduct a comprehensive state-of-science assessment of surface-ozone
that is summarized in policy-useful terms and that is prepared by the
broad scientific community as well as other communities, sponsored by
the relevant agencies, reviewed by peers and stakeholder communities,
and timed to aid decisions associated with midcourse corrections in the
state implementation plans required by the CAAA.
Standardize indoor air tests, develop instrumentation, and evaluate
standard procedures that will lead to commercialization of monitoring
equipment to improve the health of the nation's residential and
commercial buildings.
The goal of federal research on biodiversity and ecosystem dynamics is to
ensure the sustainability of the ecological systems and processes that support
our social needs in areas such as agriculture, forestry, fisheries,
recreation, medicine, and the preservation of natural areas. However,
there are many gaps in our understanding of
the relationship between environmental factors and the expression of
biodiversity and/or effects of
global and regional change on ecosystem structure and function. Such
understanding is essential to
efficient and cost-effective sustainable resource use and conservation,
as well as restoration of some degraded environments.
Research is conducted to provide policy-relevant information on
questions such as: What is the value of biodiversity to society in terms
of goods and services (including nonmarket, nonconsumptive uses)
and its intrinsic value? What are the major threats to ecosystem
processes and functions? How can biodiversity in ecosystems be managed in
a sustainable way in a changing global environment? How
are social, cultural, economic, legal, institutional, and biological
factors taken into account for informed policy making and decision making?
Relevant Policies, Issues, and Legislation
Endangered Species Act
National Environmental Policy Act
National Forest Management Act
Renewable Natural Resources Act
Renewable National Resources Research Act
Migratory Bird Treaty Act
National Park Service Organic Act
Wilderness Act
Current State of Understanding
Knowledge of species and ecosystems has been primarily derived from
observational data, periodic surveys, single-discipline experiments,
and case studies. There is often little ability to link site-specific
studies to environmental and climatic conditions or extrapolate across a wide
geographic area. As such, most management information tends to be either
qualitative or anecdotal. When unexpected changes occur in
populations of species, causal factors often are not understood. Only
recently, with the advent of remote sensing and geographic information
systems, has progress been made on describing how ecosystems and species
interact at the landscape and seascape scale.
The extent of species biodiversity has been best characterized for
surface-dwelling terrestrial vertebrates and flowering plants, while
information on subterranean, freshwater, coastal, and marine
habitats remains scarce. Although we have information on the diversity
of certain groups of organisms that inhabit many ecosystems of the world
and have characterized many of the crucial processes and
physical and chemical limits to rate-limiting functions of many
ecosystems, the relationship between diversity and ecosystem functioning
is poorly understood. A good deal of attention is focused on
responding to the urgent needs of species that are listed as threatened
and endangered. In these instances, knowledge of the habitat
requirements of a specific species may be well researched; however,
there remains a larger need to understand how managing an ecosystem to
benefit one species will impact the many other species that also rely on
that ecosystem.
Research Program
Forests, grasslands, and wetlands and their ecological processes provide
many of the goods and services that are essential for society's sustainable
development. Increasing pressure on our nation's ecological assets
requires that we better understand the relationships between human
activity and the conservation of species and ecosystems. Research is
essential for constructing effective policies that ensure the integrity of
our nation's ecological systems, while avoiding unnecessary regulations.
Major issues associated with biodiversity and ecosystem
dynamics are addressed in studies of:
Biophysical requirements needed to sustain numerous species
of plants and animals.
The effects of existing and new resource management methods
on biological diversity, ecosystem composition, and key ecological
processes, such as nutrient cycling, within both terrestrial and
aquatic ecosystems.
Interactions among populations of species, especially the
effect of exotic species on native populations.
The role of species as indicators of ecosystem status and the
relationship of species to ecosystems at various spatial scales.
The effects of landscape fragmentation on ecosystems,
species, and processes.
Areas of Enhanced Emphasis
Prepare a comprehensive map of U.S. ecosystems. We need
to know the spatial location, ecological status, and trends of major
ecosystems over time. Research will couple remote sensing with
ground-based data to prepare a set of ecosystem maps of the United
States. The maps will include information on primary vegetation type and
quality, associated plant and animal species, and current usage. This
information would allow resource managers, land- and water-use planners,
and policymakers to make better informed decisions at local and
regional scales.
Enhance access to information on the nation's plants and
animals. Existing collections of data for millions of specimens will
be computerized and made more accessible to the nation's scientists
and the public. Efforts to describe additional biota and their
ecological situations will be augmented. Increased information on poorly
known taxonomic groups, such as aquatic invertebrates and subterranean
fauna, that includes data on their geographical occurrence and
associated environment conditions would greatly increase the ability to
sustain terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems and to conserve biodiversity
in harmony with land use.
Improve understanding of the socioeconomic values of
ecosystems. Society's well-being, including such diverse things as
clean water, medicines, food, fiber, and recreation, depends on
biological resources and ecological processes. The many demands placed on
ecosystems requires an improved understanding of the social and economic
values of these ecosystems. Efforts are being expanded to understand how
social and economic forces interact with biodiversity and ecosystems.
This information will facilitate the conservation and sustainable use of
essential ecosystem components and processes.
Improve understanding of the role of species in ecosystems.
The integrity of a given ecosystem may depend in large part on the
functional roles played by key plant and animal species. However, the
veracity of this statement remains largely unknown. Nor is it known if
there is functional redundancy among species within an ecosystem or if a
key species has a significant impact on an ecosystem. Efforts are being
expanded to understand the relationship between a species and ecosystem
function. This knowledge is needed to adequately monitor and manage
ecosystems, while avoiding intractable resource-use conflicts.
The National Biological Service
The Clinton/Gore Administration created the National
Biological Service (NBS) to provide accurate biological
information to support decision making about the use,
management, and protection of the nation's natural
resources. The NBS consists of biological research
programs formerly managed by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife
Service, National Park Service, Bureau of Land
Management, Minerals Management Service, and other
agencies in the Department of the Interior. The NBS
collaborates closely with those agencies at all levels,
providing a new, cost-effective, and more integrated
science. Integration under the NBS enhances scientific
support for policy decisions by providing a critical mass of
scientific expertise; strengthening competitive peer review;
coordinating resources; and reducing redundancies in
multiple agencies.
In both government and the private sector, managers are
frustrated by the lack of solid science upon which to base
decisions. Disagreements over basic questions such as Are
some species declining? and What are the likely effects
of some action? frustrate discussion of problems and their
solutions. In addition, the perception that facts are
manipulated to support a desired outcome reduces the
credibility of both government and private scientists. The
NBS was created as an independent bureau to ensure that
the science used in regulatory and management decisions is
sound, unbiased, and available to everyone. NBS has no
regulatory or resource management responsibilities, so its
scientific results will not be influenced by biases for or
against specific policies. NBS's job is simply to provide
better science.
Selected Milestones 1995 - 1998
Publish common standards and protocols needed to classify and map ecological units and their biological
and physical attributes. This information will help both public and private land owners to understand how
to sustainably use terrestrial and aquatic resources.
Publish an ecosystem map for the United States at a scale that allows land-use planners, resource managers,
industry, the public, and policymakers to incorporate spatially explicit social, economic, and environmental
factors into urban planning and resource management decisions.
Complete establishment of a network of representative long-term sites to determine ecological baselines and
to demonstrate how various ecosystem management approaches can be achieved. The management
demonstrations will be coupled to a comparative ecosystem research program and to the development of
statistically valid monitoring protocols. These links will provide a continuous flow of information to adjust
resource management strategies over time to meet evolving social goals.
Calculate the social and economic impacts (local, regional, and national) of alternative management
scenarios: track cumulative social and economic effects of various ecosystem management regimes, such as
impacts on fishery management and agricultural programs. Such analyses will provide policymakers with a
better understanding of the social and economic costs associated with various natural resource management
or protection options.
Determine the functional characteristics to be used to group species so that data essential to successfully
maintaining or restoring the population of a species can be extrapolated from studies of a few representative
species to entire groups of species. These characteristics will enable extensive existing basic research on
targeted key species to be used to generalize habitat requirements necessary to maintain viable populations
of most species. This approach is a cost-effective way for society to avoid the need for detailed individual
studies on large numbers of species.