Rosina Bierbaum

DO SYMBIOTIC PEA CRABS DECREASE GROWTH RATE IN MUSSELS

Pea crabs living within the mantle cavities of a variety of bivalve hosts have several adverse effects. In blue mussels (Mytilus edulis L.), the crab Pinnotheres maculatus (Say) steals food strands and causes gill lesions. We studied the long-term stress of P. maculatus on its host by measuring shell accretion in the field, and by numerically characterizing shell shape. Shell form in M. edulis is presumed to reflect environmental and physiological history. We computed growth increments in infested populations of mussels over a three-month period at two sites with high and low nutrient regimes. When growth was measured by change in shell length, significant differences between mussels with and without large pea crabs occurred at the low nutrient site, but not where mussels enjoyed a high nutrient regime. To integrate very long-term disparity in growth rates associated with infestation, we used mussels from a robust, naturally occurring population. We recorded and analyzed mussel silhouette shapes with a vi...

An Overview of Adaptation to Climate Change

Enhancing adaptation to climate change, including adjusting to altered biological, technical, economic, institutional, and regulatory conditions, is a crucial aspect of national and international efforts to better understand and respond to the risks posed by climate change. Socioeconomic, as well as ecological or technological, issues arise in judging the potential for adaptation with respect to different natural systems. In discussing attempts to better understand adaptation potential and to expand its scope internationally, six basic lessons emerge: (1) ecological and socioeconomic impacts are as important as changes in atmospheric chemistry; (2) beneficial climate change policies include opportunities for reducing risks from future climate change; (3) adaptation is a key complement to reduction of greenhouse gas accumulations; (4) adaptation potential varies significantly across natural and human systems and depends crucially on both financial capacity and social infrastructure; (5) a number of adaptation options can be pursued at relatively low cost, especially those that involve correcting existing economic inefficiencies; and (6) government has an important role in promoting effective research and development to increase adaptation options, in lowering domestic barriers for cost-effective adaptive measures, and in promoting low-cost international cooperation to address the global consequences of climate change.

Energy in the context of sustainability

Today and in the coming decades, the world faces the challenge of meeting the needs of a still-growing human population, and of doing it sustainably – that is, without affecting the ability of future generations to meet their needs. Energy plays a pivotal role in this challenge, both because of its importance to economic development and because of the myriad interactions and influences it has on other critical sustainability issues. In this essay, we explore some of the direct interactions between energy and other things people need, such as food, water, fuel, and clean air, and also some of its indirect interactions with climate, ecosystems, and the habitability of the planet. We discuss some of the challenges and potential unintended consequences that are associated with a transition to clean, affordable energy as well as opportunities that make sense for energy and other sustainability goals. Pursuing such opportunities is critical not just to meeting the energy needs of nine billion people, but also to meeting their other critical needs and to maintaining a planet that supports human life in the near and long term.

The role of science in federal policy development on a regional to global scale: Personal commentary

Nutrient enrichment of coastal waters is an example of the large-scale, highly complex environmental challenges facing decision makers today. Conventional monitoring networks and advanced observational capabilities permit the detection of changes in the environment at continental to global scales (e.g., hypoxia in the Gulf of Mexico, aerosol plumes stretching across the ocean, global atmospheric enrichment of carbon dioxide). Much more knowledge is needed, however, to fully understand the societal consequences of environmental change and of actions taken to address them. This paper discusses the emerging role of assessment in developing effective U.S. policy responses to large-scale, complex environmental change while improving the scientific understanding of the problem. In the cases of global climate change and coastal hypoxia, the U.S. Congress passed legislation authorizing assessments recognizing that decision making must proceed in the face of scientific uncertainty. Evaluating the state of knowledge is usually the first step in an assessment in order to provide a picture of what is known and where there are knowledge gaps. Assessments should also provide the policy maker with an idea of the level of uncertainty, how long it may take to reduce the uncertainty, what information is most critical to resolve, and the consequences and benefits of the various management options. In this paper I draw upon several examples from national assessments, including those of climate change impacts on the U.S. and relationships between Mississippi River water and Gulf of Mexico water quality, to illustrate the strengths and difficulties of using science and assessment to inform the policy process.

Bierbaum receives 2000 Waldo E. Smith Medal

Rosina M. Bierbaum was awarded the Waldo E. Smith Medal at the AGU Spring Meeting Honors Ceremony, which was held on June 2, 2000, in Washington, D.C. The medal recognizes extraordinary service to geophysics.

Introduction to Respondents Panel on Current Analyses of Economic Costs

As I look out over the audience, I’m struck by how many of us were here in a previous life. I guess there is life after acid rain. The last time I spoke to this group was five years ago on the costs and benefits of acid rain control. At that time, I’m pretty sure we thought no more contentious environmental issue could confront the Congress. We were wrong. What we’re discussing today—climate change—is much bigger. A lot of our earlier analytic and economic analyses were really just warming up—if you’ll pardon the pun—for this all-encompassing issue.

Recovery of Mineral Resources in the Exclusive Economic Zone: Technologies and Competitiveness

Evidence of the occurrence of several commercially important minerals in the U.S. Exclusive Economic Zone has spawned speculation about the future economic viability of seabed mining within national jurisdiction. Precise estimates of the economic viability of offshore mining operations cannot yet be made because of the minimal amount of information available about the location, extent, and quality of mineral deposits within the EEZ. However, firstorder approximations of mining and processing costs based on existing and emerging technologies coupled with limited information about a few known deposits can provide insights to the competitiveness of offshore minerals with land-based resources. The future economic importance of seabed minerals will depend on the comparative cost of commodities derived from minerals mined from the seabed in competition with those obtained from traditional worldwid-e land-based resources. The question is: Where might seabed minerals stand in the economic pecking order as technology, demand, costs, and the availability of alternative sources change in the future?