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MANAGING
TROUBLED
W A T E R S
THE ROLE OF MARINE
ENVIRONMENTAL MONITORING
Committee on a Systems Assessment of
Marine Environmental Monitoring
Marine Board
Commission on Engineering and Technical Systems
National Research Council
NATIONAL ACADEMY PRESS
Washington, D.C. 1990
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NationalAcademy Press . 2101 Constitution Avenue, N.W. · Washington, D.C. 20418
NOTICE: The project that is the subject of this report was approved by the Governing Board of the
National Research Council, whose members are drawn from the councils of the National Academy
of Sciences, the National Academy of Engineering, and the Institute of Medicine. The members of
the panel responsible for the report were chosen for their special competences and with regard for
appropriate balance.
This report has been reviewed by a group other than the authors according to procedures
approved by a Report Review Committee consisting of members of the National Academy of
Sciences, the National Academy of Engineering, and the Institute of Medicine.
The National Academy of Sciences is a private, nonprofit, self-perpetuating society of dis-
tinguished scholars engaged in scientific and engineering research, dedicated to the furtherance of
science and technology and to their use for the general welfare. Upon the authority of the charter
granted to it by the Congress in 1863, the Academy has a mandate that requires it to advise the
federal government on scientific and technical matters. Dr. Frank Press is president of the National
Academy of Sciences.
The National Academy of Engineering was established in 1964, under the charter of the National
Academy of Sciences, as a parallel organization of outstanding engineers. It is autonomous in its
administration and in the selection of its members, sharing with the National Academy of Sciences
the responsibility for advising the federal government. The National Academy of Engineering also
sponsors engineering programs aimed at meeting national needs, encourages education and research,
and recognizes the superior achievements of engineers. Dr. Robert M. White is president of the
National Academy of Engineering.
The Institute of Medicine was established in 1970 by the National Academy of Sciences to
secure the services of eminent members of appropriate professions in the examination of policy
matters pertaining to the health of the public. The Institute acts under the responsibility given to the
National Academy of Sciences by its congressional charter to be an adviser to the federal government
and, upon its own initiative, to identify Dues of medical care, research, and education. Dr. Samuel
O. Thier is president of the Institute of Medicine.
The National Research Council was organized by the National Academy of Sciences in 1916 to
associate the broad community of science and technology with the Academy's purposes of furthering
knowledge and advising the federal government. Functioning in accordance with general policies
determined by the Academy, the Council has become the principal operating agency of both the
National Academy of Sciences and the National Academy of Engineering in providing services to the
government, the public, and the scientific and engineering communities. The Council is administered
jointly by both Academies and the Institute of Medicine. Dr. Frank Press and Dr. Robert M. White
are chairman and vice-chairman, respectively, of the National Research Council.
The program described in this report was supported by Cooperative Agreement No. 14-12-
0001-30416 between the Minerals Management Service of the U.S. Department of Interior and the
National Academy of Sciences; Contract No. P-32690 with five California municipalities; and State of
California Contract No. 6-213-250-0 with the California State Water Resources Control Board.
Library of Congress Catalog Card Number 89-77742
International Standard Book Number 0-309-04194-5
Copyright A) 1990 by the National Academy of Sciences
Printed in the United States of America
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COMMITTEE ON A SYSTEMS ASSESSMENT
OF MARINE ENVIRONMENTAL MONITORING
DONALD F. BOESCH, Chairman, Louisiana Universities Marine
Consortium, Chauvin, Louisiana
JERRY R. SCHUBEL, Vice-Chairman, State University of New York,
Stony Brook, New York
BROCK B. BERNSTEIN, EcoAnalysis, Inc., Ojai, California
WILLIAM M. EICHBAUM, Conservation Foundation, Washington, D.C.
WILLIAM GARBER, City of Los Angeles (retired), Playa Del Rey,
California
ALLAN HIRSCH, Dynamac Corporation, Rockville, Maryland
A. FREDERICK HOLLAND, VERSAR, Inc., Columbia, Maryland
KENNETH S. JOHNSON, Moss Landing Marine Laboratory, Moss
Landing, California
DONALD J. O'CONNOR, Manhattan College, Glen Rock, New Jersey
LISA SPEER, Natural Resources Defense Council, New York, New York
G. BRUCE WIERSMA, Idaho National Engineering Laboratory, Idaho
Falls, Idaho
Staff
CHARLES A. BOOE(MAN, Director
CELIA Y. CHEN, Consultant
SHEILA ~ MULVIHILL, Editor
AURORE BLECK, Senior Project Assistant
. . .
111
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MARINE BOARD
SIDNEY ~ WALLACE, Chairman, Dyer, Ellis, Joseph & Mills,
Washington, D.C.
BRIAN J. WATT, ~ce-Chaim~an, TECHSAVANT, Inc., Kingwood, Texas
ROGER D. ANDERSON, Bee Gee Shrimp, Inc., Tampa, Florida
ROBERT G. BEA, NAE, University of California, Berkeley, California
JAMES M. BROADUS III, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution,
Woods Hole, Massachusetts
F. PAT DUNN, Shell Oil Company, Houston, Texas
LARRY L. GENTRY, Lockheed Advanced Marine Systems, Sunnyvale,
California
DANA R. KESTER, University of Rhode Island, Kingston, Rhode Island
JUDITH T. KILDOW, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge,
Massachusetts
BERNARD LE MEHAUTE, University of Miami, Miami, Florida
WILLIAM R. MURDEN, NAE, Murden Marine, Ltd., Alexandria,
· v. . .
vlrgmla
EUGENE K PENTIMONTI, American President Lines, Ltd., Oakland,
California
JOSEPH D. PORRICELLI, ECO, Inc., Annapolis, Maryland
JERRY R. SCHUBEL, State University of New York, Stony Brook, New
York
RICHARD J. SEYMOUR, Scripps Institution of Oceanography, IN Jolla,
California
ROBERT N. STEINER, Atlantic Container Line, South Plainfield, New
Jersey
EDWARD WENK, JR., NAE, University of Washington, Seattle,
Washington
Staff
CHARLES ~ BOOKMAN, Director
1V
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Preface
Lee modern age has a false sense of superiority because of the great
mass of data at its disposal, but the principal advantage of mankind is
rather the extent to which he knows how to form the material at his
command.
Goethe
Madmen und Reflexionen no. 437
BACKGROUND
From the Atlantic to the Pacific coasts of the United States, there have
been increasingly frequent reports of closed bathing beaches, restricted
shellfish beds, garbage washing up on shorelines, contaminated waters and
sediments, oil spills, declining marine environmental quality, and ailing
fisheries. The broad public perception of environmental degradation is set
against a backdrop of extraordinarily complex natural ecosystem processes
that are not fully understood, extensive public and private efforts to pro-
tect and restore environmental systems, and great public concern for the
environment.
Environmental management efforts have included numerous marine
environmental monitoring programs. More than $133 million is spent an-
nually on monitoring programs in the United States in an effort to acquire
information for marine environmental management decisions and ultimately
to ensure protection of the environment. Monitoring is mandated by vari-
ous federal, state, and local statutes, including the Federal Water Pollution
Control Act; the Marine Protection, Research and Sanctuaries Act; the
Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act; and the National Ocean Pollution Re-
search, Development and Monitoring Planning Act. The federal agencies
responsible for the implementation of these programs include the Environ-
mental Protection Agency (EPA), the National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration (NOAA), the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (COE), and
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V1
PREFACE
the Minerals Management Service (MMS) of the Department of the Inte-
rior. States, local authorities, utilities, and industries that discharge wastes
into the coastal ocean conduct extensive marine environmental monitoring
as well.
Despite the large expenditure of resources and broad agency partici-
pation, scientists, regulators, and monitoring practitioners agree that vast
improvements are needed in the design and implementation of monitoring
programs. The general perception is that the costs of monitoring programs,
as currently conducted, often exceed their utility and benefit. On the other
hand, there is a common vision that more appropriately designed and re-
sponsive monitoring programs would improve environmental management.
The Marine Board of the National Research Council has examined
issues of the effectiveness of marine environmental monitoring in several
studies over the past decade. Recognizing the growing need for national
guidance on how to improve these monitoring programs, the National
Research Council convened the Committee on a Systems Assessment of
Marine Environmental Monitoring under the auspices of the Marine Board.
Committee members were selected to ensure the wide range of expertise
needed and to include a broad spectrum of viewpoints. Members represent
the fields of marine environmental science, environmental management,
experimental design decision support systems, measurement systems, and
public interest. (Biographies of the committee members appear in Ap-
pendix N) The policy of the National Research Council is to include the
biases that might accompany expertise vital to the study in an effort to seek
balance and fair treatment.
SCOPE
The committee was asked to evaluate and make recommendations
to improve the usefulness of monitoring information by reviewing cur-
rent monitoring systems and technology, assessing marine environmental
monitoring as a component of sound environmental management, and
identifying needed improvements in monitoring strategies and practices.
To develop its information, the committee commissioned three case stud-
ies, reviewed the literature, and drew upon the experience and insights of
its members, managers, regulators, and practitioners involved in marine
environmental monitoring. Drawing on its collective experience, the com-
mittee concentrated on the literature and experiences in monitoring the
marine environment. Only selective reference is made to the voluminous
literature concerning monitoring freshwater environments.
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PREFACE
. .
Vll
STUDY METHOD
As one of its first tasks, the committee developed a conceptual model
for the design and implementation of monitoring programs and the role of
monitoring in marine environmental management. (See Appendix B.) The
committee then convened three panels of experts to conduct case studies
on marine environmental monitoring of the Chesapeake Bay, monitoring
of the Southern California Bight, and disposal of particulate wastes in the
oceans. These case studies used the conceptual model in their analyses.
(Participants in the case studies are listed in Appendix C.) The panel reports
provided a major base of technical information on the national experience
in marine environmental monitoring.*
lithe committee assessed the role of monitoring in environmental man-
agement, its institutional dynamics, and the details of technical design and
implementation. Because both institutional and technical aspects are inter-
related, they need to be considered together in developing strategies for
improving the quality and usefulness of marine environmental monitoring.
ORGANIZATION OF THE REPORT
Chapter 1 provides background and justification for the study by dis-
cussing the perceived inadequacies of monitoring, identifying the objectives
and major thrusts of this report, and describing the assessment approach
in detail. The second chapter discusses the role of monitoring in env~ron-
mental management, including both benefits and limitations. It examines
the institutional setting, the participants, and political influences. Chapter
3 discusses local, regional, and national monitoring and the need for co-
ordination. Chapter 4 addresses the technical design and implementation
of monitoring programs and describes a conceptual model for developing
more effective and useful programs. The last chapter is the committee's
conclusions and recommendations.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
The committee benefited greatly from the enthusiasm, wisdom, and
hard work of many who monitor and use monitoring information. In ad-
dition to those cited as participants in or contributors to the case studies,
other experts provided valuable insights along the way. They include Jack
W. Anderson, Southern California Coastal Water Research Project; Gordon
Beanlands, Canadian Federal Environmental Assessment Review Once;
* Copies of the case studies are available from the Marine Board, 2101 Constitution Avenue,
Washington, DC 20418.
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V111
PREFACE
Paul Boehm, Arthur D. Little, Inc.; George Jackson, Texas A&M Univer-
sity; Alan Mearns, NOAA; the late Ian Morris, University of Maryland;
and Jerry M. Nell, Battelle New England Marine Research Laboratory.
Still others helped with early conceptual thinking: they include Donald Au-
rand, MMS; Bruce L. Bandurski, International Joint Commission; John ~
Calder, NOAA; Michael Champ, The American University; James Claus-
ner, COE; Thomas Fredette, COE; Roger H. Green, University of Western
Ontario; Charles W. Hummer, Jr., COE; Orie Loucks, Butler University;
Alan Mytelka, Interstate Sanitation Commission; Candace Oviatt, Univer-
sity of Rhode Island; Thomas Patin, COE; Fred Piltz, MMS; James P. Ray,
Shell Oil Company; Andrew Robertson, NOAA; Anna Shaughnessy, VER-
SAR, Inc.; and Kenneth Sherman, National Marine Fisheries Service. The
liaisons from the sponsoring agencies were particularly lively contributors
to committee discussions: Rosalind E. Cohen, MMS; Tudor Davies, EPA;
Charles N. Ehler, NOAA; Robert M. Engler, COE; Susan Hamilton, City
of San Diego; David Mathis, COE; John Norton, California State Water
Resources Control Board; Craig Wilson, California State Water Resources
Control Board; and Robert Zeller, EPA, who helped the committee to see
clearly and to think practically.
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Contents
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
INTRODUCTION
The Problem, 5
Goals and Objectives of This Study, 6
Marine Environmental Monitoring, 7
Marine Environmental Monitoring Expenditures, 10
Perceived Inadequacies of Monitoring, 15
Assessment Approach, 16
THE ROLE OF MONITORING IN ENVIRONMENTAL
MANAGEMENT ........................................
The Importance of Monitoring, 19
Institutional Dynamics of Monitoring, 25
STRENGTHENING REGIONAL AND NATIONAL
MONITORING .........................................
Continuum of Monitoring Scales, 38
The Role of Regional Monitoring, 40
The Role of National Monitoring, 44
Coordination, 49
1X
. . . . . . .
. 19
........ 38
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x
CONTENTS
4 DESIGNING AND IMPLEMENTING MONITORING
PROGRAMS 53
A Conceptual Approach to Designing Monitoring Programs, 54
Step 1: Define Expectations and Goals, 57
Step 2: Define Study Strategy, 62
Step 3: Conduct Preliminary Studies and Research, 72
Step 4: Develop Sampling/Measurement Design, 73
Quality Assurance An Important Element of Monitoring
Program Design and Implementation, 82
Step 6: Convert Data into Useful Information, 84
Step 7: Disseminate Results, 87
Realistic Expectations, 87
5 CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS
REFERENCES
APPENDIXES
Biographical Information
B. A Conceptual Model of Marine Environmental Monitoring 111
C. Participants in Case Studies
...90
. . 97
............ 107
INDEX ................
...117
..... 119
