Engineering Within Ecological Constraints (1996) / Chapter Skim
Currently Skimming:
'Do No Harm': A New Philosophy for Reconciling Engineering and Ecology
'Do No Harm': A New Philosophy for Reconciling Engineering and Ecology
Pages 187-196
The Chapter Skim interface presents what we've algorithmically identified as the most significant single chunk of text within every page in the chapter.
Select key terms on the right to highlight them within pages of the chapter.
From page 187... ...
To ensure adequate navigation capacity on the UMR-IWWS through 2050, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers proposes to spend several billion dollars renovating 27 locks on the UMR and 8 locks on the IVVW.
|
From page 188... ...
_ _ _ _ . ,' ~ _ _ _ _ _ J ' INDIANA FIGURE 1 Upper Mississippi River and Illinois Waterway navigation system.
|
From page 189... ...
These philosophies are brought together in law by the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) .2 Disagreement regarding the appropriate philosophical balance in practice is at the heart of the conflict between conservationist decision makers outside the Corps of Engineers and decision makers in the Corps.
|
From page 190... ...
Generally, regulations developed using the production-based philosophy emphasize particular known and knowable components of ecosystems, such as specific "threatened" and "endangered" species, rather than the sustainability of an entire ecosystem. Although most regulations based on a production-based philosophy result in minimal legal protections to ensure ecosystem sustainability,4 some implicitly limit adverse effects on the unknowable components of ecosystems, such as might result from climate changes and pollutants.
|
From page 191... ...
that the discharge of very low concentrations of organic pollutants in waste waters causes no harm. But recent declines in numerous aquatic and amphibian species appear to be due to the estrogenic effects of low concentrations of highly potent compounds, for example, by binding to the estrogen receptor.
|
From page 192... ...
The Endangered Species Act does not require balancing economic costs against the ecological benefits resulting from protection of a species. If the Endangered Species Act is an idealistic implementation of the conservation-based philosophy, the National Environmental Policy Act requires a pragmatic balancing of the production-based and conservation-based philosophies.
|
From page 193... ...
was initiated, the objective was focused towards pursuing investigations which would identify and quantify impacts associated with the incremental traffic increase resulting from the second lock. However, recognizing that the basic study elements needed for this investigation will also be useful to future Corps studies that will require navigation impact information, the following .
|
From page 194... ...
The revised models would then confirm resource agency beliefs that increases in navigation traffic will cause significant adverse ecological effects. In contrast, most engineers expect small changes in model coefficients, confirming that forces, wave action, and sediment transport due to tows will be below ecologically relevant levels.
|
From page 195... ...
5. These include habitat for desired diversity and reproduction of organisms; phenotypic and genotypic diversity among the organisms; a robust food chain supporting the desired biota; an adequate nutrient pool for desired organisms; adequate nutrient cycling to perpetuate the ecosystem; adequate energy flux for maintaining the trophic structure; feedback mechanisms for damping undesirable oscillations; capacity to temper toxic effects, including the capacity to decompose, transfer, chelate or bind anthropogenic inputs to a degree that they are no longer toxic within the system.
|
From page 196... ...
1993. The design of NEPA studies: Application of the study design assurance proc~ss to the Upper Mississippi River navigation impact studies.
|
Key Terms
This material may be derived from roughly machine-read images, and so is provided only to facilitate research.
More
information on Chapter Skim is available.