Engineering Within Ecological Constraints (1996)
Chapter: Index
INDEX
A
Acid rain, 5
Adaptive management, 51
Agroecosystems
coevolutionary perspective, 20, 21-22, 24-25
dispute resolution in, 170
ecological health as goal of, 102
grassland grazing, 36
natural systems vs., 17
Alternative dispute resolution, 169-170
Asiatic clam, 22-23
Assessment of ecosystem health, 15-18
in applied ecology, 112
conflict over methodology, 192-194
constraints on human perception, 50-53
in ecological engineering, 119-120
ecological integrity, 102-105
for ecologically sensitive project design, 143-144
reversibility of environmental effects, 58-59
values implicit in, 47-48
See also Evaluation of engineering projects;
Monitoring activities
Assimilative capacity, 3, 9 n.2
Automation, in complex systems, 67
B
Biodiversity
characteristics, 195 n.5
in coevolution of human and natural systems, 21-22, 23
ecosystem resilience and, 36-37, 39-40
ecosystem services and, 16-17
modeling, 55
pollution response in ecosystems and, 83
recommendations for maintaining, 27
replacement species, 17
worldwide species diversity, 144
Biosphere 2, 15
Biotechnology, 118
Birds, 27
C
California. See San Francisco Bay/San Joaquin Delta
Cattle grazing, 36
Chesapeake Bay, 48
Chlorofluorocarbons, 69
Coevolution, 19-24
Collaboration, ecology-engineering
to convince others, 4
current practice, 2, 97-98, 111
design of development projects, 144-145
goals for, 67-68
oil development in rain forest, 144-157
opportunities for, 134-135
political context, 132-134
receptivity of students, 130-131, 134
science education and, 75-76
science policy and, 74-75
as scientific enterprise, 73
successful development projects, 143
systems analysis, 131-132, 134-135
See also Ecological engineering
Command-and-control systems, 91
Communications systems, 70
Compartmental analysis, 84
Complex systems, 4
automation in, 67
coevolutionary processes, 20-21
energy organization in, 83-85
human comprehension, 50, 52-53
natural regulation, 7
policymaking in, 73-74
problem-solving in, 70
quantification of interconnections in, 84-85
revenge theory, 71-72
substitutions/replacements in, 17, 71-72
transportation systems as, 70-71
values implicit in study of, 48
Consumer behavior, 9
Corps of Engineers, U.S. Army, 6, 111, 193-194
resource management philosophy, 187-189
D
Darns, 3
Description, scientific, 47-48
Design for environment, 4
Design process
ecological consideration in, 1-2, 111
ecological vs. engineering approach, 130
ecologically sensitive development projects, 143-144
economic conceptualizations, 133, 136 n.7
environmentally harmful outcomes, 2
environmentally sensitive engineering, 68
Niobrara River engineering, 184
oil development project, 148-157
precautionary practice, 5-6
problem definition, 2-4
Developing world, 67
Differences between ecology and engineering
conceptualizations of sustainability, 129-130
expectations, 6
perception of system resilience, 32-34
problem definition, 105
E
Earth Summit (1992), 98-99
Earthquakes, 8
Ecological constraints on engineering
definition of design success, 2-4
ethical consideration, 66, 67, 194-195
indications for, 1-2
modeling, 4
principles for, 66-68
in transportation engineering, 68-70
Ecological economics, 19
valuation of ecosystem services, 14
Ecological engineering
applied, 116
biotechnology and, 118
conservation ethic, 117-118, 194-195
environmental engineering and, 118
goals, 113
historical development, 112, 113-115
as integrative discipline, 123, 125-126
principles of, 115
recent developments, 124-125
resource conservation in, 117
restoration ecology and, 119
role of, 123-124
self-design concept in, 115-116
as system approach, 116-117
systems analysis in, 119-120
See also Collaboration, ecologists and engineers
Economics
conceptualizations of ecosystem services, 14-15
conceptualizations of equilibrium, 33
engineering conceptualizations, 133, 136 n.7
environmental accounting, 66-67, 68, 92-94
environmental assurance bonding, 91-92, 93
flexibility in resource management and, 7
identifying ecological costs, 92
individual behavior, 86
market diversity, 83
mixed-unit valuation, 85
modeling system interactions in, 84-85
natural resource depreciation, 66-67
sustainability concepts in, 177
technological uncertainty and, 87-88
temporal orientation, 54
valuation, 59-60
vs. ecosystem health, 23-24
Ecosystem functioning
causes of failure, 191-192
concept of sustainability, 81-85
conservation philosophy, 191-192
constraints on human perception, 50-53
development projects in natural habitats, 141-144
diversity in, 83
ecological resilience, 38-42
engineering production philosophy, 190-191
engineering resilience, 36-38
health of vs. integrity of, 100-102
hierarchy theory, 51-52
keystone processes, 60
life span assessment, 81
nature of change in, 31-32
near instability, 40-41
production-based vs. conservation-based perspectives, 187-190
as public property, 50
restoration project objectives, 178-179
scalar problems in modeling, 46-50
scientific understanding, 31-32, 47
self-organization in, 115-116
spatial attributes, 32
threats to, 99-100
tropical rain forest, 144-145
See also Assessment of ecosystem health;
Healthy systems
Ecosystem services, 2
in balance with technological services, 24-27
defined, 13-14
ecosystem health and, 15-18
historical use, 20
human technology and, 20-24
human well-being and, 18-19
identification of, 14
perception of, 14
population growth and, 26
recommendations for maintaining, 27
social consumption of, 13-14
technological alternatives, 15
valuation of, 14-15
Ecotechnology, 114
Educational system, 75-76
as setting for ecological-engineering collaboration, 130-131, 134, 158-159
Emergency responses, 68
Energy
in definition of ecology, 113-114
electricity consumption, 15
optimistic/pessimistic expectations, 88
sustainability of systems and, 82, 83-85
Environmental engineering, 118
Environmental Protection Agency, 173-175
Ethical issues, 66, 67, 72-73, 194-195
avoiding social traps, 90-91
Eutrophication
defined, 82
system functioning, 82-83
Evaluation of engineering projects
ecological considerations in, 106
ecological criteria, 2-4
ecologically sensitive development projects, 142
engineering production philosophy, 190-191
iterative testing process, 170-171, 176 n.5
long-term considerations, 9
multiscalar decision making metamodel for, 57-62
restoration project objectives, 178-179
sustainability issues in, 177
Everglades. See Kissimmee River project
Evolutionary processes, 20-25
ecological integrity and, 101
human behavior and, 86
nonpolluting ecosystems, 82
Expectations
ability to manage ecosystems, 6-7
differences between ecologists and engineers, 6
regarding technological services, 13
F
Fertility trends, 190
Fisheries management, 37-38
Flow analysis, 84
Forest management, 17, 37, 41-42
oil development in rain forest, 144-145, 149-157
Future generations, valuation issues, 54
G
Game theory, 88-89
Global interaction, 56
ecological tariffs, 93-94
environmental accounting, 92-93
environmental awareness, 98-99
H
Harmful outcomes, 2
in coevolution of human and natural systems, 21-24
environmental assurance bonding against, 91-92, 93
environmental modeling, 57-62
exotic invader species, 22-23
expectations of, among scientists, 6
human capacity to cause, 53
human capacity to prevent, 6-7
in human engineering, 129
implications of uncertainty for policymaking, 5-6
Kissimmee River project, 164
as long-term effects, 8-9
oil exploration/development, 145
recognition of, 97
San Francisco Bay/San Joaquin Delta management, 167-168
Healthy systems
biodiversity, 16-17
change processes, 31-32
characteristics of, 101-102, 195 n.5
evaluation of, 102-105
human well-being and, 18-19, 97
integrity of systems, 100-102
productivity in, 15-18
public understanding, 18-19, 25
resilience, 18
restoring ecosystems, 26-27
scalar factors in defining, 47
technological optimism/pessimism, 87-88
thresholds, 17
Hierarchy theory, 51-52, 59-60
Human Development Index, 67
Hydropower, 177
I
Illinois Waterway, 187, 192-194, 195 n.1
Indigenous peoples, 150-151
Individual decision making, 9
determinants of, 19
evolutionary factors, 86
game theory, 88-89
hierarchy theory, 51-52
policy scale, 55-56
social traps in, 86-87
system interactions, 86
Industrial processes, 68
Information feedback in natural systems, 20
Innovation
in policymaking, 91-94
precautionary practice and, 5-6
Interdisciplinary initiatives
ecotechnology as integrative discipline, 123-124, 125-126
for policymaking, 97-98
International comparison, quality of life, 67
International relations, 21
Iterative testing process, 170-171, 176 n.5
J
Jefferson, Thomas, 74-75
K
Keystone processes, 60
Kissimmee River project, 2, 3, 111
litigation over, 171-172
management strategies, 169-170, 178, 179, 182-184
overview, 164-166
public controversy, 169
recent developments, 172
restoration objectives, 179-181
significance of, 163, 172, 175
L
Labor-time-saving devices, 71
Language of science, 47-48
Life-cycle analysis
application, 4
ecosystems, 81
Life span
behavior and, 86
quality of life and, 80-81
Local conditions
land planning, 68
regional ecosystem management strategies, 7, 16-17
resource management, 17-18, 104
Long-term effects, 8-9
of ecotechnology practice, 124
of engineering in natural habitats, 141-142
social traps, 86-87
technology development and, 86, 106
uncertainty effects and, 87-89
water resource management, 103, 175
M
Materials balance approach, 84
Migratory species, 27
Mississippi River, 6, 111, 187, 192-194, 195 n.1
Models
behavior of complex systems, 84
decision making metamodel, 57-62
ecological constraints on design, 4
ecological engineering, 116-117
ecosystem failure, 191-192
ecosystem stability, 33-34
environmental problems as scalar problems, 46, 55
game theory, 88-89
global ecology, 93
hierarchy theory, 52
multimetric, 104-105
multivariable problems, 71
transportation systems, 70-71
uncertainty effects, 5-6, 87-88
values implicit in choice of, 46, 47
water management, 105
Monitoring activities, 7
Kissimmee River flood control, 183-184
long-term, 175
oil development project, 157-159
San Francisco Bay/San Joaquin Delta water management, 174-175
N
National Environmental Policy Act, 189, 193, 195 n.2
Network analysis, 84-85
New technology, 5-6
Non-point-source pollution, 48
Nonrenewable resources, 3
Nonsuch Island, 23
O
Oil development/exploration, 3
harmful effects, 145
offshore model, 152-154
pipeline options, 154-157
process, 146-147
rain forest project, 144-157
science and engineering needs, 157-159, 160-161
strategies to minimize impacts, 148-154
sustainability issues, 159-160
Oil exploration
ecologically sensitive projects, 142
Opportunity costs, 6
Organized labor, 99
P
Pareto Optimality criterion, 61-62
Policy-making
alternative dispute resolution in, 169-170
to avoid social traps, 90
command-and-control approach, 91
conservation philosophy, 192
constant yield goals in, 32
ecological health as goal of, 101-102
engineering production philosophy, 190, 191
environmental knowledge for, 25, 27
environmental modeling for, 55
implications of uncertainty, 5
interaction of engineering and ecology and, 68, 73-75
interdisciplinary initiatives, 97-98
Kissimmee River management, 163, 169-172
metamodel for, 57-62
micromanagement in, 73
motivation for, 19-20
optimistic vs. pessimistic approach, 89
Pareto criterion, 61-62
pluralistic approach, 46
precautionary approach, 5-6, 93
problem formulation, 48
production-based vs. conservation-based approaches, 187-190
recommendations for sustainability, 91-94
San Francisco Bay/San Joaquin Delta management, 173-175
Scalar considerations, 55-56
tax reform, 93
water management, 103-104
waterway navigation system, 192-194
Pollution
boundaries, 3
definition, 81-82
ecosystem response, 83
energy/entropy characteristics, 82, 83-85
eutrophication as, 82-83
evolutionary perspective, 82
polluter assurance bonding against, 91-92, 93
scalar issues in study of, 48
as social trap, 87
transportation-related, 69
water, 103
Population growth
ecological threat of, 24-25, 26
optimistic/pessimistic expectations, 88
public understanding of, 19
quality of life and, 74
social goals, 27
Stabilization, 26
trends, 25-26
Precautionary principle, 5-6, 93
Primitive peoples, 24
Probability, uncertainty and, 5-6
Problem definition, 2-4
in concept of sustainability, 79
engineering vs. environmental approach, 105
sociohistorical trends, 65
values implicit in scalar choices, 48
Production-based philosophy
in engineering, 190
limitations of, 190-191
vs. conservation-based approaches, 187-190
Productivity, 7
conceptualizations of natural systems, 135 n.2
ecosystem health and, 15-18
scale discontinuity in ecosystems, 32
Public interest, commons model, 50, 65
Public perception/understanding, 68
to avoid social traps, 90
current awareness of environmental issues, 98-99
of ecosystem health, 18-19, 25, 106
knowledge needs, 27
quantification of ecosystem services, 16
questions of scale, 45-46
Q
Quagga mussel, 22-23
Quality of life
in built environment, 67
goals, 72-73
life span considerations, 80-81
obligations of engineering profession, 67-68
population growth and, 74
quality of environment and, 65-66, 100
R
Recreational activities, 17
Renewable resources, 3
Resilience of ecosystems, 18
conceptualizations of, 32-34
ecological management for, 38-42
engineering conceptualization, 33-34
engineering management for, 36-38
system variability and, 39-40
Resource management
adaptive, 51
boundaries of use, 3
challenges, 6-8
ecological engineering principles, 117-118
ecological health as goal of, 101-102
economic reliance upon, flexibility and, 7
ecosystem resilience and, 38-42, 51
engineering resilience and, 36-38
human development and, 24-25, 86, 101
innovative policy-making, 91-94
iterative testing process, 170-171, 176 n.5
local vs. global, 17-18
monitoring effects of, 7
natural processes vs., 7
population growth and, 26
production-based vs. conservation-based approaches, 187-192
species replacement, 17
Restoration ecology, 26-27, 52
ecological engineering and, 112, 113, 116, 119
Kissimmee River objectives, 179-181
objectives for streams and rivers, 178, 181-182
Rio Summit. See Earth Summit (1992)
Risk(s)
de minimis concept, 195 n.4
definition, 5
model for environmental decision making, 57-62
S
Safety factors design, 6
San Francisco Bay/San Joaquin Delta
management strategies, 173-175
overview, 166-169
significance of water management experience, 163, 175
Scientific method
applied vs. pure research, 74-75
contributions of, 73
in ecological engineering, 119-120, 125-126
education and training for, 75-76
evaluative content, 47-48
Social engineering, 67
educational prescriptions, 90
policy prescriptions, 90
sociocultural prescriptions, 90-91
technological uncertainty and, 87-89
Social values, 8-9
in adaptive management techniques, 51-52
commons model, 50
determinants of, 50-51
ecosystem services, 14
hierarchical thinking, 52
implicit in environmental models, 46, 47
interdisciplinary examination of, 47
temporospatial scaling in, 53-57, 61
See also Valuation
Sociocultural context, 1
avoiding social traps, 90-91
benefits of ecologically sensitive engineering, 2-3
consumption of ecological services, 13-14, 24
evolutionary processes, 86
expectations regarding technological services, 13
identifying ecological costs, 92
individual interests vs. social interests, 8-9
infrastructure as expression, 72
perception of ecological services, 14
policy scales, 55-56
problems of scale in, 45
rain forest development considerations, 145-146, 150-151
science in, 76
See also Social values
Spatial/temporal scales
attributes of ecosystem functioning, 32
in concept of sustainability, 79-81
current conceptualizations, 45
in engineering design, 133
environmental problems as scalar problems, 46-50
hierarchy theory, 52
human perception of, 50-53
human values and, 53-57
modeling environmental effects, 58-59
modernist conceptualizations, 45, 46-47
perspectivist view, 45-46
phenomenology, 61
Stabilization
ecological health vs. ecological integrity, 100-102
ecosystem resilience, 33-34, 38
population growth, 26
as restoration project objective, 178-179
Standard of living, 25
environmental accounting, 66-67
Human Development Index, 67
Sustainability, 1
conservation philosophy, 191-192
definitions, 9 n.1, 79-81, 177-178
in development projects, 177, 178
ecological concerns, 129-130
ecological engineering goals, 117
economic concept, 177
ecosystem services and, 14
engineering conceptualizations, 129
environmental accounting, 92-94
legal threshold, 195 n.4
in natural systems, 39, 41-42, 81-85
prediction of, 79-80
technological development issues, 159-160
temporospatial concepts embedded in, 79-81
temporospatial thinking, 54-55
Systems perspective, 4
coevolution, 19-24
concept of resilience, 32-33
concept of sustainability, 9 n.1, 79-81
in ecological engineering, 116-117, 119-120
ecosystem health in, 15-18
eutrophication processes, 82-83
individual behavior in, 86
natural systems, 7
political context, 132-134
role of diversity, 83
self-organizing behaviors, 115-116
similarities in ecology and engineering, 131-132, 134-135
in water quality monitoring, 175
T
Tariffs, 93-94
Tax reform, 93
Taxes, 172
Technological optimism/pessimism, 87-89
Technological services
in balance with ecosystem services, 24-27
current consumption, 13
human development and, 24-25
Threshold concept, 17, 195 n.4
Transportation systems
complexity of, 70-71
environmental issues, 69-70
pollutants, 69
U
Uncertainty, 5-6
in origin of social traps, 87-89
Unknowns, 5
V
Valuation
determinants of, 51
in economics, 59-60
environmental, in engineering accounting, 66, 68
mixed-unit, 85
scalar problems, 46
spatiotemporal consideration, 52
See also Social values
W
California drinking water, 8
Chesapeake Bay cleanup, 48
ecological goals, 177
evaluation of river ecosystems, 4
flood control, 182-184
hydropower initiatives, 177
measurement and evaluation practices, 102-103
multimetric modeling, 104-105
navigation systems, 187, 192-194
policy, 103-104
production-based vs. conservation-based approaches, 187-190
restoration project objectives, 178-179
threats to, 103
See also Kissimmee River project;
San Francisco Bay/San Joaquin Delta
Wetlands development, 142, 158
Whooping Cranes, 184
Z
Zebra mussel, 22-23
