9530332 Baumgartner This workshop will develop a science implementation plan for research in Pacific Ocean margins along the western Americas, including their distinctive upwelling and eastern boundary current ecosystems. The focus of the proposal is on the coastal and oceanic regions of the Pacific margins in order to focus on the biophysical interactions within a set of ecosystems that are significantly different from their Atlantic and estuarine counterparts. The research approach will use comparative studies of ecosystems, using the present and past spatial and temporal variability to identify and quantify the most important biophysical interactions and human impacts on those interactions. The goal is to increase the ability to predict the response of the ecosystems to natural and anthropogenic changes in environmental conditions using improved ecosystems models. The unifying theme of this workshop and the research program for Phase II will be the use of comparative and integrative studies of the physical, chemical, and biological processes, as well as the human-induced effects which drive the principal elements of the marine ecosystems. These ecosystems extend from the intertidal zone onshore to the pelagic region about 200 km offshore. The underlying scientific question to be addressed by this program is how to predict the response of these ecosystems and key populations to the forces of global change resulting from direct and indirect human intervention and from the stresses on natural systems which have been accumulating over the past century. The workshop participants will design a coherent and well-coordinated program to conduct comparative studies leading to substantially improved understanding of the control and regulation of population/ community structures and productivity of the ecosystems of interest. The workshop will address priority areas identified in the Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research (IAI) Science Agenda. The questions which will be addressed in the formation of a Phase II proposal consider the natural, intrinsic states and modes of variability in the large-scale biophysical systems which regulate local physical and biological characteristics of the ecosystems. The biophysical coupling which regulates abundance and distribution of planktonic components and closure of complex life cycles in both pelagic and benthic ecosystems is highlighted for particular attention. In addition, questions which also relate the concern for effects of direct and indirect intervention in the natural systems by human activities will be addressed. Lastly, there will be the application of our understanding of the interaction of natural processes and human activities to develop predictive models addressing the pre-eminent question of predicting and ecosystem responses under various global change scenarios. %%% This workshop will develop a science implementation plan for research in Pacific Ocean margins along the western Americas, including their distinctive upwelling and eastern boundary current ecosystems. The focus of the proposal is on the coastal and oceanic regions of the Pacific margins in order to focus the planning process on the biophysical interactions within a set of important ecosystems that are significantly different from their Atlantic and estuarine counterparts. The research approach will use comparative studies of ecosystems, using the present and past spatial and temporal variability to identify and quantify the most important biophysical interactions and the human impacts on those interactions. The goal is to increase the ability to predict the response of the ecosystems to natural and anthropogenic changes in environmental conditions, using improved ecosystems models. The upwelling regions off western North and South America are among the most biologically productive in the world's oceans. There is a correspondingly great potential for the commercial harvest of pelagic species like anchovies, sardines and mackerel, as well as harvest of the wild and cultivated benthic invertebrates like crustaceans, mollusks, and urchins. The economic importance of this ocean productivity to Peru and Chile is difficult to overestimate. Of the approximately 82 million metric tons (mmt) of marine fish landed in 1991 worldwide, Peru and Chile accounted for approximately 13 mmt (the U.S. west coast accounted for approximately 1 mmt). The landings in Peru and Chile are an order of magnitude greater than any other South American country and a factor of 5-6 times as great as the landings in other Pacific Eastern Boundary Current areas, making them the fourth and fifth most productive nations in the world in terms of fisheries landings. The economic impacts extend far beyond the direct income from exports and in-country sales. For instance, although the amount of fish landed off the west coast of the US was lower than Peru or Chile by a factor of 5-10, the US Department of Commerce lists the direct, indirect or induced impact of fisheries on the economies of California, Oregon and Washington in 1992 as US$4 billion. Canada, Chile, Mexico, Peru, and the United States will coordinate their research through the IAI Network of ecosystems of the eastern boundary regions of North and South America. These countries are members of the IAI, a United States initiative to stimulate global change research among the scientific institutions of the Americas. The National Science Foundation is the designated U.S. Government agency to carry out the U.S. responsibilities within the IAI. ***
