United States
  Environmental Protection
  Agency

  Office of Research &
  Development

  National Health &
  Environmental Effects
  Research Laboratory
    Feature Stories

 page 1: Coldwater Refugia

 page 2: Into a Dead Zone

 page 3: Marshall Islands
       Recycling Plan
 page 5-6: WED Science
       Around the World

 page 6-9: Recent
       Publications
below: Trout packed into a ther-
mal refuge.  Note large trout
(arrow) dominating the coolest
area.
These fish are easy prey for
predators like herons and otters.
              Western  Ecology  Division
              Research   Update
                         Summer 2007
Corvallis, Oregon
                                EPA/600/N-07/003
                       2r

  BURNING  QUESTIONS  FOR  COLD WATER FISHES
Climate change, increased
demands for water, and
land cover alterations can
add stress to freshwater
ecosystems and cause an
increase in stream and river
water temperatures. Along
with warm summertime
temperatures, these stress-
ful conditions for fishes
requiring cold water are a
commonly cited reason for
declines of wild salmon
and trout in Pacific North-
west streams.


According to WED biolo-
gist Dr. Joe Ebersole,
some of the negative ther-
mal consequences of hu-
man actions can be miti-
gated. However, the costs
of implementing such
strategies are often high, so
having a strong scientific
basis for decision making
is desirable. Predicting the
benefits of reducing high
water temperatures will

The best thermal refugia have overhanging vegetation,  are
close to feeding locations and relatively deep. Water here can
be up to 10 degrees (centigrade) cooler than in main channel.
                ^w
                                  •:*
                       '**
depend on increasing our
understanding of how
temperature affects fish.


Temperatures within
streams are seldom uni-
form, says Ebersole.
Colder water from sub-
surface sources entering
the beds and banks of
streams with complex
channel structure can cre-
ate pockets of colder wa-
ter within warm streams.
These pockets may pro-
vide  relief for coldwater
fishes like salmon  during
periods of stress.

That trout and salmon use
such thermal refuges to
escape stressful or even
lethal temperatures has
been long recognized, but
other factors influencing
the suitability of these
refuges for trout and
salmon have not been
previously explored.
Ebersole found that the
fish also responded to
refuge depth, dissolved
oxygen levels, and the
amount of riparian vege-
tation covering the ref-
uge.


These results—that the
presence of cold water
alone may not be suffi-
cient to create a useful
refuge for trout and
salmon during periods of
warm water tempera-
tures— are relevant to
questions pertaining to
ecosystem services pro-
vided by subsurface-
streamwater interactions,
and to the importance of
intermittent streams to
downstream water bodies
and fish populations.

The information will be
useful in efforts to protect
and restore stream habi-
tats for salmon and trout.

-------
                    DELVING  INTO  AN  OCEAN    DEAD  ZONE
Hypoxia (low oxygen in the wa-
ter) can cause so-called "dead
zones" in the ocean where living
creatures are scarce.  It disrupts
ecosystems and can lead to mas-
sive die-offs or migration offish
and invertebrates. Recovery can
take months or even years.

Hypoxia can occur when a large
phytoplankton bloom is followed
by a strong increase in bacteria.
The bacteria feed on the dead
plankton, and since bacteria re-
quire oxygen, they decrease the
amount of oxygen in the water.

The initial cause of a large phyto-
plankton bloom could be pollu-
tion from rivers (like fertilizer
runoff) or natural events like
changes in ocean circulation pat-
terns, which can cause the water
to stratify (water stays in layers
and doesn't mix vertically), fur-
ther feeding the hypoxic condi-
tions. Warm weather can cause
water stratification and help pro-
long low oxygen events.
above: Dead crabs 2004 by Elizabeth
Gates.
Dungeness crabs (Cancer magisterj
washed up along the Oregon coast
after succumbing to low-oxygen con-
ditions during 2004. There are signs
that hypoxia has returned to the
area again this summer.
In April 2007, Dr. Pete Eldridge trav-
eled to Gulf Breeze, Florida to confer
with scientists at EPA's Gulf Ecology
Division and take a hypoxia sampling
cruise aboard the Bold, EPA's ocean
survey vessel.


Eldridge first spent a week working at
the Naval Research Laboratory in
Stennis, MS to integrate WED's bio-
geochemical model into the Navy's
hydrodynamic model. The combined
Navy/EPA model provides a frame-
work for analyzing data collected by
the Bold.
The Ocean Survey Vessel Bold is EPA's
ocean and coastal monitoring vessel.

A former Navy craft, the Bold is now
equipped with state-of-the-art sam-
pling, mapping, and analysis equip-
ment including side-scan sonar, un-
derwater video, water sampling in-
struments, and sediment sampling
devices.

She can carry a crew of up to 20 scien-
tists, and her capabilities include
monitoring of ocean dumping sites
and analysis of ecological disturbances
such as algal blooms.

The Bold can also be used to monitor
air deposition and to investigate large-
scale oceanic conditions such as Gulf
of Mexico hypoxia events.
The study's objective was to develop
a mechanistic description of proc-
esses that drive hypoxia (a recurring
"dead zone") on the Louisiana Shelf
off the Gulf Coast. Nutrients from
the Mississippi river watershed are
stimulating high levels of primary
production that sink into the ocean
bottom and sediments of the Louisi-
ana Shelf, resulting in excess me-
tabolism that reduces oxygen levels,
causing extensive areas of hypoxia
on the  shelf.


Eldridge boarded the Bold, which
              visited three research
              stations from the
              Mississippi river out-
              flow to the Texas/
              Louisiana border,
              collecting measure-
              ments of water-
              column and sediment
              processes. He worked
              in the wet lab with
              Dr. Richard Deve-
              reux analyzing sedi-
              ment cores using
              radiotracer methods.
              Eldridge also was
              part of the EPA dive
team that collected these sediment
cores at shallow sites not navigable
by the  ship. (Dives were carried out
in low visibility conditions, which
made the arrival of some curious
manta rays all the more exciting.)

This research has led to development
of a model that can simulate how the
area of low oxygen develops. The
model  shows the importance of bot-
tom sediments in initial depletion of
oxygen from the system, followed
by organic materials in the deeper
layers  reducing the  amount of avail-
able oxygen in the rest of the water
column.


This work will be useful in the
evaluation of processes that must be
understood for the management of
Gulf hypoxia.

-------
             RECYCLING
     "MAKEOVER"
FOR  MARSHALL  ISLANDS
Dr. Pfleeger points out garbage covering the beach at one of
the Islands' existing "legal" dumps.

                       Before
                                                           Western Ecology Divi-
                                                           sion  scientist Dr. Tho-
                                                           mas Pfleeger recently
                                                           spent three months as a
                                                           Science Fellow with the
                                                           U.S. State Department.
                                                           His assignment: to help a
                                                           tiny island nation in the
                                                           Pacific dig out from un-
                                                           der a growing garbage
                                                           problem.

                                                           The Marshall Islands has
                                                           a fragile coral reef eco-
                                                           system which provides
                                                           its major potential for
                                                           economic development,
                                                           (eco-tourism, sport fish-
                                                           ing, scuba diving, etc).
                                                          Pfleeger found that parts
                                                          of the main island and its
                                                          shoreline were literally
                                                          awash in plastic bottles,
                                                          styrofoam cups, batteries
                                                          and disposable diapers.
                                                          Since the 1970's numer-
                                                          ous waste management
                                                          plans had been proposed,
                                                          but none had resulted in
                                                          permanent changes.

                                                          As seen in the diagram
                                                          below (left), virtually all
                                                          solid waste went straight
                                                          into  dump sites, legal and
                                                          illegal, constituting a se-
                                                          rious problem for a small
                                                          nation with limited land.
                            After
   ^diapers, misc
                                solid waste
                               accumulation;
                             pollution; leachate
                       —cardboard chipped,
                       composted

                       —green waste com-
                       posted for
                       gardens

                       —glass crushed
                       for aggregate
                                               REMAINING TRASH

                                                   —PET plastics
                                                    bailed, exported

                                                   —metals sorted,
                                                   exported
                                        reduced landfill
                                           volume,
                                         less pollution,
                                           less litter
Dr. Pfleeger's primary
goal was to keep recycla-
bles out of the waste
stream by designing a pro-
gram of trash separation,
composting and the ex-
porting of recyclables.

With trash separation,
cardboard and plant waste
can be chipped and sent to
a local composting facility
instead of going to the
landfill.

Pfleeger also oversaw a
new collection program
for recyclables like plastic
bottles, metal, and car bat-
teries, but overseas markets
for these materials must still
be found.  For example,
thousands of discarded auto
batteries were successfully
disposed of when a buyer
was found in South Korea.
Revenue from such self-
supporting projects will be
used to underwrite the cost
of shipping polyethelene
terephthalate (PET) plastics,
cardboard and other sal-
vaged "trash" off-island.

Dr. Pfleeger's efforts will
increase public awareness
and help ensure these im-
provements are permanent.
                     „-— Ml. 0* ». p. •»«-••••" M- «••««
  above: Dr. Pfleeger stands by sign at dump which directs
  residents to separate "green" trash (yardwaste) from
  toxic items like batteries.  Separating out green waste for
  composting could divert up to 50% of waste stream that
  formerly went into landfill.

-------
                      FRESHWATER  ECOLOGY  BRANCH NEWS
The EMAP West pilot study, carried
out from 2000-2004, resulted in a field
operations manual that documents the
standard methods for assessing wade-
able streams and rivers in the western
US. It describes procedures a team of
3 to 4 people can use to collect sam-
ples, measure water chemistry, note
the presence of macroinvertebrates
and aquatic vertebrates, check for fish
tissue contaminants, and  characterize
surrounding physical habitat.
Regional streambed sedimentation as-
sessments can be hampered by the diffi-
culty of obtaining stream channel data
that are sufficiently comprehensive and
rigorous for hydraulic interpretation, yet
easy to collect in a large enough sample
of streams to allow statistical rigor.
Dr. Phil Kaufmann heads a team that
has adapted an index enabling a more
accurate evaluation of relative stream
bed stability (RBS) and anthropogenic
sedimentation based on routine survey
Groups with an interest in assessing
stream quality (states, tribes, or other
federal agencies) can adapt these proce-
dures, which are based on standard
methods, to use in their own stream
monitoring studies.

The use of these procedures contributes
to EPA's long-term goal of determining
status and trends in ecological re-
sources, based on common design and
ecological indicators.
data such as that collected by EMAP
(Environmental Monitoring and Assess-
ment Program).Previous indexes have not
factored in bed channel roughness, caused
by large wood and other irregularities, that
effectively reduces the power of a stream
to transport sediment.

The new index shows promise for evaluat-
ing regional patterns in stream bed stability
and sedimentation, and their relationship to
human-caused disturbances.
                                                                                        In
                                                                                 Dr. Mary Kentula was pre-
                                                                                 sented the Merit Award of
                                                                                 the Society of Wetland Sci-
                                                                                 entists at its International
                                                                                 Annual Conference in June
                                                                                 2007.  Kentula received the
                                                                                 award for her outstanding
                                                                                 research on assessment of
                                                                                 wetlands at the watershed
                                                                                 scale. Her research was part
                                                                                 of the EPA's Environmental
                                                                                 Monitoring and Assessment
                                                                                 Program (EMAP).

                                                                                 The Society of Wetlands Sci-
                                                                                 entists has over 3500 mem-
                                                                                 bers worldwide. Their pur-
                                                                                 pose is exchange of current
                                                                                 scientific and technical infor-
                                                                                 mation; they  maintain nu-
                                                                                 merous other programs in
                                                                                 support of student research
                     PACIFIC  COAST ECOLOGY BRANCH  NEWS
Western Ecology Division (WED)/
Pacific Coastal Ecology Branch
in Newport, Oregon hosted a
workshop in April 2007 to discuss
water quality criteria for Oregon
estuaries. Scientists synthesized
the results of field sampling, trend
analyses, and modeling approaches
to produce a nutrient criteria case
study for the Yaquina Estuary in
Newport. The case study presents
an approach that could be used by
the state for establishing nutrient
criteria for this system.

Represented were WED,  Oregon
Department of Environmental
Quality, EPA Region 10 Head-
quarters and South Slough Na-
tional Estuarine Research Reserve.
                                     Underwater seagrasses provide the
                                     basic structure for estuarine organ-
                                     isms and are vital to estuarine
                                     health. Because environmental man-
                                     agers need a reliable, practical
                                     method for mapping seagrass beds
                                     to identify ecologically sensitive
                                     areas and monitor changes, Dr.
                                     Theodore DeWitt and Patrick
                                     Clinton conducted studies to deter-
                                     mine the efficacy of various map-
                                     ping approaches that would provide
                                     this information.

                                     The most accurate method tested
                                     was side scan sonar coupled with
                                     underwater video. The video data
                                     were used to 'train' a computer-
                                     based mapping and classification
                                     system, and to test the accuracy of
                                     the resulting seagrass maps. These
                                     maps are highly accurate and not
                                     adversely affected by turbidity. Ae-
                                     rial photography and underwater
                                     video were less accurate and more
                                   costly. Trials of the side scan sonar +
                                   video approach in deeper water
                                   coastal ecosystems and in fresh water
                                   ecosystems still need to be con-
                                   ducted, but the method is now ready
                                   for application in shallow estuaries.
                                   See more images, page 9.
                                   below: Color infrared aerial photograph
                                   of stranded freighter and corner of sea-
                                   grass meadow. See side-scan sonar im-
                                   ages of same area, last page.

-------
                       The
                   charismatic
                     golden
                     mouse,
                   Ochrotomys
                     nuttalli
   GOLDEN MOUSE:
     A RARE  FIND

Cross-NHEERL  Eco-Division
post-doc   Dr.   Anita   T.
Morzillo's chapter in an up-
coming textbook   about the
golden  mouse (found in the
southeastern  U.S.)  highlights
the difficulty of determining
whether a species  is  rare or
abundant.   Information from a
state species checklist, or ran-
dom state-wide  field  surveys
can be helpful. However, bas-
ing species  presence  on the
amount  of  suitable  habitat
would  likely   overestimate the
actual  number of    animals.
These conclusions were based
on  a  state-by-state  search of
documented   golden  mouse
observations.

The chapter describes ecologi-
cal and geographic factors that
influence  the relative  abun-
dance of  rare mammals,  and
suggests which land use activi-
ties are most likely to affect
golden mouse populations and
habitat  throughout  its range.
While  it is difficult, Morzillo
says,  to   draw conclusions
about the  status of a  species
with limited  field  data, her
chapter does  include  sugges-
tions for  management of rare
species and land use activities
which  could   maintain golden
mouse  populations and habitat.


Morzillo and Dr. George  Feld-
hamer  co-authored the chapter
in "The golden  mouse:  ecol-
ogy, behavior, and conserva-
tion",  available from Springer
Publishing in November 2007.

       ECOLOGICAL  EFFECTS  BRANCH  NEWS
 Traditionally, scientists have studied
 plant response to stressors by obtaining
 data from container-grown seedlings,
 which respond to environmental stress-
 ors differently than mature forests.

 To extrapolate this data to ecosystems,
 Dr. Renee Brooks has conducted re-
 search at a whole forest ecosystem
 scale that measures the ability of forests
 to access and utilize water in response
 to ecosystem stresses like climate
 change. Information from these sys-
 tems is an essential step towards pro-
 tecting functional ecosystems that pro-
  vide valued services such as clean
  air and water. For example, during
  droughts, trees can move water up
  from deep wet soils to resupply
  shallow roots and replenish mois-
  ture in dry surface soils, a process
  known as hydraulic redistribution.
  Between 20-80% of moisture lost
  from surface soils during the day
  can be replaced at night by this
  process.


  This WED research, in collabora-
  tion with USDA and Oregon State
  University, is the first to quantify
  the amount of water that moves
  between soil layers during the
  growing season and reveal mecha-
  nisms allowing shallow roots of
  source-trees to release moisture
  back into the soil.
                                          According to Renee Brooks (left), this
                                          research reveals the mechanisms that
                                          allow shallow roots of source-trees to
                                          release moisture back into the soil.
                                - .^
      WED SCIENCE REACHES AROUND THE WORLD
Vienna,  Austria:  In  May  2007, Dr.
Renee  Brooks  presented a paper on
stable isotopes and soil/water dynamics
at the International Symposium on Ad-
vances in Isotope Hydrology.
Hanmer, New Zealand: Dr. Tony Olsen
was invited by the New Zealand Insti-
tute of Mathematical Analysis of Envi-
ronmental Monitoring to give a presen-
tation on spatial monitoring designs.
The objective of the international work-
shop on invasive species mathematical
modeling was to determine the optimal
use of resources between the competing
Sapporo, Japan: Dr. Lidia Watrud
was invited to attend a meeting of the
5th International Molecular Breeding of
Forage and Turf. She presented a paper:
 On the same trip she presented a pa-
 per in Zurich, Switzerland on  stable
 isotopes in tree rings and how they
 relate to water dynamics.
demands of controlling existing inva-
sive species and stopping new inva-
sive species.  The collaboration is
expected to advance the state-of-the-
science in statistical survey methods
applied to rare species or resources,
as well as provide an opportunity to
exchange research findings.
"Evaluating the Role of Habitat Qual-
ity on Establishment of GM (genetic-
ally modified) Agrostis stolonifera
Plants in Non-Agronomic Settings"

-------
        'In
      WED SCIENCE REACHES AROUND THE WORLD
Dr. Kristina McNyset con-
ducted a modeling workshop on
predicting ecological niche use
and formations in Baton Rouge,
LA for Kahzak and Uzbek sci-
entists. The Workshop, spon-
sored by World Health Organi-
zation Collaborating Center
(WHOCC) for Remote Sensing
and GIS for Public Health at
LSU, included a hands-on com-
puter lab using Kahzak and
Uzbek anthrax and plague data-
sets.

McNyset has applied the meth-
odology to terrestrial and
aquatic species in a variety of
research contexts, and is in-
volved in many international
collaborations in this area.

WHOCC has a mandate to help
establish disease monitoring and
assessment facilities for Former
Soviet Union countries and to
provide GIS training and sup-
port to their scientists.
 Porto, Portugal:  Dr. Tom Pfleeger at-
 tended a meeting of SETAC (Society of
 Environmental Toxicology &  Chemis-
 try) in  May 2007 to present a paper on
 off-target pesticide  movement  and its
 effect on  crops,   natural  ecosystems,
 wildlife. While leaves may show little
 response to exposure to off-target pesti-
 Dortmund, Germany: In March, Divi-
 sion Director Dr. Thomas Fontaine
 attended a meeting of the Organization
 for Economic Cooperation & Develop-
 ment. Fontaine participated in several
 steering groups (Working Party on
London, England: Dr. Henry Lee II
participated in the Ballast Water Work-
ing Group of the United Nations'  Ma-
rine Environmental Protection Commit-
tee in April 2007.  Dr. Lee's assistance
was requested by EPA's Office of Wa-
ter and the U.S. Coast Guard. His pri-
mary role was to provide technical as-
sistance on the section of the treaty that
cides, the reproductive effects could
be significant, with potential loss or
decline of plant reproductive output.
Possible  changes   such  as lack of
seed or fruit production would most
directly affect  wildlife  like  nesting
birds, invertebrates and small mam-
mal granivores.
Manufactured Nanomaterials) which
focused on promoting international
co-operation on nanomaterials re-
search, including development of
testing guidelines, material charac-
terization, and experiments.
allows a risk assessment approach for
voyages between specified ports.
This approach would be in lieu of the
biological-based standard that will
be applied to all ships constructed
after 2009. One major thrust of the
meeting was to harmonize the U.S.
approach with that proposed by New
Zealand and Australia.
                                    RECENT  PUBLICATIONS
 Beedlow, P.A., D.T. Tingey, R.S. Waschmann, D.L.
 Phillips, and M.G. Johnson.  2007. Bole water content
 shows little seasonal variation in century-old Douglas-
 f i r trees.  Tree Physiology 27:737-747.  WED-06-033
Bracken, C.L., C.W.  Hendricks, and A.K. Harding.
 2006.  Apparent bias in river water inoculum following
 centrifugation.  Journal of Microbiological Methods
 67:304-309. WED-05-107
Carroll, C,  M.K. Phillips, C.A. Lopez-Gonzalez, and N.H.
 Schumaker.  2006.  Defining Recovery Goals and
 Strategies for Endangered Species: The Wolf as a Case
 Study.  BioScience. Vol 56. No. 1:25-37. WED-05-179
Colasanti, R.L, R. Hunt and  L Watrud. 2007.  A sim-
 ple cellular automaton model for high-level vegetation
 dynamics.  Ecological Modeling 203; 363-374.  WED-
 05-191
Crow, S.E., C.W. Swanston,  K. Lajtha, 3.R. Brooks, and
 H. Keirstead. 2007.  Density fractionation of forest
 soils: methodological questions and interpretation of
 incubation results and turnover time in  an ecosystem
 context. Biogeochemistry 85:69-90.  WED-07-023
                          Duncan, Sally L., Lach, Denise H., and Lackey,
                           Robert T. 2006.  "Without a change of direction,
                           we'll get where we're going: writing a future for wild
                           salmon."  Salmon 2100: The Future of Wild Pacific
                           Salmon. Robert T. Lackey, Denise  H. Lach, Sally L.
                           Duncan, editors,  epilogue chapter.  American Fish-
                           eries Society.  619-627. WED-06-133
                          Ebersole, 3.L., Wigington, P.J., Baker, J.P., Cairns,
                           M.A., Church, M.R., Hansen, B.P., Miller, B.A., LaVi-
                           gne, H.R.,  Compton, J.E., and Leibowitz, S.G. 2006.
                           Juvenile coho salmon growth and survival across
                           stream network seasonal habitats. Transactions of
                           the American Fisheries Society 135: 1681-1697.
                           WED-05-132
                          Etterson, M.A., L.R. Nagy, and T.R. Robinson.  2007.
                           Partitioning Risk Among Different Causes of Nest
                           Failure.  77te/fc/Arl24(2):432-443.  WED-05-047
                          Fernald, A.G., D.H. Landers and P.J. Wigington, Jr.
                           2006. Water Quality Changes in Hyporheic Flow
                           Paths Between  a  Large Gravel Bed  River and Off-
                           channel Alcoves in Oregon, USA. River Research and
                           Applications 22:1111-1124. WED-04-158

-------
                                  RECENT  PUBLICATIONS
Ferraro, S.P., and F.A. Cole.  2007.  Benthic macro-
 fauna-habitat associations in Willapa Bay, Washington,
 USA.  Estuarine, Coastal and Shelf Science 71:491-507.
 WED-06-076
Grams, T. E.E., and C.P. Andersen.  2007. Competi-
 tion for Resources in Trees: Physiological Versus Mor-
 phological Plasticity. Progress/n Botany 68:356-381.
 WED-06-130.
Griffith, G.E., Omernik, J.M.,  McGraw, M.M., Jacobi,
 G.Z., Canavan, CM., Schrader, T.S., Mercer,  D., Hill,
 R., and Moran, B.C., 2006, Ecoregions of New Mexico
 (color poster with map, descriptive text, summary ta-
 bles, and photographs): Reston, Virginia, U.S. Geologi-
 cal Survey (map scale  1:1,400,000). WED-07-049
Hageman, K.J., S.L Simonich,  D.H. Campbell, G.R. Wil-
 son and D.H. Landers.  2006. Atmospheric Deposi-
 tion of Current-Use and Historic-Use Pesticides in Snow
 at Natonal Parks in the Western United States. Envi-
 ronmental Science and Technology40:3174-3180.
 WED-06-071
Harmon, M.E., Phillips, D.L., Battles, J.J., Rassweiler,
 A., Hal, R.O., Lauenroth, W.K. (2007). Quantifying un-
 certainty in net primary production measurements.
 Chapter 12 in Fahey TJ & Knapp AK, eds., Principles
 and Standards for Measuring  Primary Production. Ox-
 ford University Press, New York, pp. 238-260.
Hebert, A.B., J.W. Morse and P.M. Eldridge.  2007.
 Small-scale heterogeneity in the geochemistry of sea-
 grass vegetated and non-vegetated  estuarine sedi-
 ments: causes and consequences.  Aquat. Geochem.,
 13:19-39. WED-07-FCO-120
Johnson, M.G.,  P.T. Rygiewicz, D.T. Tingey, and D.L.
 Phillips. 2006.  Elevated C02 and elevated tempera-
 ture have no effect on Douglas-fir fine-root dynamics
 in nitrogen-poor soil.  New Phytologist 170:345-356.
 WED-05-181.
Kaldy, 3.E. and K.S. Lee. 2007. Factors controlling Zos-
 tera marina L. growth  in the eastern and western Pa-
 cific Ocean: Comparisons between Korea and Oregon,
 USA.  Aquatic Botany 87-.116-126.  WED-06-016
Kaldy, J.E., P.M.  Eldridge, L.A. Cifuentes, W.B. Jones.
 2006.  Utilization of DOC from seagrass rhizomes by
 sediment bacteria:  13C-tracer experiments and model-
 ing.  Marine Ecology Progress Series 317:41-55.
 WED-04-121
Kaldy, 3.E.  2006. Carbon, nitrogen, phosphorus and
 heavy metal budgets:  How large is the eelgrass
 (Zostera marina  L.) sink in a temperate estuary?  Base-
 line/Marine Pollution Bulletin 52:332-356. WED-06-015
Kaldy, 3.E.  2006. Production ecology of the non-
 indigenous  seagrass, dwarf eelgrass, (Zostera japonica
 Ascher. & Graeb.) in a Pacific Northwest Estuary, USA.
 Hydrobiologia 553: 201-217.
Kaufmann, Philip R. and Hughes, Robert M.   2006.
 "Geomorphic and anthropogenic influences on fish and
 amphibians in Pacific Northwest coastal streams."
 American Fisheries Society book chapter.   Vol.
 48:429-455. WED-05-051
Lackey, R.T. 2007.  Science, Scientists, and Policy Ad-
 vocacy.  Conservation Biology 21(1) 12-17.  WED-06-
 166
Lach, Denise H., Duncan, Sally L., and Lackey, Robert
 T.  2006.  "Can we get there from here? Salmon in
 the 21st Century (synthesis chapter)." Salmon 2100:
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Lackey, R.T. 2006. Axioms of ecological policy.  Fisher-
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Lackey, R. T.   2006. "Restoring Salmon to the Pacific
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Larsen, D.P., A.R.  Olsen, S.H. Lanigan, C. Moyer, K.K.
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                FCO
          PACIFIC  COAST  ECOLOGY  BRANCH NEWS,  CONT.  FROM  PAGE  4
Seagrass beds are critical habitats for many economi-
cally important fish and shellfish. Many of these habi-
tats are threatened by nutrient enrichment, chemical
contamination,  dredging, and other impacts.
             Dr. Ted DeWitt found the most accurate method of
             mapping seagrass beds was also the most cost effective:
             side scan sonar coupled with underwater video. The
             images were not affected by cloudy water conditions.
    Infrared aerial photography shows
   derelict freighter which swings on its
    anchor and creates a clearly visible
        break in the seagrass bed.
Side-scan sonar image
    of same site.
  Seagrass cover map of site includes
estimate of seagrass abundance based on
     classification of sonar image.
    Scientists featured in this Update work at  EPA's
   Western Ecology Division, unless otherwise noted.
  For more information, contact hurlev.ioan@eDa.QOv
           The information in this document has been funded wholly or in part by the U. S. Environmental
           Protection Agency. It has been subjected to review by the National Health and Environmental
           Effects Research Laboratory and approved for publication. Approval does not signify that the
           contents  reflect the views of the Agency, nor does  mention of trade names or commercial
           products constitute endorsement or recommendation for use.

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