🚀 go-pugleaf

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//                            The Island Press Eco-Compass
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\\                October, 1995   vol. I, no. 6    ISSN No. 1083-8546
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//________________________________________________________ \\



WHAT IS ECO-COMPASS?
______________________

The Eco-Compass is a monthly newsletter featuring descriptions of and
pointers to Internet resources of interest to professionals, academics, and
citizen activists concerned with the environment.  Eco-Compass is provided
as a public service to the on-line environmental community by Island Press,
a non-profit publisher of books that take a solutions-oriented approach to
critical environmental problems.

As new issues of Eco-Compass are published, back issues are archived on the
Island Press home page <http://www.islandpress.com>.  Hypertext versions of
past newsletters are now accessible via our Web site.  Also available at the
Island Press home page is an electronic version of the Island Press
Environmental Sourcebook catalog.  Come check us out today!

We encourage Eco-Compass readers to repost the newsletter elsewhere on the
Internet, as appropriate.  All we ask is that you keep it intact.  To
subscribe to Eco-Compass directly, send mail to <Majordomo@igc.apc.org>
with the following command in the body of the message:

              subscribe ISLANDPRESS-L <your e-mail address>

Island Press created this mailing list not only to disseminate Eco-Compass,
but as a way to stay in tune with what our readers are looking for and to
keep our readers up to date about Island Press and its publications.

Besides Eco-Compass, stay tuned for book reviews, announcements about new
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to help us provide better information and service to our readers.

A final administrative note -- we occasionally receive word that an address
or description of a site we've profiled in Eco-Compass has changed from what
appeared in the newsletter.  Wherever possible, we will update readers
through an "Errata" section at the end of the next newsletter.  (The online
version mounted on our home page will be updated as soon as we learn of the
change.)


_____________________________________________

Like last month's edition, the October issue of Eco-Compass focuses on the
highly complex and abundant topic of ecosystem management.  Whether
oriented specifically toward watershed protection, forest preservation, or
plant restoration, ecosystem management is by necessity a collaborative and
multidisciplinary process.  A wetland is an ecosystem; so is the biosphere.
Because ecosystems come in a variety of shapes, sizes, and spatial scales,
they often transcend political boundaries and physical ownership.  And
because the management of ecosystems involves issues of science, policy,
economics, and law, such management requires a holistic and
multidisciplinary approach involving a diversity of stakeholders and
constituencies.  The information in this issue of Eco-Compass illustrates
the wide variety of individuals and institutions involved in research,
management, and advocacy regarding a range of ecosystems and impacts.  It
also demonstrates the power of the Internet in providing a clearinghouse
and forum for coordination among a wide diversity of participants.

This lineup of this month's Environmental Gems is testimony to the
multidisciplinary and collaborative nature of ecosystem management:

The Biodiversity and Ecosystems Network (BENE) Web site <em>facilitates
communication and collaboration</em> on biodiversity conservation and on
the protection, restoration, and management of ecosystems.  BENE is a joint
effort involving a host of federal agencies and research institutes.

The Multiscale Experimental Ecosystem Research Center (MEERC) site
<em>coordinates research</em> on the land-sea interface, particularly
wetlands to open estuarine waters.  A research center of the U.S. EPA,
MEERC operates as part of the University of Maryland's Center for
Environmental and Estuarine Studies.

The Northwest Ecosystem Alliance <em>protects and restores</em> wildlands
and supports the conservation of habitat for such species as salmon, lynx,
and grizzly bears. The staff of the Alliance includes grassroots organizers
and conservation biologists

The Vermont Monitoring Cooperative <em>disseminates information</em> on
Vermont's forest ecosystem via an electronic clearinghouse representing a
variety of disciplines.  The Cooperative is a network of government,
academic, and private sector organizations organized to promote
coordination of multidisciplinary monitoring and research activities among
government and private sector agencies.

The PACIFIC-BIOSNET mailing list provides a forum to <em>exchange
ideas</em> on native plants, ecological restoration, conservation, and
resource regulation and management.  The list is sponsored by the
Washington State University Cooperative Extension Service

  =============================================================
  World Wide Web Sites
  =============================================================


  *  Biodiversity and Ecosystems NEtwork (BENE)
         <http://straylight.tamu.edu/bene/bene.html>

The Biodiversity and Ecosystems Network is a collaborative effort of the
Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) Community Environmental Protection
Team; the National Performance Review (NPR) NetResults Team; the
Smithsonian Institution; and the W.M. Keck Center for Genome Informatics.
The BENE Web site is designed to foster enhanced communications and
collaborations among those interested in biodiversity conservation and
ecosystem protection, restoration, and management.  The network functions
as an information clearinghouse on these topics.  The BENE page contains
numerous links to external sources of information, including the Web sites
of international organizations, government agencies, universities and
museums.  There is also a gopher archive of the BENE Internet mailing list
and a link to the BENE ftp site, where many ecosystem-related documents are
stored.  See the ftp section of this month's Eco-Compass for more
information about the BENE ftp site.

_________________________________________________________


  *  The RESECON home page
         <http://unixg.ubc.ca:780/~rmporter/resecon_home.html>

This is the home page of the Land and Resource Economics (RESECON) Internet
mailing list.  The page includes a FAQ file that describes the scope and
objectives of the RESECON list and an archive of previous discussions on the
list.  The site's file library -- which is intended to serve as an online
repository of recent research papers, working papers, syllabi, beta versions
of software (or programming script), surveys, data sets, and email thread
summaries -- currently contains documents on fishery management, among
other topics.  The "RESECON On-Line Classics" section of the page includes
a copy of Orris Herfindal's 1961 essay "What Is Conservation?".  The page
also features book reviews; conference announcements; submission and
subscription policies for several scholarly journals on resource management
and economics; as well as links to other online information resources.
This site is only a few weeks old, so check back frequently to see what's
added in the coming months.

To subscribe to the RESECON mailing list:

     1)  send an email message to <LISTSERV@UKCC.uky.edu>

     2)  leave the subject line in the message header blank

     3)  at the start of the first line in the body of the message, type the
following command:

                subscribe RESECON <your name>

_________________________________________________________


  *  Multiscale Experimental Ecosystem Research Center
         <http://kabir.umd.edu/Welcome.html>

The Multiscale Experimental Ecosystem Research Center (MEERC) is a USEPA
exploratory environmental research center that operates as part of the
University of Maryland's Center for Environmental and Estuarine Studies
(CEES).  The focus of the research conducted at MEERC is on the ecosystems of
the land-sea interface (wetlands to open estuarine waters).  The Center's
main goals are to establish principles for scaling ecosystem structure,
function and dynamics and to use these principles as the basis for
predicting
ecosystem responses to perturbations.  The MEERC Web site is intended to
promote the dissemination of information and documentation related to the
Center's research activities, including reports, quality assurance
protocols and recent publications.  Future additions to the site will
include data from
experiments, simulation models and results.

_________________________________________________________


  *  USDA Forest Service Ecosystem Management, Cooperative Forestry, and
Fire Management home page
         <http://gopher.fs.fed.us:70/0h/land/comanor1.html>

The USDA Forest Service Ecosystem Management, Cooperative Forestry, and
Fire Management home page includes a number of documents and other
information resources related to the topic of resource management.  Among
the items available on the page is the full text of a speech presented by
the Forest Service's Joan M. Comanor to The Society of American Foresters
in Anchorage, Alaska last fall.  The speech addresses the impact of the
Forest Service's ecosystem management policies on private forest
landowners.  Also accessible on the Forest Service home page is a useful
reference document called the "People's Glossary of Ecosystem Management
Terms", which contains definitions of a large number of terms associated
with the practice of ecosystem management.

_________________________________________________________


*  The Northwest Ecosystem Alliance
         <http://www.pacificrim.net/~nwea/>

The Northwest Ecosystem Alliance protects and restores wildlands in the
Pacific Northwest.  The group also supports ecosystem protection and
restoration efforts in British Columbia.  The Alliance bridges science and
advocacy, working with activists, policymakers, and the public to conserve
the region's natural heritage.  The NWEA, founded in 1989, is headquartered in
Bellingham, Washington.  Its staff includes both grassroots organizers and
conservation biologists.  The NWEA's Web site features copies of the
Alliance's quarterly newsletter, "Northwest Conservation: News and
Priorities".  Visitors to the site will also find news about salmon
protection; efforts to conserve the lynx population, and reports on grizzly
bears in the North Cascades.  There is also information available about a
proposed international park in the North Cascades ecosystem, efforts to
defend the Endangered Species Act, and the movement to protect national
forests in the Northwest.  There are also links to other environmental
organizations concerned with protecting and restoring natural ecosystems.

_________________________________________________________


  *  Great Lakes Information Network
         <http://www.great-lakes.net:2200/0/glinhome.html>

The Great Lakes Information Network (GLIN) is a cooperative project of
agencies and organizations to provide one place for people to find
information relating to the binational Great Lakes region.  The Web page
includes information on the economy and environment, human health, tourism,
news, events and weather.  The "Great Lakes Ecosystem" section of the GLIN
home page examines the interrelationships that exist between the region's
economy and the environment.  Topics addressed in this section of the home
page include advocacy efforts, conservation programs, ecosystem management
and protection  laws, geographic information systems, Remedial Action Plans
and sustainable development.  Another section describes the natural
components of the ecosystem -- The air, land, water, plants and animals of
the Great Lakes.  A detailed assessment of this complex ecosystem can be
found on the GLIN Web server in the report entitled "State of the Lakes
Ecosystem Conference Integration Paper, 1994".  GLIN is supported by grants
from The Ameritech Foundation; the U.S. DOC National Telecommunications and
Information Administration and U.S. EPA Great Lakes National Program
Office.

_________________________________________________________


  *  The Vermont Monitoring Cooperative
         <http://www.uvm.edu/~snrdept/vmc/vmc.html>

The Vermont Monitoring Cooperative (VMC) is a network of government,
academic and private sector organizations that pool information on
Vermont's forest ecosystem.  Over 30 members from various disciplines work
together at two sites to integrate ecosystem research and monitoring
programs.  The result is a holistic view of Vermont ecosystems that
includes information on forests, air pollution, wildlife and surface
waters.  The goals of the VMC are to promote an improved understanding of
the conditions, trends, and
relationships in the physical, chemical, and biological components of the
forested ecosystems in Vermont, and to promote the efficient coordination
of
multi-disciplinary environmental monitoring and research activities among
government and private sector agencies.  The VMC home page contains
detailed information on the Cooperative's ongoing research in the areas of
terrestrial flora; terrestrial fauna; surface water; atmosphere; and
geology.

_________________________________________________________


  *  Soil Ecology and Restoration Group (SERG)
         <http://rohan.sdsu.edu/dept/serg/serg.html>

The Soil Ecology and Restoration Group (SERG), located at the San Diego State
University,  conducts research on the ecosystem dynamics of dry lands.  The
Group's analysis of fundamental processes and structures is complemented by
applied research in dry land restoration.  The primary focus is on soils and
below ground processes and revegetation of disturbed lands in arid and
semi-arid ecosystems.  The SERG Web page contains descriptions of the
Group's current research and restoration projects; a list of SERG
publications; the data catalog for the Desert Lands Restoration Task Force;
as well as
information about desert ecosystem restoration techniques and a list
manufacturers and suppliers of equipment used in restoring desert lands.
There is also information available on the upcoming Desert Lands
Rehabilitation Workshop (see the Eco-Calendar below).  Visitors to the site
will also find a number of hyperlinks to other information resources on the
Internet related to dry land ecosystems and biology.

_________________________________________________________


  *  The Aquatic Ecosystem Restoration Branch of the National Water Research
Institute
         <http://gwrp.cciw.ca/aerb.html>

The goal of the Aquatic Ecosystem Restoration Branch (AERB) of Canada's
National Water Research Institute (NWRI) is to restore degraded aquatic
ecosystems to a level that can be permanently sustained through conservation
and protection.  Restoration can occur naturally, but more often involves
reductions of stresses such as nutrient or contaminant levels, waste heat or
management practices.  The AERB conducts assessments of degraded aquatic
ecosystems that allow decisions to be made as to what to control or
remediate, or how much can be left to nature to clean on its own.  The
Branch's home page includes a summary of its research activities in the
areas of lake, groundwater and sediment remediation, as well as copies of
AERB Quarterly Activity Reports from the previous year.

_________________________________________________________


  *  The Jefferson Land Trust
         <http://www.olympus.net/community/saveland/saveland.htm>

Jefferson Land Trust is a non-profit, tax-exempt corporation formed in the
public interest by local residents in Jefferson County, Washington, who share
the belief that the natural bounty of the land belongs to future generations
as well as to our own.  The Trust's supporters recognize that the area's
quality of life is dependent on the protection and enhancement of the natural
ecosystems, scenic vistas and wildlife habitats located in the county.  To
protect these lands, the Trust obtains conservation easements, accepts
donations and makes direct purchases.  In addition to the stewardship of the
land resources it owns or monitors, the Jefferson Land Trust is committed to
educating the public on responsible resource management, to providing an
information service to land owners and to continuing the economic diversity
of the community.  The Trust's Web site has some good background
information on what a land trust is and how it operates, as well as a
description of the Trust's accomplishments to date in protecting natural
ecosystems in Jefferson County.

_________________________________________________________


Other Web sites with ecosystem management-related information:

*  NASA Ames Research Center Ecosystem Science and Technology Branch
         <http://geo.arc.nasa.gov/sge.html>

*  Water Quality and Ecosystem Monitoring in the Southern Appalachians
         <http://funnelweb.utcc.utk.edu/~nodvin/ecosys.html>

*  The Wetland Ecosystem Team (WET) at the University of Washington School
of Fisheries
         <http://www.fish.washington.edu/people/asif/WET.html>

*  The Bureau of Land Management
         <http://www.usgs.gov/doi/bureau-land-management.html>

*  The Resource Renewal Institute (RRI)
         <http://www.rri.org/>

*  Department of Defense Environmental Restoration Electronic Bulletin Board
         <http://www.dtic.dla.mil/envirodod/envirodod.html>

*  The Center for Coastal and Land-Margin Research
         <http://amb1.ccalmr.ogi.edu/>

*  Stream Restoration Planning of Salmonid Habitat in Pacific Northwestern
Watersheds
         <http://curly.tec.army.mil/ugr/ugr.html>

*  Sierra Nevada Ecosystem Project (SNEP)
         <http://sierra-cdf.cdf.ca.gov/>

*  The U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE) Hanford Site
         <http://www.hanford.gov/>

*  The Texas A&M University Department of Rangeland Ecology and Management
         <http://ranch.tamu.edu/rlem/>

*  The Association of Forest Service Employees for Environmental Ethics
(AFSEEE)
         <http://www.efn.org/~afseee/>



 =============================================================
  Gopher Sites
  =============================================================


   *  Biologist's Guide to the Internet
<gopher://sunsite.unc.edu/1m/../.pub/academic/biology/ecology+evolution/biog
uide/bioguide.item>

This useful document was created by Uma Smith with Yale University's
Department of Biology.  As the title of the publication implies, this
electronic text contains a wealth of information of interest to biologists
(and ecologists).  Copies of this reference text are mirrored on several
sites around the world.  In fact, not long ago, we found a version of this
document on a gopher server at the Slovakia Academy of Sciences!  It is
also available in Web (HTML) format at
<http://www.csc.fi/molbio/una/unapost.index.html>

_________________________________________________________


   *  Coweeta Hydrologic Laboratory
         <gopher://sparc.ecology.uga.edu/11/cwtsite/cwtbib>

This gopher server contains a searchable bibliography on ecosystems in the
Coweeta Hydrologic Laboratory. The lab covers two adjacent, east-facing,
bowl-shaped valleys in the Nantahala Mountain chain of the southern
Appalachian Mountains.  Since 1934, the Coweeta Hydrologic Laboratory has
served as a primary site for forest hydrological research in the USA.  More
specifically, the research which is conducted at Coweeta focuses on the
development of practical methods of managing forest land for maximum timber
production, while providing for flood control and maintaining the quality
and quantity of water needed for industrial, municipal, and agricultural
uses.  Results of watershed clearings, mountain farming, woodland grazing,
and proper logging procedures are illustrated.
_________________________________________________________

   * Bioline
         <gopher://gopher.ftpt.br:70/11/.bioline>

Bioline Publications is an electronic publishing service for bioscientists.
They work with scientific publishers, editors and authors, to make scientific
material available electronically. The service provides journals, reports,
books, technical documents, conference proceedings and newsletters in the
disciplines of microbiology, biotechnology, biodiversity and bioinformatics.
The service is provided in association with the Base de Dados Tropical (BDT)
in Brazil.  They also host the Internet mailing list BIODIV-L@BDT.FTPT.BR
that caters to people with interests in biodiversity.




Jay
-- 
--------------------------------------------------------------
"The market economy is replacing a complex organic
 environment with a simplified inorganic one, literally
 dissembling a biosphere that has supported humanity for
 countless millennia.  In the course of replacing the complex
 ecological relationships, on which all living things depend,
 with more elementary ones, capitalism is restoring the
 biosphere to a stage where it will be able to support only
 simpler forms of life. ... The earth will become incapable of
 supporting humanity itself." [Bookchin 1980:230-1]