Marine Ecosystems Services and Human Health

Marine Ecosystems Services
and Human Health
Some Progress and Perspectives From EPA
Roundtable on Environmental Health Sciences, Research, and Medicine
Jonathan Garber
USEPA Office of Research and Development
November 13, 2012

Marine Ecosystems Services and Human Health
*Some Progress and Perspectives From EPA
•Enhancing and protecting ecosystems and human
health are explicitly central to EPA’s mission
•Supported by regulatory and science arms of the
agency
•Eco-Health connections areas of continuing and
increasing focus and investment
1 (* With all the usual disclaimers…)

2
Statutory Authorities for EPA’s Coastal and Marine Programs
•Clean Water Act (CWA)
•the management of the National Estuary (CWA, section 320)
•312(o) / 301(h) / 403 (c): the authority for regulating discharges
from recreational vessels
•Marine Protection Research and Sanctuaries Act (MPRSA)
•the control of dumping of dredged material (and other
materials) into ocean waters under section 103 of MPRSA
•Ocean Dumping Ban Act
•Shore Protection Act
•Marine Plastic Pollution Research and Control Act
•Title XIV: "Certain Alaskan Cruise Ship Operations"
•Executive Orders
•Clean Air, Superfund, and other contaminant-related statutes

Modified DPSR-Like Decision Framework for Optimizing Management Decisions
That Affect Production of Coastal Marine and Ocean Ecosystem Services
Stressors
On Marine Systems
•Temperature rise
•Acidification
•Eutrophication
•Contaminants
•HABs
•Habitat loss
•….etc
Management
Decisions and Points
Of Intervention
Harvest
The Question:
How do we
optimize the
interventions to
maximize
production of
services?
Dredging
Zoning
Protected
areas
Water Quality
…many
others
Production of
Ecosystem Services
Seafood
Production
Transportation
Storm
Protection
Pharmaceuticals
Recreation
…etc.
Desired
Outcome
Human
Well
Being

4
Making the Connections
Critical Path For Connecting Eco- Services to Human Health Outcomes
1. Establish inventories of baseline
eco and health conditions
2. Translate conditions to quantifiable
services
3. Link services to human health
outcomes
4. Model and predict impacts of
interventions and feedbacks
Progress
Scorecard

Making the Connections: Some Examples
National Coastal
Condition
Assessments
Stressors
On Marine Systems
•Temperature rise
•Acidification
•Eutrophication
•Contaminants
•HABs
•Habitat loss
•….etc
Management
Decisions and Points
Of Intervention
Harvest
The Question:
How do we
optimize the
interventions to
maximize
production of
services?
Dredging
Zoning
Protected
areas
Water Quality
…many
others
Production of
Ecosystem Services
Seafood
Production
Transportation
Storm
Protection
Pharmaceuticals
Recreation
…etc.
Eco Services
Atlas
Eco-Health
Browser
Desired
Outcome
Human
Well
Being

6
Establishing Conditions
National Coastal Assessments (2000-06)
•Created an integrated comprehensive coastal
monitoring program across all US coastal states to
assess the condition of estuaries at multiple scales
(state, regional, national).
•Transferred this technology to the states, tribes, EPA
Regions, EPA Office of Water and others
•to assist the States in meeting CWA§305(b) objectives and
•to enhance EPA’s ability to make scientifically sound
assessments of the condition of U.S. coastal waters.
•National Coastal Condition Assessment (2010) – part of
OW’s National Aquatic Resources Surveys (NARS)

7
National Coastal Condition Reports
• NCCR I (2001) - EMAP Data from 1990 - 1996
• NCCR II (2005) – NCA Data from 1997 – 2000
• NEP NCCR (2007) – NCA-NEP Data from 1997-2003
• NCCR III (2008) – NCA Data from 2001 to 2002 and trends
• NCCR IV (2011) – NCA Data from 2003-2006 and trends
• NCCR V (2013) – NCCA Data from 2010

8
NCCR IV Partners
•EPA – ORD
•EPA – OW
•NOAA – NOS
•NOAA – NMFS
•US FWS
•Coastal States

9
Data Contained in the NCCR IV
Describing Coastal Condition
• Coastal Monitoring Data – NCA, FWS’s National
WetIandsInventory, Great Lakes Data
Supplemental Information
• Offshore Fisheries Data –NOAA NMFS
• Coastal Ocean Data –NOAA NCCOS
• Assessment and Advisory Data –EPA OST Fish
Consumption Advisories and Beach Closures

10
What’s New in NCCR IV
• Includes NCA data from 3,144 sites sampled
between 2003-2006 and trends from 2000-2006
• Includes SE Alaska, the U.S. Virgin Islands, Guam,
and American Samoa, for the first time
• Coastal fisheries data for top commercial species
• Coastal ocean condition data for Mid-Atlantic Bight,
South Atlantic Bight, and the West Coast

11
Indicators of Coastal Condition
Water Quality Index:
• Water Clarity, DO, Chlorophyll a, DIN, DIP
Benthic Index:
• Community Diversity, Pollution
Tolerant/Sensitive Species
Sediment Quality Index:
• Toxicity, Contaminants, TOC
Fish Tissue Contaminant Index:
• Whole-Fish Contaminant Burden
Coastal Habitat Index:
• FWS National Wetlands Inventory Wetlands
Loss Rates

Overall condition for U.S.
coastal waters is rated fair.
•Poorest conditions:
-coastal habitat
-sediment quality
-benthic condition
•Best conditions:
-fish tissue
contaminants
-DO and DIN of water
quality index
12
NCCR IV Overall Condition

13
Regional Water Quality Condition

14
Coastal Ocean Condition

15
Offshore Fisheries

16
Fish Consumption Advisories

Making the Connections: Some Examples
National Coastal
Condition
Assessments
Stressors
On Marine Systems
•Temperature rise
•Acidification
•Eutrophication
•Contaminants
•HABs
•Habitat loss
•….etc
Management
Decisions and Points
Of Intervention
Harvest
The Question:
How do we
optimize the
interventions to
maximize
production of
services?
Dredging
Zoning
Protected
areas
Water Quality
…many
others
Production of
Ecosystem Services
Seafood
Production
Transportation
Storm
Protection
Pharmaceuticals
Recreation
…etc.
National
Services
Atlas
Eco-Health
Browser
Desired
Outcome
Human
Well
Being

18
EPA’s National Atlas For Sustainability
•web-based, easy-to-use, mapping application to view and analyze
multiple ecosystem services in a specific region.
•visual method for interpreting ecosystem services and understanding
how they can be conserved and enhanced for a sustainable future.
•Allows users to assess
•Clean and adequate water for drinking and domestic use
•Clean water for recreation and aquatic habitat
•Food, fuel and fiber
•Recreation, cultural and aesthetic amenities
•Climate regulation (e.g. carbon storage to off-set greenhouse gases)
•Protection from hazardous weather
•Habitat and the maintenance of biodiversity
•Clean air
•Goes live on EPA’s public website in 2013

Decision
Alternative
Δ Exposure to
Stressors
Δ Ecosystems
Δ Ecological
Functions
Δ Ecosystem
Services
Δ Human
Well Well-being being
EnviroAtlasScience Questions
• How can we effectively quantify and communicate the
productionof the goods and services we receive from
ecosystems?
• What is the supply of those services in relationship to the
demand and future demand?
• How do drivers of ecosystem services such as land use
change (e.g., road development), climate change, and
pollutant loads impact the delivery of ecosystem services?
• At a screening level, where does it make sense to invest or
prioritize land/water protection, restoration, conservation, or
use?
• If we invest in green space, can we reduce the costs of grey
infrastructure while also gaining other co-benefits?
• How can we promote the incorporation of this type of
information into decision-making?
• How can we demonstrate how these services explicitly relate
to human health and well-being?

Making the Connections: Some Examples
National Coastal
Condition
Assessments
Stressors
On Marine Systems
•Temperature rise
•Acidification
•Eutrophication
•Contaminants
•HABs
•Habitat loss
•….etc
Management
Decisions and Points
Of Intervention
Harvest
The Question:
How do we
optimize the
interventions to
maximize
production of
services?
Dredging
Zoning
Protected
areas
Water Quality
…many
others
Production of
Ecosystem Services
Seafood
Production
Transportation
Storm
Protection
Pharmaceuticals
Recreation
…etc.
National
Services
Atlas
Eco-Health
Browser
Desired
Outcome
Human
Well
Being

Office of Research and Development
National Health and Environmental Effects Research Laboratory
http://www.epa.gov/research/healthscience/browser/introduction.html
Photo image area measures 2” H x 6.93” W and can be masked by a
collage strip of one, two or three images.
The photo image area is located 3.19” from left and 3.81” from top of page.
Each image used in collage should be reduced or cropped to a maximum of
2” high, stroked with a 1.5 pt white frame and positioned edge-to-edge with
accompanying images.

25
Making the Connections:
Critical Path For Linking Eco- Services to Human Health
Outcomes
1. Establish inventories of baseline
eco and health conditions
2. Translate conditions to quantifiable
services
3. Link services to human health
outcomes
4. Predict impacts of interventions and
feedbacks
Progress Scorecard
•Pretty good
•Making progress
•Needs work (a lot)
•Ditto

Questions?
Stressors
On Marine Systems
•Temperature rise
•Acidification
•Eutrophication
•Contaminants
•HABs
•Habitat loss
•….etc
Management
Decisions and Points
Of Intervention
Harvest
The Question:
How do we
optimize the
interventions to
maximize
production of
services?
Dredging
Zoning
Protected
areas
Water Quality
…many
others
Production of
Ecosystem Services
Seafood
Production
Transportation
Storm
Protection
Pharmaceuticals
Recreation
…etc.
Desired
Outcome
Human
Well
Being