Cities are growing, in both number and size, and having a profound impact on organisms and ecological functions. However, most ecologists traditionally have avoided studying ecosystems disturbed by humans, viewing people as an uncontrollable variable that interferes with understanding "pristine" nature. The recent addition of two cities to NSF's Long Term Ecological Research (LTER) network and the growth of the field of urban ecology represent a change in this attitude. Explicitly including humans in the ecosystem equation will improve our understanding of ecological systems. Studying urban systems can also address environmental concerns crucial to the health and well-being of a growing proportion of the world's population.
"Urban Ecological Systems: A New Frontier," a symposium at the Annual Meeting of the Ecological Society of America, will gather scientists investigating urban ecosystems around the world to discuss urban ecology theory and application. The symposium will be held on Wednesday, August 5, from 8:00 a.m. to Noon in Ballroom III of the Baltimore Convention Center.
Kirstin Dow of the University of South Carolina will explore the patterns and processes of urbanization and environmental change with particular attention on the spatial organization of cities. Mark McDonnell of the Australian Research Center for Urban Ecology will discuss the opportunities and challenges of conducting ecological research in urban areas and present a theoretical framework for addressing ecological questions in urban environments.
Margaret Carreiro of Fordham University's Louis Calder Center is a pioneer in the study of New York City's impact on its urban forests. The groundwork she helped lay is now being formalized in the urban LTER in Baltimore. In her presentation on testing ecological theory in urban systems, Carreiro will discuss how urban expansion can change and reorganize resources, conditions, and species over the landscape with far-reaching impacts on the ecological processes of natural areas surrounded by a city or suburb. Specifically, she will address the connection between abundant deer food in suburban residential areas and the destruction of adjacent forests by flourishing deer populations. Carreiro will also discuss how land use change, particularly the rise of lawns, has increased geese populations and their impacts on water quality. Using European and Asian nightcrawlers as a case study, she will look at the fate of urban ecosystems faced with changes in nutrient cycling patterns caused by nonnative species.
The two urban LTERs in Baltimore, MD, and Phoenix, AZ, are unique in the LTER network in that they are located in the urban "jungles" of large U.S. cities. But, like the more traditional LTERs, their mission is to monitor ecological cycles over time and space. Lawrence Band of the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, will discuss how the Baltimore LTER is linking hydroecological and socioeconomic factors over a gradient of urbanization in the Baltimore metropolitan area.
Diane Hope of Arizona State University will discuss the Central Arizona-Phoenix (CAP) LTER and the new opportunity it presents for urban ecological research linking physical, ecological, and social sciences. The rapidly expanding Phoenix metropolitan area provides unique opportunities for ecological experimentation and involvement of students and the public. The scientists at the CAP LTER are investigating urban nutrient cycling, including the chemistry of runoff from urban surfaces. Using simulated five minute rain showers, they have found high loadings of ammonium and nitrates on asphalt parking lot surfaces. Another goal of the CAP LTER is to foster public outreach and the development of young scientists. Elementary school teachers are participating in a summer internship focusing on invertebrates. These teachers will return to their classrooms in the fall with knowledge and project ideas to share with their students. Information collected through these projects will be added to the growing wealth of urban ecological data being developed at the CAP LTER via its website.
The social, economic, physical, and ecological complexity of cities requires multi-disciplinary efforts to understand urban areas. Ecologists have the theoretical foundations and tools to participate in the study of cities, once left to other disciplines. By studying the ecology of cities, we can improve the quality of life of city dwellers.
Annual Meeting Information
Members of the media and freelance writers are invited to attend the Ecological Society of America's 1998 Annual Meeting to be held in Baltimore, Maryland, on August 2-6, 1998. This year's meeting is being held in conjunction with The American Institute for Biological Sciences and eight other societies. The theme is "Ecological Exchanges Between Major Ecosystems" and some 3,200 scientists will be in attendance. The meeting will feature symposia, field trips, and numerous poster and paper presentations.
ESA Plenary Session (August 4, 1998)
Secretary of Interior Bruce Babbitt is scheduled to open this year's plenary. His speech is entitled "Restoring Watersheds and Ecosystems at the Turn of the Millennium." Rosina Bierbaum, Acting Associate Director for the Environment of the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy, will close with a speech on "Achieving a Sustainable Future: Challenges and Opportunities in Monitoring and Assessment of Our Nation's Ecosystems." William C. Baker, President of the Chesapeake Bay Foundation, and William Matuszeski, Director of EPA's Chesapeake Bay Program Office will also speak at the plenary. There will be a press availability for all speakers after the plenary.
All-Society Opening Ceremonies (August 2, 1998)
Rita Colwell, the newly confirmed Director of the National Science Foundation, will present the keynote address. Her speech is entitled "Balancing the Biocomplexity of the Planet's Living Systems: A 21st Century Task for Science." Also speaking will be Donald Boesch, President of the University of Maryland Center for Environmental and Estuarine Studies. His speech is entitled "Restoring the Chesapeake Bay Ecosystem: A Challenge for Science and Society."
More meeting information, including symposia schedules, abstracts, and field trips, is available on the ESA Homepage at: http://esa.sdsc.edu
Newsroom Operation
Members of the press are exempt from registration fees and are free to attend all meeting sessions. A staffed press room, including copier, fax, computer, printer, telephone, and area for interviews, will be available. Please contact Gabriel Paal or Nadine Lymn for more information or to register.
The Ecological Society of America (ESA) is a scientific, non-profit, 7,800-member organization founded in 1915. Through ESA reports, journals, membership research, and expert testimony to Congress, ESA seeks to promote the responsible application of ecological data and principles to the solution of environmental problems. ESA publishes four scientific, peer-reviewed journals: Ecology, Ecological Applications, Ecological Monographs, and Conservation Ecology. Information about the Society and its activities is published in the Society's bi-monthly newsletter, NewSource, and in the quarterly Bulletin.