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The Problem of Scale: Uncertainties and Implications for Soft-Bottom Marine Communities and the Assessment of Human Impacts

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Biogeochemical Cycling and Sediment Ecology

Part of the book series: NATO ASI Series ((ASEN2,volume 59))

Abstract

Natural ecological systems are heterogeneous in a manner that is rarely consistent from scale to scale. Patterns not apparent on a particular scale of observation may emerge when the sampling scales are varied. In this paper we focus on how the issue of scale relates to the generation and application of ecological information to help resolve environmental problems. We illustrate potential problems of matching the scale at which information is generated to that at which it is applied by discussing potential scale-dependence in the results of field experiments and the problems of identifying the large-scale effects of commercial fishing on marine benthic communities. We briefly describe the various approaches that can be used to assess scale effects and suggest the development of more integrative research programmes with studies conducted at different space or time scales. Inevitably for many large-scale environmental issues there is a lack of both appropriate controls and an ability to rigorously demonstrate effects. This has important implications for resource management concerning a trade-off between confidence and generality in environmental information and emphasises the need for a more integrative process of predicting and testing large-scale effects.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research, P.O. Box 11, 115, Hamilton, New Zealand

    Simon F. Thrush, Sarah M. Lawrie, Judi E. Hewitt & Vonda J. Cummings

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  1. Simon F. Thrush
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  2. Sarah M. Lawrie
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  3. Judi E. Hewitt
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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Biologisk Institutt, Universitetet i Oslo, Blindern, Norway

    John S. Gray

  2. Department of Biology, Bates College, Lewiston, Maine, USA

    William Ambrose Jr.

  3. Institute of Oceanography, Gdansk University, Gdynia, Poland

    Anna Szaniawska

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Thrush, S.F., Lawrie, S.M., Hewitt, J.E., Cummings, V.J. (1999). The Problem of Scale: Uncertainties and Implications for Soft-Bottom Marine Communities and the Assessment of Human Impacts. In: Gray, J.S., Ambrose, W., Szaniawska, A. (eds) Biogeochemical Cycling and Sediment Ecology. NATO ASI Series, vol 59. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-011-4649-4_13

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