7. Will ecosystem productivity be lessened, reducing the system's ability to support important or protected organisms?
Inherent in these questions is the concern for the function or role that the particular organism/biological comm plays in the larger ecosystem. Indeed, this issue is often the major focus of such environmental investigations (Table 3.8. As noted previously, it is important not only to consider the ecological impacts resulting from the actual construction of the facility, but also those relating to its subsequent operation and maintenance (e.g., the runoff of salt used to remove ice and snow from roadways)