Abstract
Social and ecological systems around the world are becoming increasingly globalized. From the standpoint of understanding coastal ecosystem behavior, system boundaries are not sufficient to define causes of change. A flutter in the stock market in Tokyo or Hong Kong can affect salmon producers in Norway or farmers in Togo. The globalization of opportunistic species and the disempowerment of people trying to manage their own affairs on a local scale seem to coincide with the globalization of trade. Human-accelerated environmental change, including climate change, can exacerbate this sense of disenfranchisement. The structure and functioning of coastal ecosystems have been developed over thousands of years subject to environmental forces and constraints imposed mainly on local scales. However, phenomena that transcend these conventional scales have emerged with the explosion of human population, and especially with the rise of modern global culture. Here, we examine five broad questions of scale in the coastal zone:
(1)
How big are coastal ecosystems and why should we care?
(2)
Temporal scales of change in coastal waters and watersheds: Can we detect shifting baselines due to economic development and other drivers?
(3)
Are footprints more important than boundaries?
(4)
What makes a decision big? The tyranny of small decisions in coastal regions.
(5)
Scales of complexity in coastal waters: the simple, the complicated or the complex?
These questions do not have straightforward answers. There is no single “scale” for coastal ecosystems; their multiscale nature complicates our understanding and management of them. Coastal ecosystems depend on their watersheds as well as spatially-diffuse “footprints” associated with modern trade and material flows. Change occurs both rapidly and slowly on human time scales, and observing and responding to changes in coastal environments is a fundamental challenge. Apparently small human decisions collectively have potentially enormous consequences for coastal environmental quality, and our success in managing the effects of these decisions will determine the quality of life in the coastal zone in the 21st century and beyond. Vigilant monitoring, creative synthesis of information, and continued research will be necessary to properly understand and govern our coastal environments into the future.
Highlights
► We examine five aspects of “scale” we believe to be important for the coastal zone. ► Conventional definitions of scale include spatial and temporal dimensions. ► The “Homogecene” coastal zone is subject to recent pressures of globalization. ► The “tyranny of small decisions” is a major challenge to environmental governance. ► “Scale of complexity” applies to both understanding processes and decision making.
Keywords
scale; coastal management; governance; Fishery management; regime shift; biogeochemistry
1. Introduction
The social and ecological systems that comprise human society and its living space are becoming increasingly globalized. From the standpoint of understanding ecosystem behavior, it is getting harder to model a system within their apparently well-defined boundaries because these are ceasing to be the relevant ones. A flutter in the stock market in Tokyo or Hong Kong can affect salmon producers in Norway or farmers in Togo. Concurrent with the globalization of trade, we are witnessing the globalization of the distribution of opportunistic species and the disempowerment of people attempting to manage their own affairs on a local scale. Climate change, as well as other human-accelerated environmental change, can really exacerbate this sense of disenfranchisement. The structure and functioning of coastal ecosystems have evolved over millennia, subject to environmental forces and constraints imposed mainly by local boundaries of catchment and shore, not human culture. However, phenomena that transcend these local scales have emerged as human populations have increased, and especially with the rise of modern global culture. Much of the science of coastal waters is based on abstract considerations of ecosystem behavior in the absence of human “perturbations”, such as long-distance transport of materials, introduction of new species, and human-accelerated climate and land use change. How can we keep up with the change in scales (temporal and well as spatial) associated with such human activities? What tools can we employ to help people and policymakers to remain in charge in a meaningful manner?
Some critical questions of scale for the coastal zone:
(1)
How big are coastal ecosystems and why should we care?
(2)
Temporal scales of change in coastal waters and watersheds: Can we detect shifting baselines due to economic development and other drivers?
(3)
Are footprints more important than boundaries?
(4)
What makes a decision big? The tyranny of small decisions in coastal regions.
(5)
Scales of complexity in coastal waters: the simple, the complicated or th