122
A.J. Underwood . M.G. Chapman
Restructuring of the roles of environmental science is happening inside the institutions. Reviews of the potential roles of ecological research (Lubchenco et al. 1991;
Underwood 1996b) reflect the interest in such change. These are, themselves, subject
to proper critical appraisal (Ludwig et al. 1993). So the point for Australian coastal environmental management must be restructuring towards what desirable end-point?
In current democratic structures, a better coalition of policy-makers, managers and
scientists to bring about increased, long-term sustainability of Australian coastal environments must have several elements:
1. Better awareness by scientists of responsibilities to the wider community's wishes
and needs, so that the need for the fundamental and strategic science can be articulated inside frameworks likely to receive support. This would remove some of the
~elf-induced isolation of many environmental scientists.
2. Greater recognition by those who make decisions, as end-users of scientific (among
many other sources of) information, of the difference between reliable information
and the sorts of data that are collected without proper objectives, plans, methods
and external reviews.
3. Policies that include finding out about issues that must be solved rather than battering on in the naive hope that current decision-making, in the absence of firm information must be appropriate. Evaluation of managerial actions as properly controlled experiments (rather than the current uncontrolled experiments) will not only
allow increased sale and relevance of ecological investigation, It will also mean that
intrusive management begins to conform to legislated requirements (e.g. the New
South Wales Coastal Policy; NSW Government 1997) about precautionary principles.
Uncertainty and ignorance can lead to inappropriate management and unworkable
regulations. Precaution in the face of incomplete information requires investigation
and taking notice of the outcomes. Otherwise ignorance and uncertainty must persist. Precautionary principles require that, when in doubt, the potentially least damaging decisions are made. The only way to know what was least damaging is to investigate, which requires structured tests of the managerial decisions (Underwood 1997).
4. Recognition that programmes to empower local communities are encouraged by the
Rio convention (World Commission on Environment and Development 1987). It is,
however, abnegation of responsibility not to inform and educate community groups
of the often-encountered needs to support some fundamental or strategic or methoaological research to ensure that local action can achieve the stated aims and objectives. Many current projects of monitoring and restoration cannot. Even when
aims are clear, methods are not. No-one is being given greater, "bottom-up" involvement in the eventual management of environmental problems if their activities are
pointless.
5. Actions to ensure that, where scientific information is necessary for some environmental policy-making, planning or action, the information is sought. Often it will
not be available, but looking for it may well alert parts of the research community
to the needs and may therefore generate proposals to do the work to get that information. Unfortunately, few people in agencies, educational planning, etc., consult
either the scientific literature or those who know how to consult it. For example, recent developments of curricula for schools on topics of biodiversity cited as authorities for ecological content only two, internal~non-refereed documents produced by
A.J. Underwood . M.G. Chapman
Restructuring of the roles of environmental science is happening inside the institutions. Reviews of the potential roles of ecological research (Lubchenco et al. 1991;
Underwood 1996b) reflect the interest in such change. These are, themselves, subject
to proper critical appraisal (Ludwig et al. 1993). So the point for Australian coastal environmental management must be restructuring towards what desirable end-point?
In current democratic structures, a better coalition of policy-makers, managers and
scientists to bring about increased, long-term sustainability of Australian coastal environments must have several elements:
1. Better awareness by scientists of responsibilities to the wider community's wishes
and needs, so that the need for the fundamental and strategic science can be articulated inside frameworks likely to receive support. This would remove some of the
~elf-induced isolation of many environmental scientists.
2. Greater recognition by those who make decisions, as end-users of scientific (among
many other sources of) information, of the difference between reliable information
and the sorts of data that are collected without proper objectives, plans, methods
and external reviews.
3. Policies that include finding out about issues that must be solved rather than battering on in the naive hope that current decision-making, in the absence of firm information must be appropriate. Evaluation of managerial actions as properly controlled experiments (rather than the current uncontrolled experiments) will not only
allow increased sale and relevance of ecological investigation, It will also mean that
intrusive management begins to conform to legislated requirements (e.g. the New
South Wales Coastal Policy; NSW Government 1997) about precautionary principles.
Uncertainty and ignorance can lead to inappropriate management and unworkable
regulations. Precaution in the face of incomplete information requires investigation
and taking notice of the outcomes. Otherwise ignorance and uncertainty must persist. Precautionary principles require that, when in doubt, the potentially least damaging decisions are made. The only way to know what was least damaging is to investigate, which requires structured tests of the managerial decisions (Underwood 1997).
4. Recognition that programmes to empower local communities are encouraged by the
Rio convention (World Commission on Environment and Development 1987). It is,
however, abnegation of responsibility not to inform and educate community groups
of the often-encountered needs to support some fundamental or strategic or methoaological research to ensure that local action can achieve the stated aims and objectives. Many current projects of monitoring and restoration cannot. Even when
aims are clear, methods are not. No-one is being given greater, "bottom-up" involvement in the eventual management of environmental problems if their activities are
pointless.
5. Actions to ensure that, where scientific information is necessary for some environmental policy-making, planning or action, the information is sought. Often it will
not be available, but looking for it may well alert parts of the research community
to the needs and may therefore generate proposals to do the work to get that information. Unfortunately, few people in agencies, educational planning, etc., consult
either the scientific literature or those who know how to consult it. For example, recent developments of curricula for schools on topics of biodiversity cited as authorities for ecological content only two, internal~non-refereed documents produced by