important component of the Federal ecology research program is 

 development of techniques for remote sensing observations to measure 

 the impact of pests, diseases, drought, cold, floods, water logging, 

 man's activities, and other sources of stress. 



National Science 

 Foundation 



The National Science Foundation is a principal source of research 

 support on problems of evaluating whole ecosystems and developing 

 ecological principles. Support for the development of ecology as a 

 discipline is offered in ecosystem analysis, biological oceanography, 

 limnology, paleoecology, ecological energetics and physiological 

 processes, and biogeochemistry. Research is supported for application 

 of ecology to management and policy issues of the coastal zone, semi- 

 primitive regions, urban-rural environments, as well as to land use, 

 waste management and trace contaminant problems. Research funds 

 are granted primarily to academic institutions for a wide variety of 

 fundamental research and to academic, non-profit and profit institu- 

 tions for appHed ecological research programs involving critical 

 problems requiring ecological principles for solution. Areas identified 

 for current and future emphasis are: (1) ecology of upwelling zones, (2) 

 aquatic ecosystems integration, (3) biological control, (4) mathe- 

 matical modeling of ecological systems, and (5) evaluation of ecolog- 

 ical principles as they may apply to urban ecosystems. Increasing 

 emphasis is placed on research which seeks integrated concepts and 

 experimental manipulation of the dynamics of large ecosystems or 

 biomes. 



Sm ithson ian Institution The ecological research program includes studies on the composition of 



and interactions among organisms in complex ecosystems, both 

 aquatic and terrestrial. Distribution and abundance of plant and 

 animal species and their relationships to the environment are studied 

 to provide baseline data. Studies are conducted on natural regulatory 

 systems including species behavior, territoriality, and competition. 

 Special studies are carried out on light and radiation effects on plants. 

 Detailed tropical and deciduous forest biome studies are conducted. 

 Various analyses of the effects of man's activities on plants, animals, 

 and ecosystems are in progress. Natural areas are defined, quantita- 

 tively evaluated, and recommended for preservation. A watch is kept 

 on short-lived ecological phenomena such as population explosions 

 and kills by major oil spills and toxic materials. 



Department of 

 Transportation 



Ecological research develops technology to minimize air, water, and 

 other forms of pollution resulting from transportation systems and 

 activities and studies vegetation management to prevent erosion and 

 to improve and stabilize roadsides. Effects of deicing salt on vegeta- 

 tion and water quality are studied to prevent or ameliorate such effects. 

 The Coast Guard studies the biological effects of oil pollution and spills 

 and the responses of mussels and algae to petrochemical as possible 

 biological indicators of oil pollution. The biological effects of noise on 

 living organisms are also being studied. 



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