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Draft
The Latitudinal Gradient Project
Report of an Antarctica New Zealand Workshop
Christchurch, 15 –16 August 2000
Dr Dean Peterson
Antarctica New Zealand
International Antarctic Centre
Christchurch, New Zealand
Dr Clive Howard-Williams
National Institute of Water and Atmospheric
Research (Ltd.)
Christchurch, New Zealand
Produced by
Antarctica New Zealand
38 Orchard Road
Christchurch
NEW ZEALAND
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This document should be cited as Peterson, D., and C. Howard-Williams
(eds.) 2000. The Latitudinal Gradient Project. Antarctica New Zealand,
special publication.
Additional copies of this document may be obtained from Antarctica New
Zealand.
Cover photograph:
Table of Contents
Executive Summary
Acknowledgements
Preface
Freshwater Ecosystems
APPENDIX 1 Summary of the principles from the Environmental Protocol, and levels of environmental impact assessment relevant to this proposal.
Executive Summary
Acknowledgements
Thanks to the Antarctica New Zealand staff for their support in making this workshop successful and smooth. We also thank Antarctica New Zealand for financing the workshop and venue. We would like to thank the Office of Polar Programmes of the US National Science Foundation for funds for Professor Berry Lyons to participate and to Professor Lyons for his presentation and discussions.
The Group Chairpersons included, Dr Brian Storey, and the authors of this document. Rapporteurs were Dr Brian Stewart, Brent Sinclair and Dr Wendy Lawson. Finally we thank all the participants for their contributions and enthusiasm for this workshop and the Latitudinal Gradients concept.
Preface
Background of events leading up to the Workshop
Early in 1999 discussions were held between Antarctica New Zealand and Dr Paul Berkman (Byrd Polar Research Center, USA) on a possible project to study the variation in coastal ecosystems in the Ross Sea. At the March 1999 Antarctic Science Workshop in Wellington, Clive Howard-Williams presented a concept to link New Zealand terrestrial and freshwater research using the wide latitudinal variation in climate that occurs along the Victoria Coast. As a result of these preliminary discussions and presentations a recommendation was made that New Zealand scientists take advantage of the “natural laboratory” in the latitudinal gradient offered by the Ross Sea sector and use the extensive combined logistics pool of the US, Italy and New Zealand to:
Following the presentation at the March 1999 workshop, we circulated a discussion document on the proposed Latitudinal Gradient Project (Howard-Williams and Peterson 1999). This discussion paper has been presented at a number of international forums and formed the basis for the workshop reported on in this document. Italy has held a science workshop entitled, “Victoria Land Coastal Programme”, led by Dr R. Cattaneo-Vietti. Dr Paul Berkman has introduced the combined US, New Zealand and Italian Latitudinal Gradient concept to the 2000 meeting of the Scientific Committee on Antarctic Research (SCAR) at the Biology and Geology Working Groups of SCAR. Subsequently, the National Science Foundation (NSF) has funded a proposal to hold two international workshops in the US in 2001 on the Latitudinal Gradient concept.
To proceed with Antarctica New Zealand’s aims in furthering this concept a two day workshop was held in Christchurch, entitled: The Latitudinal Gradient Project: A Workshop. This report presents the findings of this workshop.
The workshop was organised by Dean Peterson and Clive Howard-Williams.
Structure of the Workshop
The purpose of the workshop was to discuss the state of scientific knowledge of terrestrial, freshwater and marine ecosystems in Victoria Land and form a strategy and direction for a proposed Latitudinal Gradient Project as one focus for New Zealand’s Antarctic research programmes. Workshop participants consisted of, scientists representing the many disciplines encompassed by the project, logisticians and environmental specialists. The workshop goals were to:
Plenary sessions were held each morning reporting on existing large-scale ecosystem programmes. These included a presentation by Professor Berry Lyons, Director of Byrd Polar Research Centre and Principal Scientist on the McMurdo Dry Valleys Long Term Ecological Research project (LTER). Other presentations included moss and lichen studies, soil research, inland water and marine research and UV affects. In the afternoon sessions the attendees were separated into three groups (terrestrial, marine and physical environment). Each group addressed a set of workshop objectives (listed below) and reported their findings back to the full audience at the end of each day for discussion.
Each of the three groups had a discussion leader and a rapporteur. The discussion leaders and rapporteurs are identified in the list of workshop participants at the end of this report. The following report is a synthesis of the plenary papers and the group reports representing the combined input of the Workshop participants.
Objective 1: Define the working hypotheses for the first four years of the project.
Objective 2: Prepare a synopsis of information needs relating to:
Objective 3: Define logistical, operational and environmental parameters for success.
Objective 4: Develop a working science plan.
It is hoped that this report will provide a platform to stimulate discussions; define new research directions; provide Antarctic funding directions; and increase international research collaboration in Victoria Land.
As such the report is intended to serve as a planning tool for scientists, logistics experts and administrators concerned with science funding and science directions in Antarctica and the Southern Ocean.
1. Introduction
The Ross Sea region contains a number of environmental (ecological) spectra relating to cold, aridity, solar radiation, UV, light/dark conditions and highly variable sea ice dynamics including a major polynya. The land and coast within the Ross Dependency across this wide latitudinal range includes a variety of marine, terrestrial and freshwater habitats. Some of these systems are unique to the Antarctic. Within the Ross Sea region the Victoria Land mountains and coast contains the most extensive coastal latitudinal gradient in Antarctica, from 72°S (Cape Adare) to 86°S at the La Gorce Mountains at the southern end of the Ross Ice Shelf (14º of latitude along a narrow longitudinal band).
Environmental changes over such a wide latitudinal range at one point in time can be used to mimic environmental changes at one point in space over a long time span. A latitudinal gradient can therefore be used to study the effects of potential changes in regional climate that may or may not be associated with global change, as well as providing a range of environmental conditions for more fundamental studies. Underlying this is the phenomenon of “Polar focussing” whereby a given change in latitude in the Polar Regions is followed by a greater change in environmental variables than a similar latitudinal change in the temperate or tropical regions. Polar focussing provides an additional advantage to the use of a gradient approach to study environmental change in the Ross Sea region.
The Ross Sea sector contains a number of climatic extremes. Snowfalls vary from almost no precipitation in the Dry Valleys to relatively high snowfalls on the northern part of the coast and at Ross Island. Temperature variation is from relatively warm temperatures at coastal sites north of the McMurdo Ice Shelf to cold temperatures at the southern inland sites and those adjacent to the Ross Ice Shelf. There is also a great variation in altitude from low to high altitudes along the Trans-Antarctic Mountain range, which stretches the length of the Ross Dependency. Along the Ross Sea coast itself there are varying degrees of ice cover including a large polynya which is a major feature of the Ross Sea (Spezie and Manzella 1999).
South of McMurdo Sound the Ross Ice Shelf covers the sea and exerts a much colder influence on the adjacent landmass than the sea from McMurdo northwards.
Two major zones can thus be defined: north and south of the seaward edge of the Ross Ice shelf. Within each of these, variations in climate and habitat for living organisms are likely to be significant with a discontinuous shift in physiological and ecological responses across the boundary of the Ross Ice Shelf and perhaps other, as yet unknown, boundaries. For instance, unpublished evidence from coastal marine bivalves indicates that significant changes occur in the vicinity of Terra Nova Bay which may allow us to partition the Victoria Land coastal environment at this point also (Berkman et al. 2000).
In summer, glacial meltwaters are common from the McMurdo Sound area and northwards but are less frequent south of this area. We may therefore expect that the types of terrestrial organisms, their abundance and their adaptations to Antarctic conditions would be very different at Cape Hallett and the Beardmore Glacier. For instance only a few species of algae and bacteria have been recorded from frozen ponds at latitude 86ºS where freshwater existed only under a cover of ice (Broady 1998, Cameron 1972). In contrast, at Moubray Bay (Cape Hallett) extensive areas of moss flush fed by seeping waters form a large “wetland” across the inner reaches of the Bay, and algae are common in the meltstreams of the area (L. Logan and T. Chinn, pers. comm.).
We may expect that ambient temperatures and the period of free water may decrease from Northern Victoria Land to the southern latitude of Southern Victoria Land. Seasonal variability in solar radiation is at its most extreme at latitude 60-90ºS (Table 1). At say, Cape Adare, 72ºS, there may be two months of the year when less than 1MJ m-² day of radiation reaches the atmosphere, but at the Beardmore Glacier (85ºS) there are 6-7 months of the year with less than 1 MJ m-² day. North-South gradients in enhanced UV radiation effects resulting from spring ozone depletion may also be expected.
In these conditions it is likely that species composition will change and species diversity may fall as latitude increases with a few remaining species adapted to extreme southern conditions.
Table 1. (adapted from Vincent 1988). Radiation at the top of the atmosphere as a function of latitude and time of year for the zone 60-90ºS. Data as 1MJ m-² day-¹.
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We believe a significant key issue that needs to be addressed is the response (biochemical, molecular, genetic, physiological, organism, community or ecosystem level) to a changing environment. This proposal is aimed at increasing our understanding of coastal marine, freshwater and terrestrial organisms and ecosystems, their controlling variables and sensitivity to environmental change along a north-south continuum. To do this effectively will require combined information from a range of disciplines such as marine, terrestrial and freshwater ecology, climate research, soil science, glaciology and oceanography.
There are clearly significant advantages to be gained in drawing together New Zealand’s expertise in these areas and linking this with our international science partners in the Ross Dependency. This workshop brought together the thoughts and energies of New Zealand scientists while allowing them to maintain a degree of individual research direction. It was based on the concept that if work related to extreme environments could be placed within a single key issue we can maximise the transfer of information and ideas, utilise large environmental data-sets and utilise joint logistic facilities with our partners, the USA and Italy.
The workshop reached consensus on six general strategies for studying terrestrial and marine ecosystems along the coastal zone of Victoria Land:
The first step in creating an effective project to increase New Zealand’s understanding and predictive knowledge of coastal zone ecosystems along Victoria Land is the collation of existing data in a database or meta-data format. The information in the database should cover previous studies along the coastal zone from 72-86S. Bibliographic information as well as meta-data is important. The international state of the knowledge of the coastal zone is the goal for this step. This will be done collaboratively (see Strategy 6 above) if other national programmes become established.
Existing science papers and science reports will be important sources of information and the annual “Event Science and Logistic Reports” held by Antarctica New Zealand need to be scanned. Maps and air photos from previous studies over the entire coastal zone of Victoria Land may need to be scanned into digital format.
The second step is integration of the collected information to assess ecosystem response to environmental gradients and transition zones from large scale effects (sea-ice coverage, Ross Ice Shelf locale) and regional effects (micro-climates, hydrology). This information will lead to the identification of gaps in our current understanding and potential indicators of change for predicting local human impacts and regional and global environmental changes.
The final step of the preliminary investigation is to choose locations for the project, which have historical data that can be used as a longer-term record of the ecosystem. It was acknowledged at the meeting that an important factor for site selection is the availability and extent of existing data.
2. Inter-Disciplinary Approach
The scale and complexity of the systems being addressed requires an interdisciplinary approach to this project. A knowledge of the physical environment and the dependence of physical factors on latitude, altitude, depth and distance from the coast are primary objectives for the project. These will provide the platform for an understanding of ecosystems in terms of biodiversity, interactions between species, productivity and energy exchange. The imminent publication of the Ross Sea State of the Environment Report will be an important first step.
The physical measurements needed are air, soil, soil moisture, freshwater and ocean temperature; current and wind vectors and magnitudes; lake- and sea-ice conditions; stream and ice flows; tide and lake levels; topography and bathymetry; solar radiation; and associated environmental chronologies. There are a number of existing New Zealand programmes that could contribute to the project. Examples in the area of physical sciences include: glacial studies of ice dynamics; climate monitoring including all micro-climates; geological research; Antarctic soil research; and hydrographic studies.
The area of Biological research includes terrestrial biodiversity studies; penguin research; UVB effects; Antarctic aquatic ecosystem research; fish biology; marine ecosystem studies; and seal research. Integration of the research topics mentioned would greatly contribute to understanding the coastal ecosystems and their dependence to latitude. The latitudinal variation would begin to give us a predictive knowledge of future impacts to the environment.
Because of the importance of altitude on land and depth in the sea on the physical conditions surrounding any site chosen, a sampling approach of multiple measurements and expanding along a transect perpendicular to the coast was recommended. This will help de-couple the three gradients referred to in the physical environment section. A transect approach reduces the impact of microclimate effects on the ecosystems studied, as was clearly shown in Fountain et al. (1999).
Workshop participants acknowledged that remote sensing data would be valuable for continuing studies and information on large spatial scales. There are a number of satellite-based instruments, which give a number of physical conditions for the Ross Sea Region. The information must however be calibrated with field data at each site of interest.
Along with the remote sensing data, site based instrumentation is important for long-term monitoring of key physical factors. The instruments mentioned at the workshop were automatic weather stations, lake-level and stream monitors and tide gauges using logging and/or telemetry to base stations.
The McMurdo Dry Valleys LTER site provides an excellent data set of current measurements taken at the mid-point of Victoria Land. The site provides excellent overlap thus compensating for year to year variations that may take place at each latitudinal site. The meteorological observations for each site studied in the Latitudinal Gradients Project should be calibrated against the LTER measurement suite. Another asset of the LTER site is the length of the past record.
The research done at the McMurdo Dry Valleys LTER site is based on a Lake Basin approach (Wharton 1991; Priscu 1998; Fountain et al 1999) and covers meteorological measurements and major landscape units, such as, lakes, streams soils and glaciers. There is also a large modelling and synthesis division devoted to the programme. The assets mentioned above combine to make the McMurdo Dry Valleys LTER site an important asset and partner to the LGP.
Linking the database format in a comparable way with the US and Italian programmes will be essential if these go ahead.
It was evident that significant progress will require close liaison with the US Antarctic Programme if a proposal for research on “Marine Terrestrial Interaction Across a High Latitudinal Environmental Gradient” (Berkman et al. 2000) proceeds. In addition, it is likely that both scientific and logistic interactions with the Italian Antarctic Programme will increase markedly, particularly if New Zealand proposals (see Sections 8 and 10 of this document) for a temporary research site near Terra Nova Bay proceed. Italian researchers have signalled a commitment to a “Victoria Land Coastal Transect project” (Cattaneo-Vietti et al. 2000) by arranging a meeting in Siena, Italy in June 2000 and a presentation at the SCAR-EASIZ meeting in Bremerhaven, Germany in June 1999.
The Biology - Working Group of SCAR has produced a Draft Science Plan for its programme Regional Sensitivity to Climate Change in Antarctic Terrestrial Ecosystems (RiSCC) which will have close affiliations with any Victoria Land research using a latitudinal gradient approach.
3. The Physical Environment
Hypothesis: Broad scale environmental attributes and processes that vary with latitude influence the structure and function of terrestrial and marine ecosystems in Victoria Land.
(C)
Significant differences in the non-marine physical environment measurable along latitudes 72-86S are found in temperature, solar radiation, humidity, glacier movement and the biogeochemistry of melt waters. In the marine environment differences occur with the dominating influences of light, ocean currents, tides, sea ice and ice shelf coverage, depth and the sea floor substrate. For example, air temperature variations with latitude are shown in Figure 1 with data from three Automated Weather Station (AWS) data sets for the 1997/98 year. Figure 2 shows the AWS sites and the variation in sea conditions along the Victoria Land coast during January.
Elevation 75m
Elevation 80m
Elevation 30m
Figure 1: The average weekly temperature for three different sites along the Victoria Land coast are shown for the timeframe of 30 September 1997 to 20 March 1998. An important feature is the extended period of time above freezing at the lowest latitude site. Note there are freeze/thaw cycles, which are averaged out by this method.
80S
Scott Base
75S
AWS #1
AWS #2
AWS #3
85S
Ross Sea
Victoria
Land
Figure 2: Map of Victoria Land Coastal area showing the AWS sites used for weekly average temperature comparisons. Important features are the Drygalski Ice Tongue – south of AWS #2, the Ross Ice Shelf and the polynya area off the Northern Victoria Land coast between AWS #1 and #2. Dotted line areas show approximate positions for three polynyas in the Ross Sea.
Three major systematic environmental gradients that are significant to understanding Victoria Land environments are latitude, altitude/depth and distance from the coastline. These three gradients have different spatial scales, environmental variables and environmental constants. None of these gradients alone are simple surrogates for environmental change. However, combining these will result in a better understanding of our current ecosystems and an increased predictive knowledge of the effects of future environmental change.
At the latitude spanned by the Victoria Land coast (72-86 S) the variance of physical factors for the three gradients can be summarised by Table 2 which suggests a stronger dependence of physical factors on latitude than on altitude and coastal effects, but it is clear that the three gradients need to be considered together.
Table 2. Dependence of physical factors on three geographic independent gradients, latitude, altitude and distance from the coast. The subjective values present in this Table were reached by a consensus of the workshop participants.
| Terrestrial Physical Factor | Latitude
(per degree) |
Altitude/ Depth
(per 100 m) |
Distance to Coast (per km) |
| Solar radiation | 2 | 1 | None |
| Temperature | 2 | 2 | 2 – 1 |
| Humidity | 2 | 1 | 2 |
| Wind | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| Precipitation (amount) | 2 | 1 | 1 |
| Precipitation (type) | 2 | 1 | 1 |
| Ablation (amount) | 2 | 2 | 2 |
| Ablation (type) | 2 | 2 | 2 |
| Terrestrial geochemistry | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| Seasonality | 2 | 1 | None |
| Marine Physical Factor | |||
| Polynya | 2 | None | 1 |
| Current | 2 | 2 | 2 |
| Salinity | 1 | 2 | 2 |
| Tidal cycles | 3 | None | None |
| Sea Ice cover | 2 | None | 1 |
| Ice shelf cover | 3 | None | None |
Key:
1 – Weak dependence,
2 – Medium dependence,
3 – Strong dependence.
At a local scale the following factors are of importance in the terrestrial system:
There are latitudinal changes in physical and chemical properties of terrestrial and freshwater environments, which impact in a very significant way on the availability and chemistry of free water (gas and liquid). The marine physical environment is dominated by synoptic scale changes along the latitude, i.e., polynyas, sea-ice cover and the Ross Ice Shelf, although these are not necessarily caused by latitude per se.
There is a distinct latitudinal zonation along the Victoria Land coastal area in ecosystem dynamics of terrestrial and freshwater communities. These biological changes are mostly driven by the availability of liquid water and understanding of the dynamics of free water is imperative to defining local and latitudinal effects. Physio-chemical processes and biological communities in terrestrial and freshwater systems respond in a series of steps (zones) rather than a simple cline. These steps may be related to the presence or absence of the Ross Ice Shelf; the extent of sea ice; persistent or katabatic windflows; or glaciers.
In terrestrial and freshwater ecosystems the gradient of latitude from towards 72-86S can be seen in terms of an array of contrasting characteristics, some of which decrease, some increase and some are markedly “non linear”.
Several important processes decrease with increasing latitude in Victoria Land as environmental stress increases. These are shown in Figure 4A and include:
Several processes in contrast, increase with latitude, also shown in Figure 4A and include:
A
Solar radiation and length of the annual light period
Temperature and length of the annual thaw period
Depth of the permafrost
Rates of biogeochemical cycling
Bio-complexity
Bio-diversity
V
A
L
U
E
Generation times
Recovery times following perturbations
Patchiness
Endemicity
System simplification
86 S
72 S
LATITUDE
Oceanic
Influence
Resilience to environmental change
V
A
L
U
E
Number of
Freeze / Thaw
Cycles
86 S
72 S
LATITUDE
Figure 4. Ecosystem processes that depend on latitude in the terrestrial environment. A. Process that decrease/increase in a general sense with latitude. B. Processes that vary in a markedly “non-linear” manner with latitude.
There are four terrestrial and freshwater ecosystem processes which respond in a non-linear manner to latitude along the Victoria Land coastal zone. These are shown schematically in Figure 4B and are:
It was considered that community resistance to environmental change will initially decrease as biological systems simplify and then above a certain latitude may increase again as only highly resistant organisms remain.
Freeze/ thaw cycles impart considerable stresses on organisms and also dictate ecosystem features such as nutrient and solute concentrations. It was considered that the number of freeze thaw cycles will reach their maximum in the middle of the Victoria Land gradient where summer temperatures are closer to zero than at 72S or 86S.
Oceanic influences on the terrestrial environment along the Victoria Land coast may result from three distinct zones. The first is in Northern Victoria Land adjacent to this polynya. (Note the polynya itself may result from Katabataic winds from the mountains to Ross Sea.) The second area of influence is towards the south of the McMurdo Sound where fast ice is more prevalent and can exist for many years. Finally, there is a very abrupt decrease in oceanic influences south of the edge of the Ross Ice Shelf.
Altitude has a very important influence on the terrestrial and freshwater ecosystems. This project will show a quantifiable relationship between altitude and latitude. This is because although daylength is unaffected, altitude has a marked bearing on temperature and effects of decreasing temperature with latitude in the absence of solar radiation effects can be mimicked by increasing altitude. Similarly, the lower the latitude the higher the altitude required to reach a defined minimum temperature, or a defined thaw period. Marked dependence of temperature, ablation and the glacial equilibrium line on altitude and distance from the coast were shown for the Taylor Valley by Fountain et al. (1999). For this reason, a latitudinal gradient in freshwater and terrestrial systems should be considered in the context of a series of transects from the coast into the mountains at different latitudes.
1. Identify biota and establish community structures
The Antarctic terrestrial and freshwater ecosystems consist of food-webs with a limited number of trophic levels (Freckman and Virginia 1998, James et al. 1998) although complexity in microbial food webs maybe equivalent to that in some non-polar systems (Vincent and James 1999). In fact, the Antarctic is an environment dominated by microbes in the absence or near absence of higher plants. The use of molecular tools and appropriate culturing methods creates the opportunity to investigate microbial diversity of the Antarctic to determine whether or not Antarctic soils are low in diversity. Population dynamics and distributions have yet to be established for many organisms including mosses, lichens and especially the microbial taxa.
Both traditional and molecular genetic techniques should be employed for the taxonomy of species in terrestrial and freshwater systems. Molecular genetic analyses have been used to study evolutionary processes of certain species (Skotnicki et al. 1997). Measurements of genetic variation are important in understanding species ability to react to changing environmental conditions and can be used to track past environmental changes.
Community structure has been shown to be dependent on latitude and local effects. The marked diversity in community composition between the lakes in the Taylor Valley (e.g., Priscu (Ed.) 1998) illustrates the importance of local effects. Microbial flora and fauna (cyanobacteria, tardigrades, nematodes, rotifers) have several strategies (e.g. anhydrobisis) that allow them to be dispersed by wind and to establish in some of the most extreme environments on earth. However, local soil conditions (e.g., salinity, lack of carbon) or water conditions (salinity, anoxia) can result in local patchiness in community structure and composition.
In some aquatic communities seasonal and interannual variation may complicate a latitudinal gradient in community structure, but this variability itself may be a feature of latitude. This is unknown. It was recognised that general principles of changing communities with latitude may be better known for the Arctic and that Arctic systems would be useful indicators of research direction for community studies in the Antarctic.
2. Determine the response of terrestrial and freshwater biota to the physical environment
It
has been shown for Dry Valley soils that the wide geographic distribution
of a single dominant nematode Scottnena lindsayae indicates that
dispersal is not the main limiting factor in presence and diversity
of soil organisms (Freckman and Virginia 1998). Rather it is interactions
of the soil physical and
chemical environments. Dispersal barriers between lakes, however is
certainly the reason why some organisms (e.g. crustacean zooplankton)
have not spread from the Vestfold Hills to Southern Victoria Land. The
effects of single physical and chemical factors on the biological processes
of soil endolithic, lake and melt pool communities in Victoria Land
are not well understood. Quantitative data on the physical and chemical
characteristics of the soils; the salinity of the lakes and ponds; moisture
availability in the area; and temperature regime in the microenvironment
where biotic activity takes place are needed to solve this problem.
Along with the physical characteristics of the environment, there are
questions on the importance of dispersal or environmental barriers to
the development of more diverse Antarctic communities (Wharton 1991,
Wynn-Williams et al. 1997).
The macroscopic Victoria Land terrestrial ecosystem consists mostly of low biodiversity and simple soil food webs. This type of ecosystem normally has low resilience to any change, including those in the physical and chemical environments and particularly to human induced change. Trophic levels may be only one species deep therefore extinction can result in large changes in community structure (Freckman and Virginia 1998). However, in polar regions the system dominants are most likely to be the most resistant to change.
Scientific research on the lakes and streams in the Dry Valleys has been underway for many years (e.g., Vincent 1988, Priscu 1998). However, research on these ecosystems to the north and south of the Dry Valleys is limited. The existence of ice covered lakes in the Victoria Land area are dependent on two climatic conditions. The first condition is that the mean summer temperatures must be low enough so that the ice cover does not completely melt. The second condition is that the lake is supplied each summer by melt water from glaciers so the lake does not ablate way. The balance of these two factors (Chinn 1993) determines the water level of the lake. The lake environment responds to environmental changes on a time scale of 10 to 1000 years (Green et. al. 1988; Wharton et. al. 1989, Webster et al. 1999) dependent on changes in local and regional climate. Thus the further south, the thicker the ice cover, the more likely ablation exceeds melt generation, the shorter the thaw period for ponds and glacier streams and the less likely aquatic communities are to exist at all.
Within this context local environmental conditions are important. For instance the high number of melt streams and large melt volumes in the Brown Hills and Darwin Glacier area at 80°S (e.g. Vincent and Howard-Williams 1994, Webster et al. 1998, Timperley 1997) may be a consequence of a local climate anomaly (oasis?). Such anomalies are themselves important as they allow the study of other factors such as geochemical processes at high latitudes (Campbell and Claridge 2000).
An
appreciation of inter-annual variability across the latitudinal gradient
is critical to any analysis of the impacts of a changing environment.
In the 1970s flows in the Onyx river varied from almost zero 1976 to
>13 m3s-1 in 1977 (Chin 1993). It has been
acknowledged that in Arctic terrestrial ecosystems current interannual
variability in summer temperature might override predicted changes over
the next century (Callahan et al. 1999). The marked interannual variability
in the mixed layers of the Dry Valley lakes suggests that variability
is driven by small variations in local climate and hydrology (Welch
et al. 2000). Thus the linkage between climate change and biological
variation at both local and regional scales is the key to understanding
the lake ecosystems
3. Characterise the evolution of key organisms and determine their responses to environmental change using latitude and altitude change as a surrogate.
There is a limited range of plants and organisms inhabiting the Victoria Land coastal soils, melt pools and lakes. The biota that does exist has adapted to short growing seasons, low temperatures and extended freeze periods. Because each trophic level may only be one species deep, there is little interspecific competition but it may be that intra-specific competition is greatly increased in extreme environments. Therefore, adaptations at the individual and community level are focused around survival in extreme environmental conditions. Genetic analysis on moss populations in Victoria Land has shown variation within single clumps of mosses, a possible expression of the extreme environment (Skotnicki et al. 1997). The adaptations of organisms in terms of their physiological, biochemical and behavioural characteristics can be studied on a latitude and altitude range as surrogates to environmental change. This may allow the development of predictive models to determine the extent of the ecological change for a given change in the physical or chemical environment. Such models may be used in climate change scenarios or for assessments of human impacts.
In freshwater ecosystems the transport of species is less understood. Many of the lake systems are ice-covered all year. These systems have benthic communities with diverse microbial and viral components and, as discussed above, there are major differences in communities between lakes in Victoria Land and in the Vestfold Hills which are not well understood. In contrast the open water systems such as melt pools and open ponds have evolutionary aspects similar to the soil communities.
The SCAR programme “Evolution in Antarctica” (EVOLANTA) will examine genetic variation in terrestrial and limnetic organisms, and any New Zealand studies in this research area should ensure close links with EVOLANTA.
There is latitudinal zonation along the Ross Sea coast in the marine physical environment (Spezie et al. 1999, Faranda et al. 1999). Biological changes in marine environments depend on light, sea ice coverage, water currents, depth, tidal cycles, and disturbance regimes. The first four variables change with latitude.
Di Tullio and Smith (1996) discussed spatial variability in several physical, chemical and biological aspects of the Ross Sea. A recent example from Saggiomo et al. (1999) shows a latitudinal transect from the pack-ice at 72°S across the polynya to 77°S. Over this gradient there was a seven-fold increase in primary production from <0.3 mg C m3hr-1 at 72-73°S to>2.1 mg C m3hr-1 at 75°S.
In the benthos, a clear phytogeographical gradient from north to south along the coastline of the Ross Sea was discussed by Cattaneo-Vietti et al. (1999), together with descriptions of the zoobenthos in relation to depth. The gradient was attributed to a southward shortening of the photoperiod and longer persistence of the pack ice. Light-levels under sea ice are limited but still important for shallow photosynthetic processes. Sea ice coverage is highly seasonally variable but in general terms increases with latitude. This is made more complex in the Ross Sea by the Ross Sea Polynya at 70-72°S. At approximately 78 South there is a change to the permanent Ross Ice Shelf.
Several sets of authors have divided the Ross Sea (excluding the Ross Ice Shelf) in three sub-systems based on euphotic depth, chlorophyll a, nutrients, primary production and carbon dynamics (El Sayed et al. 1993, Saggiomo et al. 1999, Nelson et al. 1996). While definitions vary slightly these are essentially: the consolidated ice pack, the loose ice pack and open waters.
The workshop participants identified four different physical environments in the Ross Sea region marine system:
The Drygalski Ice Tongue is a major feature along the Victoria Land coast and has been suggested as a dividing point between the North and the South Victoria Land coastal regions. Several marine features, both physical and biological change at the Drygalski Ice Tongue (see, e.g. Berkman 1997a and Beckmann et al. 2000).
In polar marine ecosystems the following points are important:
Along with the points raised above, there are other complicating factors is the consideration of gradients in the marine system. For instance a switch from two tides per day to one tide per day occurs somewhere between Cape Hallett and McMurdo Sound (NIWA and Antarctica New Zealand Unpublished Data). There is also high variation in benthic community structure and function within latitude due to longitudinal variation in oceanography (Dayton & Oliver, 1977). Hydrodynamics help to separate local effects from broader scale latitudinal effects, but there are pronounced local effects that researchers have yet to fully understand. Marine population dynamics and food webs tend to be flux driven rather than a continuum of births and deaths over local spatial scales. It is therefore imperative in the marine system to understand the physical environment and the recent work of Italian researchers (Spezie et al. 1999, Faranda et al. 1999) provides a valuable platform for this.
The Ross Sea is an important region for the production of Antarctic bottom water. However, there is little known about the offshore flow of the bottom water and the onshore flow of warm deep water in the Ross Sea. There is also limited information about the hydrography and bathymetry of the area although detailed coastal hydrographic charting commenced along the Victoria Land Coast in January 2001. Without this basic information, predictive knowledge on the impacts of environmental change is impossible.
Antarctic krill have the largest biomass of any animal on Earth. Their dominance in the Southern Ocean is obvious, but not well understood. These animals dominate the productive regions of the seasonal ice-pack zone, where they occur in the highest concentrations in the vicinity of the shelf/slope break in the vicinity of fronts and eddies.
The region is inhabited by a large number of different species, many of which are not scientifically described. Species previously only found in the deep ocean have been detected living under the ice shelf. Biodiversity of the Ross
Sea region is a fundamental part of the background marine research needed to conduct any gradient project of this nature.
Leopard Seals and Orcas dominate the highest levels of the food-web in the Ross Sea. The Weddell seal, Emperor penguin, Adelie penguin and Skua have a small impact on the terrestrial system from nesting and birthing on shore. Their largest impact occurs in the marine system where most of their prey comes from. Researchers are only beginning to understand the relationships between these species and their prey.
Seabirds and seals, have been shown to respond in a species specific to both latitude and longitude in the Ross Sea (Saino and Guglielmo 1999). The latitudinal response was variable depending on time in the summer season and sea ice cover. In this way there is an important interaction between latitude and small seasonal climate shifts. Current studies show that there is a direct relationship of Adelie penguin breeding success to sea ice distribution.
The distribution and abundance of birds especially penguins and petrels in the Ross Sea Region is influenced by oceanographic features, the occurrence of ice and the location of breading sites (Ainley et. al. 1998). Environmental changes along the Victoria Land coast have specific effects on each species. For instance, in the case of Adele Penguins, one of the most important factors influencing breeding sites is the presence of fast ice.
Inter-decadal variability in salinity and water mass formation in the Ross Sea (Jacobs and Giulivi 1998) suggest a recent trend towards fresher surface waters, with salinity changes in the order of 0.1-0.2 psu. They point out that while such changes may not have any direct impact on sponges and penguins, the resultant subtle effects on anchor ice and sea ice formation will markedly impact on the biota. A latitudinal gradient study where small changes in sea ice occur across the gradient will therefore greatly assist in unravelling the complexities associated with current rates of regional climate change.
Currently New Zealand has a limited capability to study the oceanography of the Ross Sea. However hydrographic work is beginning with an inshore bathymetric survey in 2001 and current work on the physics of sea ice communities is being extended to include the biology of sea ice (T. Haskell and I. Hawes pers. comm.). The extensive work in the Ross Sea recently carried out by Italian researchers (Spezie et al. 1999, Faranda et al. 1999) adding to the decades of US National Science Foundation research (see Jacobs and Weiss 1998 and earlier volumes of Antarctic Research Series) has demonstrated spatial variability in physical and biological components of the Ross Sea.
During the workshop the contrasts between marine and terrestrial and freshwater ecosystems was noted. Antarctic marine ecosystems are noted for their high biodiversity and high levels of endemism [Dayton, 1994 #9353]. In areas not exposed to disturbance due to anchor ice formation or iceberg scour, marine benthic communities are typically highly structured by biological interactions. Environmental conditions are relatively consistent; although in coastal benthic systems decadal scale oceanographic variations can result in major shifts in trophic interactions and the structure of benthic communities. Similar to other marine systems fluxes play an important role in influencing local ecosystem and community structure and function. This is clearly illustrated by the role of advected primary production in the structure of coastal benthic communities in McMurdo Sound. The features emphasise the importance of local biotic processes and broad-scale oceanographic variation; the interaction of which are likely to result in environmental gradients markedly different from those apparent in terrestrial ecosystems
Three research priorities were proposed by participants at the workshop. These were: The physical constraint; Biodiversity; and Influence of ice coverage. Participants agreed that process oriented research under these three priorities was needed in all stages leading to the formulation of predictive models.
1. The physical constraint: The Oceanography of the Ross Sea coastal zone
Knowledge of the hydrographic conditions of the Ross Sea region is increasing rapidly and the most recent hydrographic work in the Ross Sea has shown that conditions vary greatly along the Victoria Land coast (Spezie et al. 1999).
Jacobs and Giulivi (1998) describe the large-scale circulation of the Ross Sea with westward and north-westward flows. Surface Water, Low Salinity Shelf Water and Circumpolar Deep Water enter from the north and east and are
seasonally cooled, warmed salinised by sea ice formation and freshened by meltwater and precipitation, resulting in seasonal and spatially complex patterns which have been mapped at times. These authors point out the significance of High Salinity Shelf Water, its inter-decadal variability and links to small changes in climate and subsequent sea-ice formation. Biological consequences of these phenomena are potentially extensive and need further study. A major feature, the Ross Sea Polynya is understood in a broad sense (Bromwich et al. 1998) but knowledge of its impact on the biota of the Ross Sea is only beginning to be assembled (Faranda et al. (Eds.). 2000).
A further key to biological productivity in the Ross Sea is Antarctic Surface Water. We are still in the earlier stages of understanding its sources, sinks and residence time on the Ross Sea continental shelf. In restricted areas off large glaciers, freshwater melt may define the inshore benthic and perhaps the sea ice communities. Melt water pools and moats associated with semi-permanent sea ice can also play a locally important role in fuelling benthic and sea-ice communities, especially in oligotrophic coastal regions (see [Dayton, 1977 #191])
2. Bio-diversity of the marine biota in the Ross Sea
New Zealand research contributed specifically to marine taxonomic work in the 1960s and 1970s, but his work ended with the switch from ship to air support. There is a current funding commitment by New Zealand for increased work on the biodiversity of the Ross Sea. There is a need for biodiversity studies on pelagic, benthic and sea-ice communities and particularly on microbial components of these.
The density and diversity of macrofauna in the shallow subtidal of McMurdo Sound can be very high (Dayton & Oliver, 1977). However, little is known of habitat diversity, much of which is likely to be biogenic in nature. The Antarctic provided a good natural laboratory in which to study habitat landscapes with a high component of biogenic structure, and many natural and anthropogenic disturbances are either absent or vary in predicable way down environmental gradients. The functional aspects of marine biodiversity (i.e., relationships between community structure and community and ecosystem processes) are largely unknown.
3. Influence of ice coverage on biota in the Ross Sea
The impact of variable ice conditions on the coastal ecosystems is clear. In priority order, work for New Zealand should be concentrated on:
The influence of sea-ice on ecosystem processing and conversely the feedbacks between the microbial communities and sea-ice physics are likely to change with latitude up the Victoria Land Coast and predictive modelling of ice cover and its ecosystem effects will require a knowledge of these processes. Ainley et al 1998 demonstrated effects of se-ice on bird populations along the Victoria Land coast and this work needs to be extended.
In the longer term, consideration should be given to the ecosystem beneath the Ross Ice Shelf. Such research will require a multinational approach.
5
The workshop considered possible sites for base camps along the Victoria Land coast. The results shown below are a combination of the three group presentations and the discussion that followed. There were seven sites selected. Each site is shown with a number corresponding to the sequence that the site should be used. Each site would be the focus of study for 2 to 3 seasons. The sites were selected based on previous research done at the location and the availability of suitable habitats within easy access of the site. Note that emphasis has been placed on terrestrial sites. Marine research is anticipated to be approximately offshore of these locations where possible, but is more likely to be continuous along the navigable coast.
6
7
4
3
1
2
Possible Study Sites
Figure 3. Possible study sites: 1-
along the coast near the Dry Valleys to link directly to the LTER sites
in the Taylor Valley; 2 – Terra Nova Bay area to link directly
or complement with Italian collaborators; 3 – Darwin Glacier; 4 –
Coulman Island; 5 – Beardmore Glacier or La Gorce Mountains; 6 –
Cape Hallett; 7 – Northern Coast
The Protocol on Environmental Protection to the Antarctic Treaty establishes Antarctica as a "natural reserve devoted to peace and science" and provides for the comprehensive protection of the Antarctic environment and dependent and associated ecosystems. The Protocol is enforced in New Zealand legislation through the Antarctica (Environmental Protection) Act 1994. A summary of the principles is given in Appendix 1, which also provides a description of the various levels of Environmental Impact assessment required for field operations.
The approach taken to the environmental planning and management of the LGP will depend very much on whether it is considered as one large project, or a programme of smaller events. There are plenty of precedents for field parties of 10-20 people with vehicle support such as skidoos. Events of similar size have been held most seasons since the establishment of Scott Base, and in recent times has usually only required PEE level assessment, with careful planning to minimise impacts (see Appendix 1 for detail).
An example of multi-site projects which took environmental considerations into account are the Dry Valleys Drilling Programme of the 1970s, and McMurdo Sound Sediment and Tectonic Studies (MSSTS) of the early 1980s. Although the environmental protection measures were not as stringent as under the Environmental Protocol, the EIAs undertaken for these programmes covered physical disturbances at the sites, potential impacts such as spills or uncontrolled hydrocarbon releases from cores, and also incorporated on-site monitoring and auditing.
Important lessons can be learned from past experiences such as the DVDP, MSSTS and Cape Roberts Project. Environmental considerations need to be an integral part of planning from the outset and carried throughout the implementation and close-out of the project. Many decisions will have to be made, and the following practical considerations should be taken into account :
Several structures for operating the project were discussed. These ranged from a loose assessment of individual projects with no central co-ordination, through to a strongly centralised project with an administrative structure.
Management
The workshop participants favoured a management structure for the project with a lead scientist and a project manager who would be responsible for logistics co-ordination. These individuals would be part time on the project. The amount of time devoted to the project would be dependent on the size of the project and may vary each season. The lead scientist should have a strong biological or ecological background and is expected to co-ordinate science activities with Principal Investigators (Event leaders) from different institutes and internationally and work closely with the Science Manager of Antarctica New Zealand. Although there are other disciplines involved, the main area of research is related to ecosystem studies. International logistics co-ordination will be handled through Antarctica New Zealand.
Locations
The identification of the location for each campsite needs to be completed and agreed on at least two years before deployment. However, there are some common parameters that do exist regardless of the location. First of all, the campsite size (total weight) will be kept as small as possible. This will help reduce transport demands, minimise set-up and break-down time and minimise the environmental impact. Secondly, along with sleeping and mess quarters an on-site laboratory will be needed to house instruments needed in the field to make real-time decisions on research activities. To meet the first constraint the instruments taken to the field will be closely scrutinised with regard to their immediate need. Finally, there must be some form of transportation available to researchers at the campsite location for remote site access in order to facilitate the “transect” approach (see Section 2) at each location. There are two possible modes of transportation, helicopter or land-based which are discussed in the scenarios below.
Temporal Variability
The
research planed for this project will need large temporal coverage as
well as spatial extent. Many of the parameters and systems studied
vary greatly during the season therefore measurements of physical parameters,
biological activity, etc. are needed early (early October) and must
extend as long as possible (mid-February). Ideally, the measurements
would begin well before the first thaw period and proceed until the
final freeze period has taken place for each location. Therefore,
equipment for each site may need to be pre-positioned for early operation
and stored “on-site” at the end of operation. Because of yearly
variations it has also been suggested that each site study
take place over multiple years, and that meteorological and other physical
measurements begin at least a year before any ecosystem work.
The US National Science Foundation is currently considering extending
the science season beyond February (Priscu J. C., (Ed.) 2001).
Three scenarios pertaining to style and size of camps at the study location are presented below although it is recognised that this is a continuum between these and that camp sizes may also vary between years.
Scenario 1. (Minimalist approach)
In this approach (depending on funding) one or more locations may operate at any one time. Camps would accommodate up to ten researchers utilising small sleeping tents (Olympus type) with one large mess tent and one or more laboratory tents (Weatherhaven or Polarhaven style). There may be up to three small science events or discipline groups in the camp, collaborating closely and sharing camp duties.
Scenario 2 . (Supported Camp for LGP personnel
In this scenario work directly related to the Latitudinal Gradient Project would be supported and the camp would be the main focus location for the LGP at that time. The camp size for this type of work could house be anywhere between 5 and 20 scientists at any one time. Therefore a reasonably substantial (but highly portable) camp would be needed. It is envisaged that scientists would come and go from the main camp area both out to the field and to Scott Base depending on the science plan for that particular season. Approximately 30 people may go through the camp in any given year. A camp manager may be needed. Small tents (Olympus type) would be used for sleeping but a reasonably substantial mess tent and two or more laboratory tents (or collapsible huts) would be required.
If the LGP transect work could be covered on foot there would be no need for continuous helicopter support on-site. Transport up glaciers and out on the sea-ice would be skidoo based. Most of the marine work would be done via ship, however there is a possibility that small boats could be needed on the site for late summer marine work. The location of diving work may be restricted by access and transport to the McMurdo decompression facility.
Scenario 3. (Transect plus other research)
Once a location has been established there may be other science events not directly related to the project that may wish to use the camp and its logistic support. In this scenario we envisage a larger camp with possibly helicopter support. The added value of the logistics support for other events would have to be looked at on a seasonal basis. The camp size would be slightly larger than in Scenario Two with up to 20 people at location at one time. Tents and or collapsible huts would be the same (but more numerous) than in Scenario Two. It is envisaged that scientists would come and go from the main camp either out in the field or back to Scott Base. There would need to be a camp manager. If there was added helicopter support, there would be an increased infrastructure at the main camp. A total number of approximately 40 people may go through the camp in any given year.
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Cattaneo-Vietti, R., Chiantore, M., Gambi, M. C. Albertelli, R., Cormacki, M. and Di Geronimo, I. 1999. Spatial and vertical distribution of benthic littoral communities in Terra Nova Bay. In: Faranda et al. (Eds.). Ross Sea Ecology. Springer Verlag, Milan. pp. 503-525.
Dayton, P. K., Mordida, B. J. & Bacon, F., 1994. Polar marine communities. Am. Zool. 34, 90-99.
Dayton, P. K. & Oliver, J. S., 1977. Antarctic soft-bottom benthos in oligotrophic and eutrophic environments. Science. 197, 55-58.
Chinn, T. 1993. Physical hydrology of the Dry Valley lakes. In: Green, W. J. and Friedman, E. I. (Eds.). Antarctic Research Series 59: 1-51.
Di Tullio, G. R. and Smith, W. O. 1996. Spatial patterns in phytoplankton biomass and pigment distribution in the Ross Sea. Journal of Geophysical Research 101: 18467-18477.
El Sayed, S. Z., Biggs, D. C., Holm-Hansen, O. 1983. Phytoplankton standing crop, primary productivity and near-surface nitrogenous nutrient fields in the Ross Sea, Antarctica. Deep Sea Research 30(8A): 871-886.
Faranda, F. M., Guglielmo, L. and Ianora, A. 1999. Ross Sea Ecology. Springer Verlag, Milan. 604 p.
Freckman, D. W. and Virginia, R. A. 1998. Soil biodiversity and community structure in the McMurdo Dry Valleys. In: Priscu, J. C. (Ed.) 1998. Ecosystem dynamics in a Polar Desert: The McMurdo Dry Valleys, Antarctica. Antarctic Research Series 72. American Geophysical Union, Washington DC. 369 p.
Fountain, A.G., Lyons, W.B., Burkins, M.B., Dana, G.B., Doran, P.Y., Lewis, K.J., McKnight, D.M., Moorhead,D.L., Parsons, A.N., Priscu, J.C., Wall, D.H., Whartob, R.A., Virginia, R.A. (1999) Physical Controls on the Taylor Valley Ecosystem, Antarctica. Bioscience 49: 961-971.
Green, W. J., T.J. Gardner, T. G. Ferdelman, M. P. Angle, L. C. Varner and P. Nixon, 1989, Geochemical processes in the Lake Fryxell Basin (Victoria Land, Antarctica). Hydrobiologia 172:129-148.
Howard-Williams, C. and Peterson, D. B. 1999. The Latitudinal Gradient Project “A Discussion Paper”, produced by Antarctic New Zealand, Christchurch.
Jacobs, S. S. and Giulivi, C. F. 1998. interannual ocean and sea ice variability in the Ross Sea. In: Jacobs, S. S. and Weiss, R. F. (Eds.). Ocean, Ice and Atmosphere: Interactions at the Antarctic Continental Margin. Antarctic Research Series 75: 135-150.
James, M. R., Hall, J. A. and Laybourn-Parry, J. 1998. Protozooplankton and microzooplankton ecology in lakes of the Dry Valleys, Southern Victoria Land. In: Priscu, J. C. (Ed.) 1998. Ecosystem dynamics in a Polar Desert: The McMurdo Dry Valleys, Antarctica. Antarctic Research Series 72. American Geophysical Union, Washington DC.
Nelson, C. M., DeMaser, D. J., Dunbar, R. B. and Smith, W. O. 1996. Cycling of organic carbon and biogenetic silica in the Southern Ocean: estimates of water column and sedimentary fluxes on the Ross Sea continental shelf. Journal of Geophysical Research 108(8): 18519-18532.
Priscu, J. C. (Ed.) 1998. Ecosystem dynamics in a Polar Desert: The McMurdo Dry Valleys, Antarctica. Antarctic Research Series 72. American Geophysical Union, Washington DC. 369 p.
Priscu, J. C (Ed.) 2001 Year-Round Access to the McMurdo Region: Opportunities for Science and Education. Draft 1. Report to the Office of Polar programmes, National Science Foundation, Washington DC.
Saggiomo, V., Carrada, G. C., Mangoni, O., Marineo, D., and Ribera d’Alcala, M. 1999. Ecological and physiological aspects of primary production in the Ross Sea. In: Faranda et al. (Eds.). Ross Sea Ecology. Springer Verlag, Milan. pp. 247-258.
Saino, W. and Guglielmo, L. 1999. ROSSMIZE Expedition: Distribution and Biomass of Birds and Mammals in the Western Ross Sea. In: Faranda, L., Guglieloma, L. and Ianora, A. (Eds.). Ross Sea Ecology. Springer Verlag, Milan. pp. 469-478.
Skotnicki, M. L., Selkirk, P. M. and Dale, T. M. 1997. RAPD profiling of genetic variation in Antarctic mosses. In: Lyons, W. B., Howard-Williams, C. and Hawes, I. (Eds.). Ecosystem Processes in Antarctic Ice-Free Landscapes. Balkema, Rotterdam. pp. 129-135.
Spezie, G. and Manzella, G. M. R. 1999. Oceanography of Ross Sea, Antarctica. Springer Verlag, Milan. 286 p.
Timperley, M. H. 1997. A simple temperature-based model for the chemistry of melt-water ponds in the Darwin Glacier area, 80°S. In: Lyons, W.B., Howard-Williams, C. and Hawes, I., (Eds.). Ecosystem Processes in Antarctic Ice-Free
Vincent, W.F. 1988. Microbial ecosystems of Antarctica. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge. 304 p.
Vincent, W. F. and C. Howard-Williams, 1994. Nitrate rich inland waters of the Ross Ice Shelf region, Antarctica. Antarctic Science 6: 339-346.
Webster, J., Hawes, I., Downes, M., Timperley, M. and Howard-Williams, C. 1996. Evidence for regional climate change in the recent evolution of a high latitude pro-glacial lake. Antarctic Science 8, 49-59.
Wharton, R. A., Jr., G. M. Simmons, Jr., and C. P. McKay, 1989. Perennially ic-covered Lake Hoare, Antarctica: Physical environment, biology and sedimentation. Hydrobiologia 172: 306-320.
Wharton, R.A. (Ed.). 1991. McMurdo Dry Valleys: a cold desert ecosystem. Report of a National Science Foundation Workshop held in Millbrook, NY, October 1991. Produced by Desert Research Institute, Reno, Nevada. 51 p.
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| Name | Institution | email address |
| Aislabie, Jackie | Landcare | aislabiej@landcare.cri.nz |
| Barrett, Peter | Victoria University of Wellington | Peter.Barrett@vuw.ac.nz |
| Barton, Kerry | Landcare | BartonK@landcare.cri.nz |
| Campbell, Iain | Consultant | iaincampbell@xtra.co.nz |
| Cleary, Peter | Antarctica New Zealand | p.cleary@antarcticanz.govt.nz |
| Cowie, Jim | Antarctica New Zealand | j.cowie@antarcticanz.govt.nz |
| Dickinson, Warren | Victoria University of Wellington | warren.dickinson@vuw.ac.nz |
| Finnemore, Michelle | Gateway Antarctica | m.finnemore@anta.canterbury.ac.nz |
| Fitzsimons, Sean | University of Otago | sjf@perth.otago.ac.nz |
| Gee, Rebecca | Antarctica New Zealand | r.gee@antarcticanz.govt.nz |
| Gordon, Shulamit | Antarctica New Zealand | shulibulli@hotmail.com |
| Green, Allan | University of Waikato | greentga@waikato.ac.nz |
| Haskell, Tim | IRL | t.haskell@irl.cri.nz |
| Howard-Williams, Clive | NIWA | c.howard-williams@niwa.cri.nz |
| Goff, James | GeoEnvironmental Consultants | james.goff@xtra.co.nz |
| Lawson, Wendy | University of Canterbury | w.lawson@geog.canterbury.ac.nz |
| Lyons, Berry | The Ohio State University, USA | lyons.142@osu.edu |
| Macdonald, John | University of Auckland | ja.macdonald@auckland.ac.nz |
| Mahon, Mike | Antarctica New Zealand | m.mahon@antarcticanz.govt.nz |
| McKenzie, Richard | NIWA | r.mckenzie@niwa.cri.nz |
| Mountfort, Doug | Cawthron Institute | doug@environment.cawthron.org.nz |
| Murdoch, Rob | NIWA | r.murdoch@niwa.cri.nz |
| Peterson, Dean | Antarctica New Zealand | d.peterson@antarcticanz.govt.nz |
| Pilditch, Conrad | University of Waikato | Pilditch@waikato.ac.nz |
| Ryan, Ken | IRL | K.Ryan@irl.cri.nz |
| Sheppard, Doug | Geochemical Solutions | d.sheppard@xtra.co.nz |
| Sinclair, Brent | University of Otago | brent.sinclair@stonebow.otago.ac.nz |
| Steven, Jenny | FRST | Jenny@frst.govt.nz |
| Stewart, Brian | University of Otago | brianstewart@clear.net.nz |
| Storey, Bryan | Gateway Antarctica | b.storey@anta.canterbury.ac.nz |
| Taler, Michael | Auckland University of Technology | michael.taler@aut.ac.nz |
| Tangaere, Julian | Antarctica New Zealand | j.tangaere@antarcticanz.govt.nz |
| Thrush, Simon | NIWA | s.thrush@niwa.cri.nz |
| Waterhouse, Emma | Antarctica New Zealand | e.waterhouse@antarcticanz.govt.nz |
| Wratt, Gillian | Antarctica New Zealand | g.wratt@antarcticanz.govt.nz |
APPENDIX 1
Summary of Principles from the Environmental Protocol, and Levels of Environmental Impact Assessment relevant to this Proposal
Article 3 of the protocol sets out principles that all parties must adhere to, including specific requirements for:
This makes careful planning including collection of relevant background information, completion of an environmental impact assessment, and provision for monitoring essential to ensuring any programme of activities is compliant with the Protocol and New Zealand legislation.
Annexes to the Protocol build on these principles by providing additional specific rules for implementation. Of relevance are the following:
Other New Zealand legislation which needs to be taken into consideration includes the Marine Mammals Protection Act 1978 and the Antarctic Marine Living Resources Act 1981, which require permits for holding and taking marine organisms, and the Biosecurity Act 1993 and Hazardous Substances and New Organisms Act 1996, which require permits for importing organisms and other samples into New Zealand.
The most basic level of Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA), the Preliminary Environmental Evaluation (PEE), is completed for almost all New Zealand activities, including science and logistics support. It is appropriate for activities which have very low or very short term impacts.
For activities which have a minor or transitory effect, an Initial Environmental Evaluation (IEE) is completed. Examples of activities for which IEEs have been carried out include:
The highest level of assessment is the Comprehensive Environmental Evaluation (CEE). It usually has a similar content to an IEE, but greater detail. New Zealand’s CEE for the Cape Roberts Scientific Drilling Project was one of the first to be completed for an Antarctic activity. The Project’s activities included a drill rig, sea ice based support camp and land based storage facilities. It ran over five seasons, with 2000/2001 dedicated to facility removal and site remediation. The Project had its own environmental monitoring and auditing programme, developed as part of the CEE, and achieved very high levels of compliance and performance.
According to the Guidelines for Environmental Impact Assessment in Antarctica (COMNAP, 1999), an EIA of IEE or CEE level should include:
The CEE is the only level of EIA which is required under the Protocol to be made publicly available and circulated to all the Treaty Parties. The minimum times required for circulation of a CEE under the Protocol is outlined below (after COMNAP, 1999). Further time would also need to be allowed for consultation during the drafting process.
Draft CEE circulated
Deadline for comments
ATCM
Activity commences
Decision to proceed
Final CEE circulated
3 months
4 months
2 months
Requirements for circulation of CEEs under the Protocol for Environmental Protection to the Antarctic Treaty
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