Environmental policies generally emerge out of a desire to protect humans, wildlife and their environs. All environmental policies rely on a scientific foundation as a basis for understanding the world around us and what needs to be done to protect it. The policy decisions adopted are only as good as the science upon which they are built and will rarely be predicated on perfect information. Multiple disciplines are often engaged to provide answers that reduce the uncertainties identified in the knowledge base for environmental policy. Ideally scientists add pieces to the puzzle in a symmetric and integrated manner in a reciprocal advancement of knowledge. It is important to ensure that the scientific foundation for policy decisions is very solid which requires a formalized process to assess data quality and a systematic weight of evidence approach in evaluation. The asymmetric and often times incomplete message from stakeholders can result in ineffective policies and public controversy. To better protect our environment while facing increased global challenges, and to avoid wasting resources it is important to provide policy makers with an honest appraisal of what 'the science tells us'. This is vital for legitimizing evolving, sophisticated, and globally harmonized environmental policies.

Need for symmetrical and integrated scientific knowledge in the realm of environmental policy

248th National Meeting (2014)

The official archive and repository for all ACS Meetings & Expositions abstracts and select posters or presentations.