Coastal SEES (Track 1): Brine Discharge From Desalination Plants - Impacts On Coastal Ecology, Public Perception, and Public Policy

海水淡化在世界范围内每天产生约7000万立方米的水。尽管这项技术提供了许多好处，但也有人担心对环境的潜在负面影响。尚未彻底调查的一个关键问题是污水排放对沿海海洋生态系统的影响。该项目将对污水排放对加州沿海生态系统的潜在影响进行定量的科学评估，并评估这些数据如何影响公众的看法和公共政策。社会和自然科学家团队拥有与海岸污染、加州海岸生态、海洋生物地球化学、毒理学、环境政策和经济、水政策和管理以及公用事业利益相关者沟通相关的经验。与加州海水淡化设施建立的关系将确保建立一个与加州海岸日益丰富的海水淡化设施有关的人类和环境方面的综合研究框架，并有助于确保淡水资源的安全和维持多产和健康的沿海社区和沿海环境。该项目的目标是(1)确定反渗透海水淡化设施的污水排放如何影响加州沿海生态系统的关键生物，对生态系统结构和功能产生影响，(2)描述不同排放方案的影响的空间范围，以及(3)评估该研究和类似环境影响研究的结果如何影响公众对海水淡化厂建设和运营的感知和决策。该项目将结合现场化学和生物测量、受控实验室实验以及对个人和组织如何解释和使用这些数据以做出无害环境和可持续决策的评估。将在三个不同的海水淡化厂进行实地研究，以确定和量化与污水排放有关的压力源对当地生物群的可能影响。观察到的效果将通过受控的实验室生物测定实验进行验证。科学结果将被传达给公众和决策者，以评估不同利益相关者如何使用科学数据。该项目由美国国家科学基金会海岸科学、工程和教育可持续发展计划支持。

Desalination of seawater accounts for a worldwide water production of about 70 million cubic meters per day. Despite the many benefits the technology has to offer, there are concerns over potential negative impacts on the environment. A key issue that has not been thoroughly investigated is the impact of effluent discharge on coastal marine ecosystems. This project will provide quantitative scientific assessment of the potential impacts of effluent discharge on coastal ecosystems in California and assess how such data influences public perception and public policy. The team of social and natural scientists has experience related to coastal pollution, California coastal ecology, marine biogeochemistry, toxicology, environmental policy and economics, water policy and management, and utility-stakeholder communications. Established relations with desalination facilities in California will ensure an integrative framework for research on the human and environmental aspects related to the increasing abundance of desalination facilities along the California coast, and contribute to both securing freshwater resources and sustaining productive and healthy coastal communities and coastal environments.The objectives of this project are to (1) determine how effluent discharges from facilities for seawater desalination by reverse osmosis affect key organisms of the California coastal ecosystem with implications for ecosystem structure and function, (2) describe the spatial extent of the effect for different discharge schemes, and (3) evaluate how results from this and similar environmental impact studies influence public perception and decision making regarding desalination plant construction and operation. The project will combine in situ field chemical and biological measurements, controlled laboratory experiments, and assessments of how people and organizations interpret and use this data for making environmentally sound and sustainable decisions. Field studies will be performed at three different desalination plants to identify and quantify the possible effects of stressors associated with effluent discharge on local biota. Observed effects will be validated through controlled laboratory bioassay experiments. The scientific results will be communicated to the general public and decision makers to assess how scientific data is used by different stakeholders.This project is supported under NSF's Coastal SEES (Science, Engineering and Education for Sustainability) program.