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Employing a socio-ecological systems approach to engage harmful algal bloom stakeholders

Aquatic Ecology volume 50, pages 577–594 (2016)Cite this article

Abstract

Harmful algal blooms (HABs) pose substantial health risks to seafood consumers, drinking water supplies, and recreationalists with apparent increases associated with anthropogenic eutrophication of freshwaters and coastal areas. Attempts to intervene in these blooms can be met with reticence by citizens, non-governmental organizations, and officials, often due to local perceptions and beliefs. Hence, the social sciences have an important role to play in HAB research and mitigation. Much of the social science HAB research to date has focused on how best to communicate associated risks and appropriate behavioral responses to affected local communities. The emphasis has been on the direct human impacts, particularly in the areas of health outcomes and identification of any sociocultural and economic barriers to proposed mitigation. While this focus is warranted and valuable, there is also a need to understand HABs as part of a larger human–environmental coupled system, where blooms trigger a wide range of cultural and behavioral responses that are driven by how blooms impact other social and ecosystem dynamics. The research presented here describes a case study of a Microcystis aeruginosa bloom in a lake in the Chesapeake Bay watershed where anthropologists worked with HAB researchers. The results of this interdisciplinary collaboration show that approaching the bloom and mitigation within a ‘socio-ecological systems’ framework provides stakeholders with a range of rationales and approaches for addressing HAB mitigation, enhancing both short-term successes and longer-term opportunities, even if M. aeruginosa is still present in the lake.

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Acknowledgments

This research was funded by the United States (US) National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Prevention, Control, and Mitigation Program (PCM-HAB), Grant Number NA10NOS4780154. This is Contribution Number 5039 for the University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science (UMCES); Number 15-158 for Institute for Marine and Environmental Technology (IMET); and Number 26 for NOAA/NOS/NCCOS/CSCOR PCM-HAB. The authors would like to thank R. Foote, The Girl Scout Council of the Chesapeake Bay, and the Williston Lake community, especially the key informants who shared their stories and insights throughout the course of this project; additional assistance from C. Wazniak and W. Butler from Maryland’s Department of Natural Resources is also appreciated. This manuscript benefited from valuable feedback provided by editor, Bas W. Ibelings and two annonymous reviewers.

Funding

This study was funded by the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration NOS/NCCOS/CSCOR Prevention Control and Mitigation Harmful Algal Bloom Program (Grant Number NA10NOS4780154).

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Affiliations

  1. Department of Anthropology, University of Maryland, College Park, MD, 20742, USA

    Elizabeth R. Van Dolah & Michael Paolisso

  2. Chesapeake Research Consortium, 645 Contees Wharf Road, Edgewater, MD, 21037, USA

    Kevin Sellner

  3. Institute of Marine and Environmental Technology, University of Maryland Center for Environmental Sciences, 701 E. Pratt Street, Baltimore, MD, 21202, USA

    Allen Place

Authors
  1. Elizabeth R. Van Dolah
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  2. Michael Paolisso
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  3. Kevin Sellner
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  4. Allen Place
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Correspondence to Elizabeth R. Van Dolah.

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Conflict of interest

With the exception of the lead author, none of the authors have any conflicts of interest. Potential conflicts of interest from the lead author include an education stipend received for her work on this project as a Master’s student. Additionally, she received a student travel award to present project research at the 15th International Conference for the Study of Harmful Algae in Busan, South Korea (Oct. 29-Nov. 2, 2012).

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This research involved human participants.

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Data were collected using written informed consent in compliance with the University of Maryland's Institutional Review Board

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Guest editors: Petra M. Visser, Bas W. Ibelings, Jutta Fastner & Myriam Bormans/Cyanobacterial blooms. Ecology, prevention, mitigation and control.

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Van Dolah, E.R., Paolisso, M., Sellner, K. et al. Employing a socio-ecological systems approach to engage harmful algal bloom stakeholders. Aquat Ecol 50, 577–594 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10452-015-9562-z

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10452-015-9562-z

Keywords

  • Socio-ecological systems
  • Stakeholder response
  • Mitigation
  • Microcystis aeruginosa