NSB Task Force on the Environment − Interim Report − July 1999
        NATIONAL SCIENCE BOARD
          DR. EAMON M. KELLY (Chairman), President Emeritus and Professor, Payson Center for
            International Development & Technology Transfer, Tulane University
          DR. DIANA S. NATALICIO (Vice Chairman), President, The University of Texas at El Paso
          DR. JOHN A. ARMSTRONG, IBM Vice President for Science & Technology (Retired)
          DR. PAMELA A. FERGUSON, Professor of Mathematics, Grinnell College
          DR. MARY K. GAILLARD, Professor of Physics, University of California, Berkeley
          DR. SANFORD D. GREENBERG, Chairman & CEO of TEI Industries, Inc., Washington, DC
          DR. M.R.C. GREENWOOD, Chancellor, University of California, Santa Cruz
          DR. STANLEY V. JASKOLSKI, Vice President, Eaton Corporation, Cleveland, OH
          DR. ANITA K. JONES, University Professor, Department of Computer Science, University of Virginia
          DR. GEORGE M. LANGFORD, Professor, Department of Biological Sciences, Dartmouth College
          DR. JANE LUBCHENCO,  Wayne and Gladys Valley Professor of Marine Biology and Distinguished
          Professor of Zoology, Oregon State University
          DR. EVE L. MENGER, Director, Characterization Science and Services, Corning Inc. (Retired)
          DR. JOSEPH A. MILLER, JR., Senior Vice President for R&D and Chief Technology Officer, E.I. du
          Pont de Nemours & Company, Experimental Station, Wilmington, DE
          DR. CLAUDIA I. MITCHELL-KERNAN, Vice Chancellor, Academic Affairs and Dean, Graduate
          Division, University of California, Los Angeles
          DR. ROBERT C. RICHARDSON, Vice Provost for Research and Professor of Physics, Cornell
          University
          DR. VERA C. RUBIN, Research Staff, Astronomy, Department of Terrestrial Magnetism, Carnegie
          Institution of Washington, Washington, DC
          DR. MAXINE L. SAVITZ, General Manager, AlliedSignal Inc., Ceramic Components, Torrance, CA
          DR. LUIS SEQUEIRA, J. C. Walker Professor Emeritus, Departments of Bacteriology and Plant
          Pathology, University of Wisconsin, Madison
          DR. ROBERT M. SOLOW, Institute Professor Emeritus, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
          DR. BOB H. SUZUKI, President, California State Polytechnic University-Pomona
          DR. RICHARD A. TAPIA, Professor, Department of Computational & Applied Mathematics, Rice
          University
          DR. CHANG-LIN TIEN, NEC Distinguished Professor of Engineering, Department of Mechanical
          Engineering, University of California, Berkeley
          DR. WARREN M. WASHINGTON, Senior Scientist and Head, Climate Change Research Section,
          National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR)
          DR. JOHN A. WHITE, JR., Chancellor, University of Arkansas, Fayetteville
          DR. RITA R. COLWELL, (Member Ex Officio and Chair, Executive Committee), Director, National
          Science Foundation
          DR. MARTA CEHELSKY, Executive Officer
            NSB Task Force on the Environment − Interim Report − July 1999
                                     National Science Board
                               Committee on Programs and Plans
                                Task Force on the Environment
            National Science Board members    National Science Foundation staff
            Dr. Jane Lubchenco, Chair         Dr. Mary Clutter, Assistant Director,
                                                 Biological Sciences
            Dr. Mary K. Gaillard
                                              Dr. Robert Corell, Assistant Director,
            Dr. Robert Solow                     Geosciences
            Dr. Warren Washington             Dr. Penelope Firth, Executive Secretary
            The National Science Board (NSB) consists of 24 members plus the Director of the National
            Science Foundation (NSF).  Appointed by the President, the Board serves as the governing board
            of NSF and provides advice to the President and the Congress on matters of national science and
            engineering policy.
                  NSB Task Force on the Environment − Interim Report − July 1999                                                i
                  Foreword
                                                 st
                  The quality of life in the 21  century will depend in large measure on the generation of new
                  wealth, on safeguarding the health of our planet, and on opportunities for enlightenment and
                  individual development.  The environment is a critical element of the knowledge base we need to
                  live in a safe and prosperous world.
                  In August 1998, the National Science Board established the Task Force on the Environment,
                  within its Committee on Programs and Plans, to provide guidance to the National Science
                  Foundation (NSF) in defining the scope of its role with respect to environmental research,
                  education, and scientific assessment, and determining the best means of implementing activities
                  related to this area.  The task force was charged with:
                  • Reviewing the scope of current NSF activities related to research, education, and scientific
                      assessment on the environment;  and
                  • Developing guidance for the National Science Foundation at the policy level that will be used
                      for designing an appropriate portfolio of activities, consistent with the overall National
                      Science and Technology Council (NSTC) strategy, the goals of the NSF Strategic Plan, and
                      activities of other agencies and organizations that support related programs.
                                                                           st
                  Environmental Science and Engineering for the 21  Century:  The Role of the National Science
                  Foundation, presents the findings and recommendations developed by the Task Force on the
                  Environment.  This report is being released as an interim document to provide ample opportunity
                  for discussion and consultation with the National Science and Technology Council, other
                  agencies, the scientific community, public and private sectors, and other interested parties.
                  This interim report is based on extensive review of relevant policy documents and reports, a
                  process of hearings and consultations with invested communities, invited commentary from a
                  variety of organizations and individuals, and feedback from through a public web site
                  .  The task force also examined a wide variety of environmental
                  programs at NSF to determine the factors most likely to result in effective new research and
                  educational activities.
                  I want to commend Dr. Jane Lubchenco, the chair of the task force, and the other task force
                  members, NSB members Drs. Mary K. Gaillard, Robert Solow, and Warren Washington;  and
                  Dr. Mary Clutter NSF Assistant Director for Biological Sciences and Dr. Robert Corell, NSF
                  Assistant Director for Geosciences, for their outstanding work in pulling together this important
                  and complex report.  Dr. Penelope Firth, Program Director for Ecosystem Studies, provided
                  superb support as the Executive Secretary to the task force.
                   The task force has also been assisted in its efforts by many members of the NSF staff, too
                  numerous to mention individually.  However, the contributions of Dr. Robert Webber, Office of
                  Information and Resource Management, Ms. Anne Tenney, Office of the Director, and Ms. Jean
                  Pomeroy, National Science Board Office, deserve special note, as well as Dr. Margaret