Tag Archives: Natural Resources

“Sweetheart” and “Sue and Settle” Lawsuits: A Case Study

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Robert T. Lackey

Department of Fisheries, Wildlife, and Conservation Science

Oregon State University

February 1, 2025

What is the proper role of government employees when their personal policy preferences differ from those of their employer?  Specifically, is it acceptable for government employees to play a role in sweetheart or sue and settle lawsuits?  To begin formulating an answer, here is a case study (based on a real event, but written to conceal specific individuals or lawsuits:

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The Case Study

(Based on DC experience. Most specific references are altered.)

Ever since a Grade 4 field trip to a nature reserve, Rena Webfoot was fascinated by amphibians.  Eventually, she finished a Master’s degree in conservation biology.  Her thesis research topic, not surprisingly, focused on determining the cause of the worldwide decline of amphibians and, specifically, the Scarlet Toad.  

Starting in graduate school, she was active in the Society for Conservation Biology, the International Union for the Conservation of Nature, and the Sierra Club.  After completing her Master of Science degree, she held several jobs in environmental and natural resource agencies.  Still, it was not until she landed her dream job as chief of the Amphibian Branch within the Office of Threatened and Endangered Species within the US Fish and Wildlife Service, part of the Interior Department.  There were hundreds of species under consideration for listing under terms of the Endangered Species Act.  The Office Director regularly made decisions about assigning staff to evaluate specific species.  With the resources available, many species dropped down the priority list for evaluation, while others were fast-tracked.

One day, as Ms. Webfoot reviewed the updated candidate species list, one species jumped out.  Halfway down the list was the Scarlet Toad, the same species she had studied for her Master’s degree.  She felt passionate about this species ― after all, she had spent many long nights observing them in the wild.  That same day, she met with the office director to make her case that the species should be listed immediately.  The office director listened, but he concluded their meeting with an unwelcome (to her) decision:

"We have many species we could, arguably, evaluate with the available resources.  In terms of risk, the Scarlet Toad is of average risk and not in the top tier.  I focus our resources (workforce) on the species at greatest risk of near–term extinction.  The Scarlet Toad does not, in my opinion, meet these criteria.  The line must be drawn somewhere."

Never one to accept defeat, Ms. Webfoot talked to her amphibian colleagues about the Scarlet Toad at the next local DC chapter meeting of The Society for Conservation Biology.  Several suggested she contact her former fellow graduate student now at the Center for Biological Diversity.  That very day, she did.  He (an outreach staffer) listened to her carefully, then concluded that this was a case that they (CBD) could probably win — or at least force the Fish and Wildlife Service to move the Scarlet Toad into the “critical” category, thus eligible for immediate evaluation and likely listing.  He requested that she discretely send him the relevant inside scientific and assessment file on the species.  He would share this information with their lawyers and let her know (orally) of their decision.  In any case, she was advised not to put anything in writing, nor talk to Office colleagues unless she was convinced of their discretion.

Nothing happened for a few months.  Eventually, the Department of Interior’s Office of General Counsel contacted the Endangered Species Office Director (her boss) and notified him that the Government had been sued by the Center for Biological Diversity for failure to list the Scarlet Toad.  To the Department’s lawyers, it looked like the plaintiff’s case was strong.  Based on considerable experience with similar lawsuits, they estimated that this case would take years to play out.  The Office of General Counsel had a limited number of lawyers, the Scarlet Toad listing was not a high priority politically, and he was reluctant to burn many “billable hours” defending the Department in a low-priority lawsuit.

The main argument of the lawsuit would be that the Fish and Wildlife Service had “arbitrarily and captiously” moved the Scarlet Toad down the candidate list.  Thus, it would be years until it rose to the first tier.  In essence, the Government lawyers would negotiate with the Center for Biological Diversity to avoid costly litigation.  In the settlement, the Department would agree to move the Scarlet Toad to the top of the candidate list if the Center would withdraw the lawsuit.  This tradeoff was the usual way that these cases were handled.  Besides, the Government would agree to pay their legal fees ($48,000).  This strategy would be less expensive to the taxpayers than defending the lawsuit.  From the lawyer’s perspective, this was all pretty routine.

The Office director called Ms. Webfoot into his Office and directed her to move the Scarlet Toad to the top of her priority list and have her staff start working on the listing.  Ms. Webfoot was ecstatic.  Her supervisor was visibly less pleased and wondered aloud how the Center was tipped off and acquired copies of their key in-house documents.  With a wink, he wished her well.  They both went back to work.

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The Rena Webfoot case study is a heavily edited description of a hypothetical example of a sweetheart lawsuit based on my experiences with the Fish and Wildlife Service (Department of the Interior) and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency in Washington, DC.  The specifics are well-modified to avoid speculation about who was involved.

There are no universally accepted definitions of sweetheart or sue and settle lawsuits, nor is their frequency in ecological policy disputes known with confidence.  Typically, a sue and settle reference involves collaboration between government bureaucrats working in their official capacity with one or more environmental or ecological advocacy groups.

Related to sue and settle lawsuits, but with differences, sweetheart lawsuits tend to be applied as a descriptor to cases when individual government employees work outside (and often secretly) their official duties to facilitate a lawsuit against the agency.

Usually, such lawsuits are encouraged by the Government employee operating as a member of, or supportive of, a professional or advocacy organization.  For example, a government scientist working for the U.S. Forest Service, might be a member of the Sierra Club and help that organization sue the Federal Government to force the adoption of a policy (e.g., eliminating commercial logging) that the employee (and the Sierra Club) prefer.

While the total number of lawsuits targeting the Federal Government is relatively easy to determine, it is difficult to separate how many involve unofficial collaboration between Federal employees and advocacy organizations.  Specifically, how often Federal employees use information and insights gained through their government jobs is unknown.

Based on my experience, it seems relatively common with governmental regulatory organizations (i.e., Environmental Protection Agency, U.S. Forest Service, and Bureau of Land Management) and professional/scientific organizations (i.e., American Fisheries Society, The Wildlife Society, Society for Conservation Biology, and Society of American Foresters).

Behind the anonymity of government bureaucracy, these kinds of “real world” situations are common.  You should expect to encounter such examples in your career.  Presumably, in your analysis, you would point them out to the public and policy makers ― or would you?  Whether this tactic is appropriate — or not — is entirely a judgment that would vary among the various players in policy debates.  Some would regard a “sweetheart lawsuit” as an underhanded and unfair advocacy tactic.  Conversely, others would argue that organizations that employ such tactics merely do what the laws allow.  Analysts do not pass judgment, much less decide such questions.

So, your challenge with this case study is to assess whether such behavior by a Federal (or other government) employee is appropriate and ethical.  Some might argue that an employee (paid by the taxpayers) should be policy impartial in all job–related dealings and not use their inside information to favor a particular policy preference.  Conversely, others might argue that strongly held personal values from a scientific expert outweigh an obligation such employees have to be policy impartial.  There are likely other positions that employees assigned to work on endangered species issues might hold.

Depending on an advocate’s policy preferences, sweetheart lawsuits are typically viewed from one of several perspectives:

(a)  An effective advocacy weapon that is available to anyone — and it is often highly effective.

(b)  An example of an unintended and undesirable consequence of the ESA which creates a situation where “insiders” (Government employees and ENGOs (Environmental Non-Governmental Organizations) collude to implement their policy objectives (not those of the public).

(c)  An avenue for Government employees to operate as private citizens to push their personal policy preferences outside the constraints of their official duties and thus compromise their employer’s mission.

As a policy analyst, regardless of your personal opinion or policy preference, sweetheart lawsuits are common, often involve Government employees engaged outside their official duties, and are highly effective in achieving the suing organization’s policy goals.  Analysts and policy makers should be vigilant in watching for them.  Considering sweetheart and friendly lawsuits as a policy analyst, think about these broader policy questions:

  • What do you think about such lawsuits that depend, at least in part, on information supplied (usually secretly) by Federal employees outside their official duties?  Should Rena be disciplined or lauded?  Are there (or should there be) Codes of Conduct for government employees about participating in such activities that are outside their job descriptions or assignments?
  • How has the topic of sweetheart and friendly lawsuits been covered in your past natural resource and environmental management classes (i.e., was it presented as a good thing or a bad thing)? Do you think most people assume that government employees play it straight (i.e., act impartially)?
  • Thinking more broadly about ecological policy and beyond the narrow specifics of the Scarlet Toad case study, would most people (i.e., voters) consider Rena’s behavior as commonplace for government workers?  Conversely, perhaps they regard such behavior as a violation of public trust (i.e., taxpayer-funded employees should remain impartial and free of personal policy preferences in executing the laws of the land) and, therefore, Rena’s behavior is unacceptable.

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Author Info:

            Robert T. Lackey <Robert.Lackey@oregonstate.edu> is a professor of fisheries at Oregon State University, where he teaches a graduate course in ecological policy and mentors graduate students.  He was previously deputy director of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s 350-person National Environmental Research Laboratory in Corvallis, Oregon, from which he retired in 2008.  He has also worked on assignments in Washington, DC for the U.S. Department of Interior and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

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The Emergence of Religious Ecology

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Robert T. Lackey

Department of Fisheries, Wildlife, and Conservation Sciences

Oregon State University

Robert.Lackey@oregonstate.edu

            An especially muddying factor in unraveling ecological policy disputes is identifying the role of religious views in shaping scientific information.  These days, religious, ethical, or moral values are often embedded in “science” to form a type of information that is no longer entirely scientific.  I call this type of information Religious Ecology, which is now prevalent even in the peer reviewed scientific literature.  Such information superficially resembles Scientific Ecology, but rather than being policy neutral, it incorporates particular religious or ethical assumptions, often in ways that are opaque to the average reader or listener (see figure below for how this happens).  Thus, Religious Ecology is normative science, a form of policy advocacy often unrecognized because the embedded and assumed policy preferences are difficult to detect.

            Religious Ecology assumes a set of norms about how humans should live and make decisions about ecological policy issues.  After reviewing many peer reviewed scientific articles that exhibit embedded values and policy preferences, I have modeled an analog to the well-known Judeo-Christian Ten Commandments.  In practice, the Ten Commandments of Religious Ecology (see box below) are not rigid, but provide insight into how the policy advocate (i.e., the “believer”) perceives policy choices and thus why those values and policy preferences are embedded in the resulting scientific reporting.

            For many scientists, it is perhaps surprising that the word “ecology” may be based on these (or other) religious and value-based underpinning rather than science.  Religious Ecology describes the world as it ought to be and, therefore, is normative because it biases the information toward particular policy choices.   The Ten Commandments of Religious Ecology provide commonly embedded value judgments and implied policy preferences for some policy advocates.  When these (or other) value-based assertions are embedded in Scientific Ecology, the information shifts to become Religious Ecology (see box below).

           

            Of course, many religious and ethical-based philosophies offer their preferred “rules” or “guidelines” for ecological policy issues, but within Religious Ecology, the values-based and science-based ideas are intertwined and difficult to separate.  Specifically, in ecologically oriented science, at their core, they share some version of the well-known Judeo-Christian Garden of Eden’s Romantic View of Nature, wishing humans to live harmoniously with the natural, non-human world.  The Garden of Eden was a paradise on Earth, but the fall from Grace began with humans succumbing to temptation and greed — and enduring the resulting pollution.  The Ten Commandments of Religious Ecology similarly delineate a path back to the Garden of Eden, the natural and optimal state of ecosystems.  Thus, Religious Ecology is either a form of science infused with ethical values or, perhaps more accurately, a religion imbued with science.

            Let me illustrate with an example.  Consider Commandment #1 and how it is sometimes stealthily embedded in Scientific Ecology.  Referring to a piece of land as a “wheat field” is a policy neutral statement of information (i.e., science or a scientific fact).  It is the essence of classic Baconian science.  In contrast, referring to the same field as a “degraded or disturbed ecosystem” or a “healthy and thriving ecosystem” is not policy neutral because it has an embedded, assumed policy preference (i.e., Commandment #1 is accepted as the preferred policy).  Nothing has changed scientifically;  only the labeling differs.  Thus, it is normative science.

            Frequently, incoming students in my graduate-level ecological policy class are initially unaware of the impact of word choice and subtler forms of normative science.  Realistically, should professors expect graduate students (much less undergraduates) in ecology, environmental science, natural resources, fisheries and wildlife, and conservation science to understand issues such as normative science and stealth policy advocacy?  Or do they understand the arguments, but choose to advocate their preferred policy preferences, nonetheless?  Perhaps a more accurate answer is the observation (paraphrased) from one student,

“Many scientists across divergent scientific disciplines use their positions to pitch their or their employer’s policy preference, so why should ecologists and other scientists be held to a higher standard?”

Students in this class often accept that this assertion reflects contemporary reality and is, therefore, professionally acceptable.  Further, many students also accept the Ten Commandments of Religious Ecology as self-evidently true and appropriate for scientific communication.

            Like other simplified summaries of religious doctrine, nothing in their application is unequivocally absolute or consistent.  However, the Ten Commandments of Religious Ecology afford insight into how many ecological policy advocates (including professional scientists) tend to embed their values in the scientific information they develop and provide.  Rarely will such advocates explicitly categorize their scientific information as influenced by religious or faith-based values, so “users” of scientific information must be alert and not assume that all scientists are playing it straight.  Perhaps most stick to science, but others intentionally do not.  Hence, it is not surprising that public trust in the impartiality of scientists has declined.

            I encourage caution when assessing the scientific impartiality of professional ecologists who use their scientific credentials to promote their personal (or their employer’s) policy preferences.  For example, without resorting to the Ten Commandments of Religious Ecology, nothing in science says that a dam should be removed or maintained.  A free-flowing river is different ecologically than that same river dammed, but it is not “better or worse” without applying a value-based benchmark or baseline (i.e., often one or more of the Ten Commandments of Religious Ecology).  Consequently, there is no exclusively scientific basis for labeling an ecosystem’s condition as “healthy” (or “degraded”) unless a value or policy preference is applied to scientific information.

            It is easy for readers or listeners inexperienced with policy analysis to interpret “benchmarks” or “baselines” presented by scientists as the implicitly preferred policy choice when that may not be the scientist’s intent.  Such value choices (i.e., healthy, degraded, better, worse) arise outside the scientific enterprise, at least in a democracy.  Conversely, concepts like “healthy” are common in medicine because there is general public and political agreement about what constitutes a healthy individual human.  Thus, the metaphor of a healthy ecosystem analogous to a healthy individual human is weak and misleading.  Unlike individual humans, ecosystems do not get sick and die unless someone, using specific values and policy preferences, defines the desired, undisturbed, benchmark, or otherwise preferred state of that particular ecosystem.

            For scientists working on contemporary and highly contested ecological policy issues, sticking to science and policy neutrality requires sustained commitment, but it is the right thing to do.  Graduate training, professional mentorship, and institutional standards of practice can help ensure that scientists operate within scientific “good practices” and avoid becoming just another confusing advocacy voice struggling to be heard by misusing science.  The public is best served when scientists (sticking to Scientific Ecology) are honest brokers of scientific information.  Conversely, those slipping into Religious Ecology or other value-based policy constructs are working in the realm of policy advocacy.

Author Info:

            Robert T. Lackey (Robert.Lackey@oregonstate.edu) is a professor of fisheries at Oregon State University, where he teaches a course in ecological policy and mentors graduate students.  He was previously deputy director of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s 350-person National Environmental Research Laboratory in Corvallis, Oregon, from which he retired in 2008.

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PACIFIC SALMON COMMISSION SEMINAR — Columbia River Basin: How Would Ending Fishing and Closing Hatcheries Change Wild Salmon and Steelhead Abundance?*

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Robert T. Lackey

Department of Fisheries, Wildlife, and Conservation Sciences

Oregon State University

Corvallis, Oregon  97331

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https://media.oregonstate.edu/media/t/1_xoz803bc

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Seminar Summary: The overall public policy goal of restoring Pacific salmon wild runs in the Columbia River Basin appears to enjoy widespread public support.  Billions of dollars have failed to reverse the long-term, overall decline.  To answer the question of whether the effort to rebuild wild runs through the release of hatchery-produced salmon, I asked 58 well-known salmon scientists to predict (anonymously) how the overall abundance of Columbia River Basin salmon (including steelhead) would change after 20 years if fishing was stopped and hatcheries were closed.  About 83% predicted that current (wild plus hatchery) salmon abundance (overall Columbia Basin run) would decline without hatchery stocking and fishing.  Most surveyed experts predicted that stopping fishing and closing hatcheries would not greatly change the current overall wild-only abundance in the Basin.  Based on these results, salmon fishing and hatchery additions are not currently believed to be among the major drivers of the low abundance of wild salmon in the Columbia River Basin.  The current overall abundance of wild salmon in the Columbia River Basin (roughly 3-5% of pre-1850s levels) is within the expected range, given the amount and availability of high-quality salmon habitat, past and current ecological changes, and overarching trends in oceanic and climate conditions.  Thus, stopping fishing and closing hatcheries likely will not drastically change the current wild salmon abundance in the Basin — and it may well drive wild runs even lower, according to many experts.

*Presented at a Pacific Salmon Commission (Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada) seminar on November 29, 2023.

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Click Here for the Seminar Link

Darwin was Right: A Scientist Needs a Heart of Stone

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Robert T. Lackey

A few months ago I was asked to present my thoughts about what scientists can do to reverse the decline of public trust in the policy impartiality of scientists.  The importance of good science is broadly accepted across all political ideologies, but the level of trust in scientists (as separate from science) has probably never been lower. Here is the transcript of that talk presented at the 56th Annual Meeting of the Oregon Chapter of the American Fisheries Society, March 6, 2020, Bend, Oregon:

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I appreciate the opportunity to wrap up this session:  “Communicating Science Across Different Domains.”   Yes, it is certainly a fitting topic for all of us — and based on the range of perspectives we’ve heard this morning — it reinforces its timeliness.  Further — these days — given the privileged standing afforded science in the legal and policy world — and the potential for its misuse — both intentional and unintentional — it is absolutely critical for all of us all “to get the  science question right.”

OK — my specific assignment today is to answer this question:   How should scientists assure that they are sticking to science — and not drifting into policy advocacy?

I am very sure that each of you frequently see examples of “advocacy masquerading as science.”  I know I do — every day!   And — for those of us who are scientists — and those of us who work at the interface of science – policy – and management — how do we avoid this?

Let me start with a simple “role playing” exercise.

First ― imagine that you are now in the spotlight — having been summoned to the state capitol to provide information to the Natural Resources Committee of the Oregon State Senate.   Great career opportunity!

Second ― imagine that the Committee is faced with a contentious question:   whether they should officially support — or oppose — the construction of a dam designed to store water to help alleviate August droughts.   And — be assured — dams are always politically controversial!

Third ― you are a scientist who has studied in great detail this particular proposed dam.  In short — you are indisputably a scientific expert on the topic.

What is the proper role for you – a scientist?  This is not a trick question — but it is also not a simple one.

My blunt answer:  follow Charles Darwin’s recommendation for scientists who find themselves in such circumstances — develop a heart of stone!

Why exactly did Darwin call for scientists to develop a Heart of Stone?  For sure — today his advice might seem a bit passe in this era of trigger warnings — safe spaces — and postmodernism!   But — what exactly are the alternatives to a heart of stone idea? — and why did Darwin not support these?

At a basic level — legislators — policy makers — and the public — expect scientists to even-handedly present scientific information relevant to the question under consideration.  Seems simple enough!   And — it is hard to argue against this expectation — this idealized view that you heard way back in Political Science 101 — right?

But — more fundamentally — what exactly — is scientific information?  And — equally important — what information is not science?  In short — what is this thing everyone casually labels as “science?”  After all — relatively speaking — the notion of science is only a few hundred years old — at least it has only been broadly popular for a few hundred years.  And — for sure — there are many other ways to acquire information — and indeed science is only one.

Francis Bacon popularized the basic principles of the “scientific method” several hundred years ago.  This is the reason why modern science is sometimes referred to as “Baconian Science.”

To be considered scientific information — it must have 4 characteristics.  In philosophy — as described in their often opaque — even cerebral — philosophical jargon — they are called the “big 4.”

First, the information must be rational — that is — it relies on the senses.  Second, it must be acquired systematically —  a path that is clearly explained.  Third, it must be testable — others can evaluate the results — it is not based on faith.  Fourth, the results must be reproducible — others following the same procedures and methodologies will come up with the same answer.  If the results cannot be reproduced — it is back to the drawing board!

But — there are other kinds of knowledge — and these are not better — or worse — but they are not science.  For example — knowledge gained through experience is ubiquitous — but it is not science.  A common example is fishermen’s knowledge accumulated after years on the water — or perhaps passed down over generations based on a sort of collective experience.

Most definitely — experiential knowledge may be a terrific source of information — but it does not possess the 4 essential characteristics of science.

Think back to Darwin’s time — the dominant faith affecting science was what might be called the classical Christian view of creation.  These days — in my experience — the dominant faith in the areas of science that I work — is what is often called “Green Religion.”  In its simplest formulation — this faith assumes that natural ecosystems — those undisturbed by humans — are inherently superior to human-altered ones.  And — applying a similar theological litmus test — native species are a priori superior to non-native ones.

Don’t get me wrong — there is absolutely nothing inappropriate — or appropriate — with religious or faith-based postulates — but they are outside the purview of science.

But in Darwin’s time — it was not Green Religion — but rather Christian theology that conflicted with the scientific method.  In Darwin’s time — scientists were expected to accept upfront the creationist view of the origin of species — and most did so voluntarily.  But — Darwin argued — do your research — test your hypotheses against the observable facts — draw your conclusions.  Stop there!   Do not presuppose anything!  In short — as uncomfortable as it might be — Darwin encouraged scientists to develop a heart of stone.

But even if a scientist follows Darwin’s advice to the letter — that scientist must be trusted.  Thus — managers — policy makers — and especially the public — would like to assume that a scientist is presenting straight — unbiased facts and interpretations.  But in reality — the question is always there — is that scientist sticking to the science — or is he slanting the science to cleverly push a particular policy preference?  As a practical matter — if a reader or listener trusts a scientist — that reader or listener will almost certainly accept the veracity of what is being presented by that scientist.

OK — the central question still remains — are scientists trusted by the public these days?  In essence, given that trust is essential for scientists to play a useful role in policy making and management — what do the national polls show?

First — the good news — there have been a lot of polling done on the trust question.  Now the bad news — no poll that I could find addressed fisheries — or any other aspect of natural resource management.  The closest discipline I could find was “environmental science” — for sure not a perfect fit — but it will have to do.

OK — to what extent does the public trust scientists on the topic of environmental issues?  The results?  In a Washington Post/ABC national poll — 40% — 4 in 10 — said they place little or no trust in the impartiality of scientists.  But — even more disturbing to me — the other 60% were not all that supportive — they were lukewarm in their level of trust of scientists.

In another more recent national poll — this one by the PEW Research Center — barely a third of the respondents said environmental scientists provided fair and accurate information all — or most of the time.

Why such a low level of trust?   We can speculate about what has caused this loss of trust — and many people have.  Regardless — there are some things that scientists themselves can do to help rebuild trust.

The first thing that we need to do is to eliminate “stealth policy advocacy.”

The second is to stamp out normative science from all aspects of the scientific enterprise.

Now — the stealthy part — normative science is very similar in appearance to regular or traditional science — but it has an embedded or hidden policy preference.  And the challenging part — it is often very difficult to pick up on this embedded policy preference!

Don’t be so sure that you are not at risk for normative science.  Why?   Detecting normative science is not as easy as it might appear.  After all — what is being presented:

  •  Looks like regular science
  •  Sounds like regular science
  •  Is offered by people who appear to be “scientists”

Even experienced policy makers and managers can be deceived!  What chance does the general public have?

Let me circle back to the example I started with — the proposal to build a water supply dam — and the proper role of scientists in the decision-making process.  Let’s have a little more role-playing — imagine that you are a world expert in some ecological discipline.  You have been assigned to a blue ribbon team of similarly elite scientists.  Your job is to determine the likely ecological consequences of building a dam on this river.

OK — exactly how would you describe the scientific results to that Senate Committee — or to the public?

Would you be tempted to use the term “degradation” to describe the river with the dam?  If you do — you have slipped into normative science.  Why?  — because you have made an assumption that a free-flowing river is preferable to a dammed one.  Perhaps it is better policy-wise — but not better scientifically — just different — a value judgment that others should make — not scientists.

Or — you could take the exact same scientific information and label the river with the dam as “improved.”  After all — it will provide badly needed water in late summer — but the relative importance of that goal is a political determination — a value judgment — not a choice for scientists to make.  Again — the science is the same — the only thing that has changed is that you have embedded a different policy preference.  No other change!

This is so common these days that many listeners will not pick up on it!  How should scientists report these results?  My answer — scientists should use terminology that does not presuppose a value judgment — nor presuppose a policy preference.

In short — in this example — I suggest using the word “alteration” as being much more policy neutral.  Using “alteration” in this example does not imply that either state of the ecosystem is preferred policy-wise.

Let me wrap up — what should scientists do — my recommendation — play the science straight up — do not build in subtle policy preferences.  Be alert.   Test your wording for signs of policy bias.

For sure — there are temptations aplenty to co-opt scientists — mostly they come from policy advocates and politicians.  Whatever the temptation — avoid falling into the trap of stealth policy advocacy.  Leave the advocacy to advocates — stick to science.

And remember Charles Darwin’s advice — he was dead-on all those years ago — a scientist needs a “Heart of Stone.”

Thank you!

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Video Recording:  https://media.oregonstate.edu/media/0_melddnvc

Does the Public Expect Too Much from Science?

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Robert T. Lackey

More than two decades ago, while Deputy Director of EPA’s national research laboratory in Corvallis, Oregon, I presented a talk to a group of community activists about why salmon populations along the West Coast have dropped to less than 5% of their historical levels.  I’ve given such talks many times so I was confident that I had heard just about every question that might be asked.  I was wrong.

The opening question was asked by a well-known political activist.  He was direct, pointed, and bursting with hostility:  “You scientists always talk about our choices, but when will you finally tell us what we SHOULD do about the dramatic decline of West Coast salmon?  Quit talking about the science and your research and tell us what we should do!  Let’s get on with it!”

From the nods of approval offered by many in the audience, his impatience with science and scientists was broadly shared.

What does the public expect from scientists regarding today’s ecological policy issues? Some examples of such policy challenges include the decline of salmon;  deciding on the proper role of wildfire on public lands;  what to do, if anything, about climate change;  the consequences of declining biological diversity;  and making sense of the confusing policy choices surrounding “sustainability.”

The lament “if we just had some better science, a little more data, we could resolve this policy question” is common among both scientists and decision makers.  Calls for more research are everywhere in ecological policy debates.

In most cases, even if we had complete scientific knowledge about all aspects of an issue, the same rancorous debate would emerge.  Root policy differences are invariably over values and preferences, not science, data, and facts.

In a pluralistic society, with a wide array of values and preferences competing for dominance, the ecological policy debate is usually centered around whose values and preferences will carry the day rather than over scientific information.

So what was my answer to the emotionally charged question from the political activist?

It was: “Science, although an important part of policy debates, remains but one element, and often a minor one, in the decision-making process.  We scientists can assess the ecological consequences of various policy options, but in the end, it is up to society to prioritize those options and make their choices accordingly.”

He wasn’t pleased.

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Is Science Biased Toward Natural Environments?

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Robert T. Lackey

In science, when you see the words “natural,” “healthy,” “degraded,” and “biological integrity,”  all these terms, and many others, have embedded assumptions about what someone or some organization regards as a desirable value choice, a preferred policy choice.

These and similar words have no place in science.  They are classic examples of normative science.  Their use in scientific publications is simply policy advocacy disguised as science.

The words are fine for management, expected in policy advocacy, but not OK in science.

Here is a test:  first, put on your science hat.  Now imagine that the public owns a 5,000-acre stand of old-growth (never logged) forest which is being considered by a government agency for an alternative use.  Scientifically, is it preferable to (1) preserve this landscape as is, or (2) remove the trees and build a wind farm?

Neither ecological state is preferable scientifically!   At least not without assuming, perhaps unwittingly, a policy preference, a value choice.  If the science relevant to this policy question is presented in such a way to subtly favor either policy option, it is a classic example of normative science.

It may look like a scientific statement.  It may sound like a scientific statement.  It is often presented by people who we assume to be operating as scientists.   But, such statements in science are nothing more than “policy advocacy masquerading as science.”

Anyone following basic scientific principles should say:

            “Pristine ecosystems are neither superior, nor inferior, to human-altered ones.  Different, for sure, but not better or worse.”

Let me wrap up by offering Charles Darwin’s advice to scientists.  Remember that he was under a lot of social pressure to make his scientific findings conform to the dominant political and theological views of the time.  He offered pithy guidance to scientists:

          “A scientific man ought to have no wishes, no affections, a mere heart of stone.“

Strict, uncompromising, and unequivocal advice, but spot-on for scientists both then and now.

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Wild Salmon Recovery in the Western United States: Four Facts and a Corollary

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by

Robert T. Lackey

Despite a few recent newspaper headlines heralding several “record” salmon runs, most salmon runs in California, Oregon, Washington, and Idaho are a mere shadow of their pre-1848 levels.  Further, even most of these relatively small remaining runs are largely maintained by releases of hatchery-raised fish.  Wild salmon — typically defined as those whose parents spawned naturally in natural habitat — comprise only a small portion of most runs and their overall abundance is a sliver of historical levels.

The decline has been well known and for more than 160 years there have been concerted efforts to recover salmon runs.  Especially during the past three decades, the extent and cost of formal recovery efforts for wild salmon have substantially increased — in large part a response to requirements of the Endangered Species Act (ESA).

While using hatcheries to sustain relatively large salmon runs is plausible — although technically challenging — the requirements of the ESA relative to wild salmon have made the role of hatcheries in sustaining or increasing runs legally contentious.

In my interactions with professional colleagues over many years, they agree — usually only when speaking unofficially — that current efforts will not successfully recover wild salmon to abundances that would assure self-sustainability and support sizable sport and commercial harvest.  Such a level of abundance would need to be at least a third or more of the typical pre-1848 run size.

Even with the very large expenditures to recover wild salmon, what pushes the most knowledgeable people to the stunning conclusion that these well-meaning efforts will fail?

To succeed, a wild salmon recovery strategy must address several overarching and undisputed realities about the West Coast that have developed over many years.  Without addressing these realities, any wild salmon recovery strategy will fall far short of expectations.  It will be added to a long list — well over a century in the making — of noble, but failed salmon recovery strategies.  Even if society continues to spend billions to restore wild salmon runs, these efforts ultimately will be only marginally successful.

What are these realities and how must they be changed to recover wild salmon to even a third of their historical level?   Let’s look at the four key ones.

Fact 1:   Overall, wild salmon abundance south of the Canadian border, is very low and has been so for a long time.  Most spawning runs are far less than 10% of their pre-1848 levels.  Over two dozen Endangered Species Act “species” (distinct population segments) are now listed as threatened or endangered.  Many runs have already disappeared and more will follow unless there is a reversal of the long-term downward trajectory.

Fact 2:   We have been well aware for a long time of the main causes of the dire state of salmon runs along the West Coast.  These causes are well documented scientifically and include mining, dams, water pollution, habitat alteration, over-fishing, irrigation water withdrawals, predation on salmon by many species, competition with hatchery-produced salmon and other, often non-native fish species, and many other causes.

Fact 3:   Anywhere wild salmon were once plentiful (Europe, Asian Far East, Eastern North America), the decline in their abundance is roughly inversely proportional to the area’s growth in the human population.  Over decades and centuries, as the human population expanded in these regions, the size of salmon runs declined to minuscule levels.  Since 1848, the West Coast is playing out similarly for wild salmon.  For example, from a pre-1848 human population level of a few hundred thousand, California, Oregon, Washington, and Idaho are now home to 50 million people. Over the same time period, wild salmon abundance in the four States has declined from roughly 50 million to a few million.  And the future?  Assuming expected human population growth in these four States, by 2100 they will be home to somewhere between 150 and 200 million people — a tripling or quadrupling by the end of this century — barely 80 years from now.

Fact 4:   It is not just the sheer number of humans (Fact 3), but their individual and collective lifestyles that reduce the abundance of wild salmon.  In the absence of dramatic changes in economic policies and life-styles, future options for restoring salmon runs to significant, sustainable levels will be greatly constrained. For example, by 2100, with 150-200 million people living in the 4 West Coast states, consider the additional demand for houses, roads, Costcos, Starbucks, air conditioning, drinking water, office buildings — the list is a very long one.

What about the potential of current wild salmon recovery efforts to change the long-term, downward trajectory for wild salmon in California, Oregon, Washington, and Idaho?

Corollary 1:  To succeed in restoring wild salmon runs to significant, sustainable levels, a wild salmon recovery strategy must change the four facts or that strategy will fail.  If society only continues to spend billions of dollars in quick-fix efforts to restore wild salmon runs, then in most cases these efforts will be only marginally successful and the long-term downward trajectory of wild salmon will continue.  It is money spent on activities not likely to achieve recovery of wild salmon, however, it helps people feel better as they continue the behaviors and choices that preclude the recovery of wild salmon.  As important, it also sustains a jobs program for scientists and other technocrats by funding the salmon recovery industry.  This industry has become a multi-billion dollar enterprise and collectively forms an influential advocacy group.

Turning to the future to assess what is realistically plausible, maintaining sustainable populations of many highly valued non-native West Coast fish species (e.g., bluegill, walleye, smallmouth bass, largemouth bass, brook trout, and striped bass) is feasible, because these species, unlike salmon, are well adapted to the greatly altered West Coast aquatic environments.  Overall with a drastically altered aquatic environment, and not at all surprising, many nonnative fish species are doing well.  Nor should it be surprising that wild salmon are struggling to hang on in environments for which they are poorly adapted.

In conclusion, if society continues to ignore these four facts and the corollary, no one should be surprised by the lack of long-term success of wild salmon recovery efforts.  Perhaps these billions of dollars being spent to recover wild salmon should be considered “guilt money” — modern-day indulgences — a tax society and individuals willingly endure to alleviate collective and individual remorse about the sorry state of wild salmon.  After all, it is money spent on activities unlikely to achieve the recovery of wild salmon, but it perhaps helps many people feel better as people continue the behaviors and choices that essentially preclude wild salmon recovery.

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