Region: East Asia/Pacific
Zhao
Shidong and Wang Qunli
Chinese Academy of Sciences
Under the support of the Chinese Academy
of Sciences (CAS) and the World Bank, the Chinese Ecosystem Research Network
(CERN) was established in 1988.
Since the founding of the Chinese Academy of Sciences in the early
1950’s over a hundred field stations has been gradually set up across the
country, covering various ecological zones. The initiatives of these stations
were to improve productivity of agriculture, forestry, animal husbandry and
fishery, and to observe and study specific natural phenomena, such as
glaciology, frozen earth, mud- rock flows, landslides, etc. Over forty years,
these stations have played significant roles in helping with the reasonable
utilization of local natural resources and solving local environmental
problems, as well as in terms of the advancement of ecological research.
Since
the 1980s, due to the origination and development of Earth System Science,
particularly the implementation of the IGBP and the increased pressure caused
by the growing shortage of resources and environmental degradation, the Chinese
Academy of Sciences has taken several steps to establish and strengthen the
Chinese Ecosystem Research Network. First
it chose 29 from the all field stations, covering the important ecosystems
in China of agriculture, forest, grassland, lake and bay. Among these stations,
there are 16 for agriculture, 7 for forest, 2 for grassland, 2 for lake and
2 for bay ecosystems. In order to improve data management and synthetic research,
the five disciplinary Sub-Centers (hydrology, soil, atmosphere, biology and
aquatic ecosystem) and one Synthesis Center were established too. More than
1000 scientists and technicians from 21 institutes of CAS have been involved
in the activities of CERN. Through the developments in the past ten years,
CERN has become a very important basis for ecological research in China and
an element of the global ecological networks.
In the beginning of this project, the essential task was to complete an
overall design. During the five years from 1988 to 1992, detailed
investigations were made of the newest developments and trends of ecosystem
research in the world. In particular,
scientific personnel from the concerned institutes of CAS examined the various
demands that modern ecosystem research sets forward for the networking of
ecosystem research. Efforts were made to learn about the design and operation
of both existing networks and those being established around the world for
ecological observation and research, such as the program of the Long-Term
Ecological Research (LTER) Network in the United States.
Based on detailed investigations and extensive discussions, and with
consideration of the specific features of the Chinese situation, the overall
design of the project was finally worked out in 1992. This design is fully
reflected in the project proposal submitted to the World Bank in the beginning
of 1993.
Compared with other networks in the world, the design of CERN contains
the following features:
1) As a general principal of the design, the “Top-down” approach was
taken, which means that all of the units of the network should follow unified
principles, and the major activities, including research and monitoring, would
be supported by centralized funds.
2) As a whole, the network emphasizes network integrity, core
objectives, and direct service to the sustainable utilization of natural
resources and to environmental protection.
3) In terms of monitoring and observation, it enforces the unification
and standardization of methodologies and even instruments.
4) When considering data collection, it focuses on the standardization
of the data formats, data quality control, data sharing, data synthesis and
analysis.
5) Regarding research methodology, it encourages cross-site and
multi-disciplinary approaches to research, including the involvement of social
sciences, and the networking of
research, based on the unified objectives and methodology.
6) Considering the serious problem and challenge of ecosystem management
in China, demonstrations of sustainable ecosystem management are one of the
highest priority tasks for all of the stations.
In the past several years, through several evaluations carried out by
experts, this design was proved to be both advanced and feasible. It has laid a
solid scientific foundation and structure for the realization of the overall
objectives of CERN and of the various tasks concerned.
The long term goal of the network is to understand the status of the
various major ecosystems and environment by largely relying on the ground
network monitoring and observation with modern methodologies, such as remote
sensing, Geographic Information System (GIS) and mathematical models, thus
contributing to the improvement of our living environment, the sustainable
utilization of natural resources and the general advancement of ecosystem
research.
Its concrete objectives are as follows:
1)
To conduct long-term monitoring programs on the country’s ecosystems in
agriculture, forestry, grassland, lake and bay, and the environmental factors,
like water, soil and air.
2).
To conduct thorough and in-depth investigations of the structure, function and
dynamics of the ecosystems, and the approaches and methods for sustainable
utilization of these systems.
3). To provide the optimal managerial models to the people of local
communities for the sustainable utilization of the local natural resources and
the improvement of the local living environment.
4). To provide the scientific foundations needed by the decision-makers
at various administrative levels concerned with the utilization of natural
resources and environment.
5)
To contribute to the solution of global ecological and environmental issues
through active participation in international ecological research
projects.
Among the tasks mentioned above the essential one is to study the
ecosystem.
2. Network management
The leading organization and the principal financial sponsor of CERN is
the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS). 21 institutes of CAS dealing with
geo-science and bio-science are
involved in CERN.
The Leading Group, the Scientific Committee and the Scientific Advisory
Committee take the responsibilities for CERN management.
The Chairperson of the Leading Group and the Scientific Committee is the
Vice-President of CAS, Academician Chen Yiyu. The Chairperson of the
Scientific Advisory Committee is
Academician Sun Honglie.
Prof. Zhao Shidong is one of the Vice-Chairpersons of the Scientific Committee
as well as the Secretary General of CERN, with responsibility for the routine
work of managing CERN.
3. Special activities
All of the Stations, Sub-centers and the Synthesis Research Center of
CERN have developed strong links with universities, local people and the public
media. They have played important roles in education and outreach directed at
improving the living environment and sustainable management of ecosystems, by
means of offering training courses, distributing papers and showing the
managerial demonstration sites.