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Pioneering ecologist to discuss freshwater biodiversity

By Carole Leigh Engblom
September 11, 2002

The soap we use every day to wash our dishes and clothes owes much to University of Alberta Professor David W. Schindler, not for what?s in it, but for what?s been removed: phosphorous. A pioneering ecologist, Schindler?s groundbreaking scientific work has resulted in international environmental policy changes and ushered in a new era of whole-ecosystem research.

Schindler
Schindler?s groundbreaking scientific work has resulted in international environmental policy changes.
Climate warming, declining lake levels, destruction of wetlands and groundwater availability are among the issues that Schindler will address in a talk titled ?The Cumulative Effects of Climate Change and Other Human Activity on Freshwater Communities? at St. Olaf College on Thursday, Sept. 19, 7:30 p.m., in the Science Center, room 280.

The event is free and open to the public.

Schindler?s insights into biodiversity and freshwater resources will reinforce what St. Olaf students are learning in the classroom, the laboratory and the field. ?We are thrilled to have an opportunity to listen to and engage Professor Schindler. He made the stewardship of global resources the focus of his professional life and continues to demonstrate what it means to be a scientist dedicated to unselfish service and life-long learning,? says St. Olaf Assistant Professor of Chemistry Paul Jackson. ?During his visit Schindler will challenge us to more fully consider the consequences of our actions or inaction.?

Schindler founded and directed the world-renowned Experimental Lakes Project of the Canadian Department of Fisheries and Oceans near Kenora in northwestern Ontario, from 1968 to 1989. He pioneered the use of whole-lake experiments to determine that phosphorous was the pivotal factor in regulating eutrophication -- the over-fertilization of lakes with nutrients from human sources such as waste water and agricultural fertilizers, resulting in excessive growth of aquatic plants and bacteria that consume the oxygen and choke the fish.

Despite the apparent abundance of freshwater in North America, Schindler notes the declining availability of freshwater as the climate warms means water quality problems, acidification, exposure to UV radiation, pollution with pathogens and toxins, and invasions of alien species. Comprehensive watershed planning and water conservation measures are urgently needed to protect freshwaters in the 21st century, he says.

A member of the University of Alberta?s faculty since 1989, Schindler is the Killam Memorial Professor of Ecology in the Department of Biological Sciences. He is the recipient of numerous national and international research awards, including Canada?s highest scientific honor, the NSERC Gerhard Herzberg Gold Medal for Science and Engineering.

Schindler received a Bachelor of Science from North Dakota State University and a doctorate from Oxford University, England, where he studied as a Rhodes Scholar. He was a research scientist in the Department of Fisheries and Oceans? Experimental Limnology Program at the Freshwater Institute and taught at the University of Manitoba and Trent University. Schindler holds honorary doctorates from six universities.

Actively involved in numerous Canadian and international policy advisory roles, Schindler has headed the International Joint Commission?s Expert Committee on Ecology and Geochemistry and the U.S. Academy of Sciences? Committee on the Atmosphere and the Biosphere amd currently serves on Environment Canada?s Science and Technology Board and is involved in the development of federal ?Species at Risk? legislation. He has authored more than 250 scientific publications. This event is sponsored the St. Olaf Chemistry and Biology Departments with funds provided by Merck-AAAS.

St. Olaf College, a national leader among liberal arts institutions, fosters the development of mind, body and spirit. It is a residential college in Northfield, Minn., and affiliated with the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA). The college provides personalized instruction and diverse learning environments, with nearly two-thirds of its students participating in international studies. For more information, see www.stolaf.edu.

Contact Carole Leigh Engblom at 507-786-3315 or leigh@stolaf.edu.