UP CLOSE: STEVE MURAWSKI
TOP SCIENTIST FOR NOAA’S NATIONAL MARINE FISHERIES SERVICE
AND LEADER OF NOAA’S ECOSYSTEM GOAL TEAM

March 27, 2007 — Steve Murawski has a lot more than just fish on this plate these days. Not only is he the Director of Scientific Programs and Chief Science Advisor at the NOAA National Marine Fisheries Service, but he also serves as leader of NOAA’s Ecosystem Goal Team, which integrates the agency’s many ecological activities across its various offices. Murawski’s dual roles give him a perspective on fisheries and ecosystem activities that others do not. He addresses complex issues at many levels — both from the viewpoint of an individual line office to across all of NOAA. Murawski’s job is to organize and deliver NOAA’s ecosystem products in new and more imaginative ways to meet the agency’s many responsibilities. For example, Murawski was instrumental in pulling together a NOAA response team, as well as government wide team, to determine the health of seafood in the Gulf region following Hurricane Katrina.

A 30-year employee with NOAA, Murawski was previously the Director of the NOAA Office of Science and Technology and served as Chief Stock Assessment Scientist for the NOAA Northeast Fisheries Science Center in Woods Hole, Mass. His research background is in fisheries biology and stock assessment and he received his Ph.D. in Wildlife and Fisheries Biology from the University of Massachusetts–Amherst.

As a research scientist, Murawski has received numerous awards and published over 150 journal articles, reports and book chapters. He has served on numerous national and international fisheries councils/committees, including serving as an advisor to the State Department on a number of international issues (i.e., North Atlantic Fishery Organization treaty and UN Law of the Sea-related activities).

Below Murawski shares his thoughts on his work at NOAA.

Q: Tell me about a day in the life of the director of scientific programs and chief science advisor at the NOAA National Marine Fisheries Service.
A: My days are filled with a wide range of diverse and interesting activities. I might start the day by giving a national media interview about our new comprehensive study of Hurricane Katrina impacts on communities in the Gulf of Mexico. I would then preside over a meeting of the NOAA Ecosystem Goal Team, which is developing a plan for NOAA’s future work on ocean ecosystems. Then I might head downtown to the Hill to testify in front of Congress about the effects of climate change on ocean ecosystems. Everyday I spend some time coordinating with other U.S. government agencies and other countries through the International Council for the Exploration of the Sea, bilateral arrangements or at the United Nations so we can work together to solve marine issues of mutual importance.

In addition to the day-to-day activities I participate in at headquarters, I am fortunate to oversee the great works conducted by scientists in our six regional science centers with their 30 laboratories, and the operations in our headquarters Office of Science and Technology. One of my critical duties is to maintain a high level of science quality assurance and to serve as a spokesperson for NOAA Fisheries’ science.

Q: What is your most memorable moment at NOAA?
A: It would definitely be the first time I set foot on a NOAA fisheries research ship as a graduate student. It made such an impact on me that I decided then and there that I wanted to work for this agency doing fishery population dynamics. I could not believe that I could actually get paid to do a job where I would get to go to sea! The second most memorable moment was when I moved to NOAA headquarters. It was a bittersweet decision — I loved all the exciting work I was doing in the field and still miss all my friends and colleagues in Woods Hole, Mass., but I also realized that by moving to NOAA headquarters I would have an opportunity to make a real difference in the direction of fisheries and ecosystem science.

Q: How did you become interested in fisheries and/or ecosystem issues?
A: I grew up in Kansas and other land-locked places since my father was in the military, but I have always been interested in science, fish and the ocean, even though marine science was just a concept to me. I remember participating in the 6th grade science fair at Kansas Wesleyan University — that early exposure to college and biology really made an impression on me. When I was a teenager, my brother-in-law taught me how to scuba dive, which opened up a whole new world for me. When I went to college, I took courses in marine science, oceanography and fisheries. Through my graduate training and professional experience, I developed a particular interest in fisheries assessment and ecosystems, and I wrote my Ph.D. dissertation on the subject.

Q: What are the most important fisheries issues facing NOAA today?
A: Most importantly, ending overfishing, matching seafood demand and supply through new forms of aquaculture, and looking at fisheries issues in the much broader context of habitat, protected species and ecosystems. Let me elaborate on each:

• The recent reauthorization of the Magnuson-Stevens Act finally gives us the tools we need to end overfishing and rebuild stocks. It also establishes a timeframe to end overfishing on all stocks by 2010. Currently, there are about four dozen fish stocks that are being overfished and these will be difficult challenges from an economic, cultural and political standpoint. The reauthorization gives us the tools, now NOAA must step up to the plate and make it happen.
• There is new evidence that seafood is important in our diet and that health risks are somewhat overblown. However, even when overfishing ends and all stocks are rebuilt, there will still not be enough fish to meet the current and projected demands. So the only way to resolve this issue is either by importing more fish or turning to greater emphasis on domestic aquaculture. Greater aquaculture production from the oceans is an important objective and the United States can lead the world in environmentally sound aquaculture from offshore areas.
• It is important for us to look at fisheries issues from the broader context of coastal oceans. The nation has only scratched the surface when it comes to understanding the oceans, even though we demand a lot from them for recreation, fishing, transportation and many other purposes. We know a lot about how man interacts with the land, but when it comes to the ocean, we know far less.

Q: What is different about how we view the oceans today versus 30 years ago?
A: We’re fortunate that people are more conscious about marine issues today. Society as a whole, including our lawmakers and government, has taken stronger actions to protect the oceans, coasts and the animals that inhabit them. Industry and conservation groups are more involved and have been helping to shape the debates on overall policy and in specific decisions. Ocean management issues are highly contentious, and legal challenges to NOAA’s decisions have made us aware of the importance of standards, peer review and transparency in our science programs.

Q: Let’s talk achievements. How have NOAA’s efforts benefited the American people and the nation’s marine environment?
A: We have shown that is possible to effectively rehabilitate depleted stocks and maintain healthy ones through sound fisheries management practices. We have numerous fisheries, such as pollock in Alaska and sea scallops in the northeast, that are being successfully managed so we can gain the most ecological and economical benefit from them.

Our ability to successfully manage the nation’s fisheries is tied to our ability to continue increasing our scientific capabilities, such as modernizing the NOAA research vessel fleet. Starting in the late 1990s, NOAA was able to begin implementing an ambitious fleet plan which has now delivered two state of the art fishery survey vessels, with two additional ships under construction. We look forward to closing the gap in ship support for all of NOAA’s needs with the support of Congress, our clients and customers.

Q: Okay, let’s talk about challenges. What work is left to do at NOAA’s Fisheries Service?
A: We still have our work cut out for us on many fronts. The biggest short-term challenge is to end overfishing by 2010. Beyond that, marine sound presents a host of new challenges, from such sources as vessel traffic, sonar and seismic exploration. An increasingly busy global ocean has important implications for mammals and other species that communicate and are sensitive to these sound sources. Interestingly, the technology used on NOAA’s newest acoustically quiet ships — the Oscar Dyson, Bigelow, and Pisces — may also provide a model for the design of quieter ships for commercial uses.

We are only beginning to understand that climate variation will have an impact on ocean resources, yet we don’t know exactly what form these impacts will take. We have a warming ocean with observed loss of sea ice at both poles causing the sea level to rise. This will result in marine habitat loss and shifts in migratory patterns of animals. We need to gain a better understanding of how these things and others, like ocean acidification, can shift the balance of life in the oceans.

Q: How to you address the critics, those who don’t trust fisheries science?
A: Fisheries science is prone to criticism for two main reasons. First, it’s imprecise since we can’t count every fish in the ocean. Instead, we rely on a complex system of modeling, which gives us projections and estimates based on the data we can obtain. Second, the scientific models and processes are complex and not easily understood by the general public or our regulated stakeholders. Our science program actually is highly evolved and sophisticated, and we’re constantly improving how we collect data and run our scientific models. One thing we’d like everyone to realize is that fisheries science evolves and adapts as we learn of changes to our data needs and even changes to marine ecosystems. We’re in a constant state of evolution and improvement.

We recognize that we have a responsibility to close the communication gap and increase ocean science literacy, and we do so by inviting fishermen to partner with us in research projects, and through education. Our science is peer-reviewed, and we are proud of the programs we operate. We put every bit of our science budget to good use to increase our understanding of population dynamics and marine ecosystems, and to increase the socio-economic data that factor into fishing decisions and must be considered when we develop regulations. I don’t think we’ll ever be able to know and understand everything about the oceans, so we’ll always have data gaps and a degree of uncertainty. But our role is to come up with the best estimates and probabilities. Fisheries science is science at its best!

Q: The buzz word in fisheries science these days seems to be “ecosystems.” Exactly what are ecosystems and why should we care about them?
A: Although “ecosystems” seems to be a current buzz word, NOAA actually has been on the front line of developing the concept of marine ecosystem science for the last twenty years. Ecosystem-based science and management takes the whole environment into account when we assess and manage the oceans. I am proud of NOAA’s leadership in defining and implementing ecosystem-based management — we are delivering on a vision for the country and its implementation. For example, in addition to a focus on individual fish stocks, we're integrating our knowledge of how stock complexes, or groups of fish, share habitats and are influenced by fishing and other marine environmental factors. We’re also taking other factors into account, such as prey-predator relationships and impacts of climate change.

Additionally, we are just beginning to manage whole ecosystems. We have traditionally managed the oceans on a sector by sector basis, that is, developing rules and regulations separately for boating, shipping, fishing and oil exploration to name a few. Now we’re moving more towards factoring in all of these impacts and more to the oceans as we consider new management approaches. To facilitate NOAA’s understanding and growing use of ecosystem science, I’ve been involved in a government-wide effort coordinated by the White House to chart the nation’s marine science research priorities for the next ten years. The final report was released in January, and now we’re working to carry out each component of the plan. My participation is focused on representing all of NOAA in developing models to increase our understanding marine ecosystem processes, and developing practical tools to improve our ability to carry out true marine ecosystem management.

Relevant Web Sites
Steve Murawski: NOAA Biography

NOAA National Marine Fisheries Service

NOAA’s Ecosystem Goal Team,

NOAA Fisheries Science Centers

Media Contact:
Susan Buchanan, NOAA Fisheries, (301)713-2370
Article by Julie Bedford (Editor, NOAA Magazine), Steve Murawski and Susan Buchanan.