Biodiversity and Ecosystem Functioning. Tools are needed for rapidly assessing biodiversity and understanding the effects of losses of species. In addition, how to design habitats that sustain biodiversity despite human intrusion should be studied further. Scientists need a better understanding of how the Earth's climate varies over a wide range of time scales, from extreme storms that develop quickly to changes in whether patterns that occur over several decades. Some of the most vital areas of research include improving observational capabilities and extending the record of weather measurements farther back into Earth's history.
More information also is needed on how climate change affects society.
Human demand for water continues to grow. More research is needed to help predict changes in freshwater resources and the environment caused by floods, droughts, sedimentation, and contamination. How precipitation affects water levels, how surface water is generated and transported, how ground water moves, and how changes in the landscape affect water supplies and the flow of sediment are among the most important areas for study. Infectious Disease and the Environment. To prevent outbreaks of infectious diseases in plants, animals, and humans, scientists need to understand how pathogens, parasites, and disease-carrying species, as well as the humans and other species they infect, are affected by changes in their environments.