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STATE OF THE LAKES ECOSYSTEM CONFERENCE AND SUITE OF INDICATORS
Citation:
U.S. EPA, AND Environment Canada. STATE OF THE LAKES ECOSYSTEM CONFERENCE AND SUITE OF INDICATORS. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Washington, D.C., 2005.
Impact/Purpose:
1. Assess the state of the Great Lakes ecosystem based on accepted indicators; 2. Strengthen decision making and management; 3. Inform local decision makers of Great Lakes environmental issues; 4. Provide forum for communication and networking among all stakeholders
Description:
The State of the Lakes Ecosystem Conference (SOLEC) is a biennial assessment and report from the governments of the U.S. and Canada on progress toward meeting the goals of the Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement (GLWQA). The SOLEC approach has three main elements: 1) The biennial conferences provide a forum for Great Lakes stakeholders to review the assessments provided by indicator reports, to provide additional information or interpretation, and to discuss management implications. The conferences are designed to be interactive, encouraging the participation of attendees; 2) A suite of indicators of the status and trends of Great Lakes ecosystem components provides the basis for the biennial assessments. These indicators were developed through a deliberate process involving many Great Lakes agencies, organizations and other stakeholders; and 3) The State of the Great Lakes reports derived from SOLEC provide part of the reporting requirements to the International Joint Commission and to the public called for in the GLWQA. The reports are based on findings from the indicators, and they provide a primary means for conveying those findings and implications to environmental managers and decision makers. The SOLEC Process, composed of these three elements, was peer reviewed in October 2003. A second peer review, in January 2004, focused on the suite of indicators and their utility, success, and effectiveness in influencing decision makers. Further information on SOLEC is available at the following website: http://www.epa.gov/glnpo/solec/index.html
URLs/Downloads:
SOLEC websiteWEBSITE
SOLEC Indicators Peer Review Report
SOLEC Process Peer Review Report