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Regional Sustainable Environmental Science (RESES): Floating Vegetation Islands: Using Traditional Ecological Knowledge (TEK) for Development of Leading Indicators of Ecosystem Function for Best Management Practice (BMP) Effectiveness, Water Quality Standards, Biological Criteria, and Control of Harmful Algal Blooms (HABs)
Citation:
Hall, E., S. Escobar, R. Meija, L. Koscielak, W. Nabahe, J. Gilcrist, AND S. Terry. Regional Sustainable Environmental Science (RESES): Floating Vegetation Islands: Using Traditional Ecological Knowledge (TEK) for Development of Leading Indicators of Ecosystem Function for Best Management Practice (BMP) Effectiveness, Water Quality Standards, Biological Criteria, and Control of Harmful Algal Blooms (HABs). U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Washington, DC, EPA/600/R-20/298, 2020. https://doi.org/10.13140/RG.2.2.27776.25604
Impact/Purpose:
The purpose of this project is to highlight the relationship between water quality and riparian functional condition to allow environmental managers to more effectively manage and monitor for water quality. A refocus on ecological functions for water quality management emphasizes leading indicators of driving processes. Current approaches often monitor water quality directly, a lagging indicator of the effectiveness of management or remediation projects. The key to lake, river and watershed management, whether addressing harmful algal blooms (HABs) or other water quality issues, is to have a plan and the ability to implement it. Improvements will take time and actions will often need to be adaptively managed based on what is learned along the way. In addition to implementing measures to restore a waterbody, a long-term commitment is needed to maintain the work that has been put in place to achieve water quality standards.
Description:
When determining whether a riparian-wetland area is functioning properly, the condition of the entire watershed, including the uplands and tributary watershed ecosystem, is important. The entire watershed can influence the quality, abundance, and stability of downstream resources by controlling production of sediment and nutrients, influencing streamflow, and modifying the distribution of chemicals throughout the riparian-wetland area. Riparian-wetland health (functioning condition) is an important component of watershed condition. Proper functioning condition (PFC), refers to the ecological status of vegetation, geomorphic, and hydrologic development, along with the degree of structural integrity exhibited by the riparian-wetland area.
URLs/Downloads:
DOI: Regional Sustainable Environmental Science (RESES): Floating Vegetation Islands: Using Traditional Ecological Knowledge (TEK) for Development of Leading Indicators of Ecosystem Function for Best Management Practice (BMP) Effectiveness, Water Quality Standards, Biological Criteria, and Control of Harmful Algal Blooms (HABs)
REGIONALSUSTAINABLEENVIRONMENTALSCIENCE8-31-2020_TAGGED-FINAL.PDF (PDF, NA pp, 16096.56 KB, about PDF)