Identifying and defining levels of meaningful change in ecosystem services of the Chesapeake Bay and its watershed.
Citation:
Rossi, R., C. Bisland, E. Trentacoste, V. Van Note, James Williams, AND S. Yee. Identifying and defining levels of meaningful change in ecosystem services of the Chesapeake Bay and its watershed. Chesapeake Bay Program's Goal Implementation Team Chair Meeting and Modeling, Gulf Breeze, FL, August 02, 2021.
Impact/Purpose:
This project is focused on quantifying a handful of ecosystem services associated with Best Management Practices (BMPs) that are lagging in implementation and relevant to upstream communities in the Chesapeake Bay Watershed. Results will be used to communicate co-benefits associated with BMPs (via CAST and other materials) with the goal of increased adoption of practices.
Description:
The Chesapeake Bay has been undergoing restoration since the 1980s. States within the watershed have adopted a Watershed Agreement and Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) to restore the Bay. The most recent Watershed Agreement recommends Best Management Practices (BMPs) aimed at reducing sediment and nutrient loads into the Bay. Often BMPs associated with restoring and conserving habitat are implemented less, resulting in some Watershed Agreement goals not being met. For example, the Agreement suggests 900 miles of forest buffer should be planted annually. Since signing the Agreement, this target has not been met. An additional challenge to consider is that upstream and inland communities, far removed from the Bay, may be less motivated to adopt BMPs because local benefits are not clearly described. Identification of ecosystem services associated with lagging and restoration targeted BMPs, like forest buffers, may be a useful tool to increase adoption of practices and help meet targets for BMPs by highlighting local co-benefits associated with them. One way to demonstrate the co-benefits of different BMPs is to estimate how the delivery of ecosystem services may change along gradients of BMP implementation. We explored this idea for a handful of BMPs that were lagging in implementation, relevant to headwater communities and related to restoration and conservation. We identified and prioritized ecosystem services associated with the BMPs through an iterative process with partners. Next, we identified metrics, data, and models to quantify how each of the prioritized ecosystem services changes under a range of BMP implementation targets. The results are being used to evaluate and compare the potential suite of ecosystem services benefits as BMPs are implemented. This work will help Chesapeake Bay Program partners identify management actions that will provide the most value for communities throughout the watershed, while also promoting the implementation of previously low implementation BMPs.