Citation:

Budnik, R., K. Frank, L. Collis, M. Fraker, L. Mason, A. Muir, S. Pothoven, A. Scofield, D. Clapp, P. Collingsworth, J. Hoffman, J. Hood, T. Johnson, M. Koops, L. Rudstam, AND S. Ludsin. Feasibility of implementing an integrated long-term database to advance ecosystem-based management in the Laurentian Great Lakes basin. JOURNAL OF GREAT LAKES RESEARCH. International Association for Great Lakes Research, Ann Arbor, MI, , N/A, (2024). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jglr.2024.102308

Impact/Purpose:

Ecosystem-based management requires systems-oriented problem formulation and solutions. To encourage ecosystem-based management (EBM) in the Great Lakes basin, we sought to assess the value of developing a comprehensive, user-friendly public database that could serve as a repository for the many physical, chemical, and biological monitoring Great Lakes datasets that exist. These datasets include EPA data sets from annual monitoring, Cooperative Science and Monitoring Initiative field years, and NCCA.  We discussed many solutions to overcome these impediments, which included construction of a comprehensive, research-ready database, the detail of which are described herein.

Description:

The Laurentian Great Lakes have been experiencing dramatic change during the past half-century, highlighting the need for holistic, ecosystem-based approaches to management. To encourage ecosystem-based management (EBM) in the basin, we sought to assess the value of developing a comprehensive, user-friendly public database that could serve as a repository for the many physical, chemical, and biological monitoring Great Lakes datasets that exist. Toward this end, we organized a two-day workshop, which was attended virtually by 40+ Great Lakes researchers, managers, and stakeholders. While we learned during the workshop that EBM is not an explicit mission of many of the participating research, monitoring, and management agencies, most have been conducting research or monitoring activities that can support EBM in the basin. These contributions have ranged from single-resource management to considering the ecosystem holistically in a decision-making framework. Numerous impediments to implementing EBM were found including: 1) high anticipated cost of implementation; 2) a lack of EBM success stories to garner agency buy-in; and 3) difficulty in establishing common objectives among groups with different mandates (e.g., water quality vs. fisheries production). We discussed many solutions to overcome these impediments, which included construction of the comprehensive, research-ready database that we originally proposed. Such a database would offer a cost-effective means to support EBM approaches by facilitating research that could help identify useful ecosystem indicators and management targets, and allow for management strategy evaluations that account for risk and uncertainty when contemplating future decision-making.

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