You are here:
RESEARCH NEEDS FOR EFFECTIVE WATERSHED PLANNING
Citation:
McComb, B C., J L. Ebersole, J P. Baker, AND R D. White. RESEARCH NEEDS FOR EFFECTIVE WATERSHED PLANNING. Presented at North Pacific International Chapter of American Fisheries Society, Stevenson, WA, November 1-3, 2004.
Description:
Watershed research has historically focused on physical and biological processes, stressor-response, and effects research, providing valuable understanding of the effects of human activity and natural disturbances on watershed ecosystems. Continued research to support watershed planning is needed, but might best be refined by clearly articulating 1) conceptual models of watershed processes that integrate stressors, biological and physical processes, and desired outcomes, 2) effective applications of modeling tools, and 3) the social/political/economic context likely to constrain desired outcomes. One tool, alternative futures analysis, also known as scenario analysis, is an approach that incorporates science into a community-based decision-making process. Major components include: 1) characterization of past trajectories of landscape change, 2) development of spatially-explicit alternative future landscapes that reflect varying assumptions about land and water use and the range of stakeholder viewpoints, and 3) evaluation of the likely effects of the landscape trajectory on valued ecological and socioeconomic endpoints. The analysis is designed to be iterative; informed by continued feedback as new understanding develop and as stakeholder perspectives shift. This allows for compromise and collaboration in an open framework that can be truly integrative, and from which informed research questions can be generated.