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P A Larkin - One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.
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concepts and issues in marine Ecosystem Management
Reviews in Fish Biology and Fisheries, 1996Co-Authors: P A LarkinAbstract:Ecosystem Management means different things to different people, but the underlying concept is similar to that of the long-standing ethic of conservation. Current interest in marine Ecosystem Management stems from concerns about overexploitation of world fisheries and the perceived need for broader perspectives in fisheries Management. A central scientific question is whether the effects of harvesting (top down) or changes in the physical environment (bottom up) are responsible for major changes in abundance.
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Concepts and issues in marine Ecosystem Management
Reviews in Fish Biology and Fisheries, 1996Co-Authors: P A LarkinAbstract:Ecosystem Management means different things to different people, but the underlying concept is similar to that of the long-standing ethic of conservation. Current interest in marine Ecosystem Management stems from concerns about overexploitation of world fisheries and the perceived need for broader perspectives in fisheries Management. A central scientific question is whether the effects of harvesting (top down) or changes in the physical environment (bottom up) are responsible for major changes in abundance. Historically, ecology, fisheries biology, oceanography, fisheries Management and the fishing industry have gone somewhat separate ways. Since the 1980s, increasing attention has been given to multispecies aspects of fisheries, the linkages between oceanography and fish abundance and more holistic approaches to fisheries Management. Sorting out the causes and effects of fluctuations in fish abundance is complicated by the lack of reliability of fisheries statistics. Discards, dishonesty and the inherent logistic difficulties of collecting statistics all combine to confuse interpretation. The overcapacity of fishing fleets and their unrestricted use are widely recognized as a contributing cause to overfishing and declines in fish stocks in many parts of the world. Ecosystem Management, as shorthand for more holistic approaches to resource Management, is, from a fisheries Management perspective, centred on multispecies interactions in the context of a variable physical and chemical environment. Broader perspectives include social, economic and political elements which are best considered pragmatically as a part of the context of fisheries Management. Objectives in marine Ecosystem Management are varied. From a biological perspective, an underlying principle of Management is commonly assumed to be a sustained yield of products for human consumption. Whether that should be taken to mean that the yield should always be of the same products is less certain. Fishing commonly changes the relative abundance of species of fishes. Thus, a biological objective should specify the species mix that is desired. Concern for the maintenance of global diversity has generated a substantial literature on threatened and endangered species. In general, it has not been considered likely that marine fish species could be rendered extinct and greatest attention has been given to marine mammals, sea birds and sea turtles. The provision of marine parks and sanctuary areas are obvious first steps in providing a measure of protection, at least for the less widely ranging species. Related to the current concepts of Ecosystem Management are expressions such as Ecosystem health and Ecosystem integrity which are given a wide range of different meanings, none of which are readily translated into operational language for resource Management. These and similar expressions are best assessed as rhetorical devices. The essential components of Ecosystem Management are sustainable yield, maintenance of biodiversity and protection from the effects of pollution and habitat degradation. Theory for marine Ecosystem Management has a long history in fisheries and ecological literature. Ecological models such as Lotka-Volterra equations, ECOPATH, trophic cascades and chaos theory do not give practical guidance for Management. Fleet interaction and multispecies virtual population analysis models hold more promise for fisheries managers. Alaska provides particular opportunities for developing new concepts in fisheries Management. Statistics of catch are good, stock assessments are at the state-of-the-art level and Management has been prudent. Debate is active on the causes of substantial changes in abundance of many species including marine mammals, because substantial changes in the fisheries have been accompanied by major changes in oceanographic conditions. As elsewhere, the resultant changes may be a consequence of top-down and bottom-up effects. The bottom part is beyond human control, and Ecosystem Management is centred on managing the top-down or fisheries component in the context of special measures of protection for particular species. Whether that is a realistic goal depends in part on how much special protection is to be afforded to which species. Marine mammals, for example, are given high priority for special protection, but like fisheries they too may have significant roles in shaping the structure of marine Ecosystems. Eventually, Ecosystem Management must come to grips with the question of how much protection of particular species is desirable in achieving optimal use of living marine resources.
Le C Page - One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.
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multi agent simulations and Ecosystem Management a review
Ecological Modelling, 2004Co-Authors: Francois Bousquet, Le C PageAbstract:This paper proposes a review of the development and use of multi-agent simulations (MAS) for Ecosystem Management. The use of this methodology and the associated tools accompanies the shifts in various paradigms on the study of ecological complexity. Behavior and interactions are now key issues for understanding and modeling Ecosystem organization, and models are used in a constructivist way. MAS are introduced conceptually and are compared with individual-based modeling approaches. Various architectures of agents are presented, the role of the environment is emphasized and some computer tools are presented. A discussion follows on the use of MAS for Ecosystem Management. The strength of MAS has been discussed for social sciences and for spatial issues such as land-use change. We argue here that MAS are useful for problems integrating social and spatial aspects. Then we discuss how MAS can be used for several purposes, from theorization to collective decision-making support. We propose some research perspectives on individual decision making processes, institutions, scales, the credibility of models and the use of MAS. In conclusion we argue that researchers in the field of Ecosystem Management can use multi-agent systems to go beyond the role of the individual and to study more deeply and more effectively the different forms of organization (spatial, networks, hierarchies) and interactions among different organizational levels. For that objective there is considerably more fruit to be had on the tree of collaboration between social, ecological, and computer scientists than has so far been harvested.
H. Michael Rauscher - One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.
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Decision Support for Ecosystem Management and Ecological Assessments
A Guidebook for Integrated Ecological Assessments, 2001Co-Authors: H. Michael Rauscher, Walter D. PotterAbstract:In the face of mounting confrontation and after almost 20 years of increasingly contentious public unhappiness with the Management of National Forests, the USDA Forest Service officially adopted Ecosystem Management as a land Management paradigm (Overbay, 1992). Other federal forest land Management agencies, such as the USDI Bureau of Land Management, the USDI National Park Service, the USDI Fish and Wildlife Service, the USDC NOAA, and the Environmental Protection Agency, have also made the commitment to adopt Ecosystem Management principles (Government Accounting Office, 1994). Ecosystem Management represents different things to different people. At the heart of the Ecosystem Management paradigm lies a shift in emphasis away from sustaining yields of products toward sustaining the Ecosystems that provide these products (Thomas, 1995; Rauscher, 1999). The Ecosystem Management paradigm represents the latest attempt, in a century-long struggle between resource users and resource preservers, to find a sensible middle ground between ensuring the necessary long-term protection of the environment while protecting the right of an ever-growing population to use its natural resources to maintain and improve human life (Chase, 1995; Taylor, 1998). As the concept of Ecosystem Management evolves, debates over definitions, fundamental principles, and policy implications will probably continue and shape the new paradigm in ways not yet discernible.
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Ecosystem Management decision support for federal forests in the United States: A review
Forest Ecology and Management, 1999Co-Authors: H. Michael RauscherAbstract:Ecosystem Management has been adopted as the philosophical paradigm guiding Management on many federal forests in the United States. The strategic goal of Ecosystem Management is to find a sensible middle ground between ensuring long-term protection of the environment while allowing an increasing population to use its natural resources for maintaining and improving human life. Ecosystem Management has all the characteristics of `wicked' problems that are tricky, complex, and thorny. Ambiguities, conflicts, internal inconsistencies, unknown but large costs, lack of organized approaches, institutional shock and confusion, lack of scientific understanding of Management consequences, and turbulent, rapidly changing power centers all contribute to the wickedness of the Ecosystem Management paradigm. Given that Ecosystem Management, like human survival and welfare, is a wicked problem, how can we proceed to tame it? Managers need to use the same tools that people have always used for handling such problems – knowledge, organization, judicious simplification, and inspired leadership. The generic theory of decision support system development and application is well developed. Numerous specific Ecosystem Management decision support systems (EM-DSS) have been developed and are evolving in their capabilities. There is no doubt that given a set of Ecosystem Management processes to support and adequate time and resources, effective EM-DSS can be developed. On the other hand, there is considerable doubt that sufficiently detailed, explicitly described and widely accepted processes for implementing Ecosystem Management can be crafted given the current institutional, educational, social and political climate. A socio-political climate in which everyone wants to reap the benefits and no one wants to pay the costs, incapacitates the federal forest Management decision making process. Developing a workable Ecosystem Management process and the decision making tools to support it is probably one of the most complex and urgent challenges facing us today. This paper offers a concise review of the state of the art of decision support systems related to implementing Ecosystem Management. A conceptual model of the context in which Ecosystem Management is expected to function is presented. Next, a candidate for an operational Ecosystem Management process is described and others are referenced. Finally, a generic Ecosystem Management decision support system is presented and many existing systems briefly described.
Francois Bousquet - One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.
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multi agent simulations and Ecosystem Management a review
Ecological Modelling, 2004Co-Authors: Francois Bousquet, Le C PageAbstract:This paper proposes a review of the development and use of multi-agent simulations (MAS) for Ecosystem Management. The use of this methodology and the associated tools accompanies the shifts in various paradigms on the study of ecological complexity. Behavior and interactions are now key issues for understanding and modeling Ecosystem organization, and models are used in a constructivist way. MAS are introduced conceptually and are compared with individual-based modeling approaches. Various architectures of agents are presented, the role of the environment is emphasized and some computer tools are presented. A discussion follows on the use of MAS for Ecosystem Management. The strength of MAS has been discussed for social sciences and for spatial issues such as land-use change. We argue here that MAS are useful for problems integrating social and spatial aspects. Then we discuss how MAS can be used for several purposes, from theorization to collective decision-making support. We propose some research perspectives on individual decision making processes, institutions, scales, the credibility of models and the use of MAS. In conclusion we argue that researchers in the field of Ecosystem Management can use multi-agent systems to go beyond the role of the individual and to study more deeply and more effectively the different forms of organization (spatial, networks, hierarchies) and interactions among different organizational levels. For that objective there is considerably more fruit to be had on the tree of collaboration between social, ecological, and computer scientists than has so far been harvested.
William T Sexton - One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.
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Implementing Ecosystem Management Concepts at Multiple Organizational Levels 1
1999Co-Authors: William T Sexton, Robert C. SzaroAbstract:The incorporation of ecological principles in: organiza tional Management, strategic planning, and tactical options for field level analyses and decision-making is essential for implementing Ecosystem Management approaches. Ecosystem Management evolved in response to changing knowledge and the expectations of society in addressing issues associated with sustainable environ mental Management. Simply put, Ecosystem Management repre sents the best set of natural resource Management tools we have available. It is neither the beginning nor the end of any particular philosophy, discipline, or process. It does represent the current stage of evolution of the paradigm used by scientists and resource managers to view, understand and mange the interactions ofhu mans and the environment they occupy. Ecosystem Management requires that key concepts and principles be applied at several "levels" in order to fully develop and support the approach. Success ful organizations and institutions, like successful organisms, must adapt, change, and respond to shifting conditions. Perhaps our greatest challenge is to be adaptive professionally, institutionally and operationally to Ecosystem Management principles. The USDA Forest Service (simply referred to as the Forest Service hereafter) has developed and implemented an ex panded ecologically based approach to understanding and managing resources and resource values and is clearly linked to other government efforts within the U.S. The agency refers to this approa.ch as Ecosystem Management (Jensen and Bourgeron 1993; Kaufmann et al. 1994). The approach is not a completed and static process, locked in place and totally automated but rather is a work in progress. Over the last several years, it has been tested, adjusted and adapted across the National Forests and Grasslands and continues to evolve as an operational approach. It is the basis for all agency activities. Ecosystem Management is clearly the most recent increment in the evolution of human understanding of the environment, and how we will as a society attempt to understand and manage our relationship with that environment.
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Ecosystem Management expanding the resource Management tool kit
Landscape and Urban Planning, 1998Co-Authors: William T SextonAbstract:Abstract Ecosystem Management can be thought of as the minimum set of tools a land manager should have available in attempting to define sustainable alternatives for the interactions of people and the environment. It is a term that specifically refers to a process or set of activities for addressing resource Management, not a prescribed outcome. As a pre-decisional process, Ecosystem Management amends and expands the resource Management tool kit that field-level professionals rely on to understand and manage lands and resources in an ecological context. The focus of this paper is to highlight the activities in the Ecosystem Management `tool kit' that are common for many agencies and organizations. Natural resources exist within certain limits and capacities. Humans are faced with difficult choices in determining how they will interact with the environment to provide for essential materials and services and maintain a healthy environment. The approach does not necessarily make hard choices any easier. The Ecosystem Management tool kit does support making difficult choices in the most informed and professional manner possible.
