Adaptive Management

Management decisions are made at the intersection of facts and values, and WERC's role is to assist decision-makers by bringing the best available science to the table. Dr. Nathan Stephenson seeks to help managers and policy makers reassess their missions in light of rapid and unprecedented changes, develop broad concepts relevant to adapting to such changes, and provide hands-on assistance during...

Biological production represents the total amount of living material (biomass) that was produced during a defined period of time. This production is important because some of it is used for food and some is valued for recreation, it is a direct measure of total ecosystem processes, and it sustains biological diversity. Production is a measure of energy flow, and is therefore a natural currency for...

In 1996, the Secretary of the Interior signed a formal decision altering the historical flows from Glen Canyon Dam and establishing the Glen Canyon Dam Adaptive Management Program (GCDAMP). In the context of the management of Glen Canyon Dam, adaptive management was selected to create a process whereby “the effects of dam operations on downstream resources would be assessed and the results of...

The foundation for applying science to river and riparian restoration contexts lies in a basic understanding of the factors that drive riparian vegetation dynamics. Much of our research is focused on clarifying relationships between streamflow, fluvial geomorphology, and riparian vegetation, including various feedbacks.

The Wyoming Landscape Conservation Initiative (WLCI) addresses effects of land-use and climate changes on Southwest Wyoming’s natural resources. In partnership with twelve Federal, State, and local natural resource agencies, and non-governmental organizations– FORT and ten other USGS centers are conducting dozens of integrated science projects to assess the status of Southwest Wyoming’s natural...

This project will create a Climate Change Adaptation Plan for the Chitimacha Tribe of Louisiana (Chitimacha), serving as an implementable plan for coastal community adaptation to climate change that can be used as a model in other small communities.

As custodians of ecological goods and services valued by society, coastal National Wildlife Refuges (NWRs) have an especially important role to play in helping socio-ecological systems adapt to global-change processes.

The goal of this project is to educate resource professionals in the tools and techniques of structured decision making and adaptive management.

Barrier island resource managers within the northern Gulf of Mexico have the opportunity to more directly incorporate scientific uncertainties and technological challenges inherent with large-scale barrier island restoration projects, and as such, commit to developing robust long-term monitoring programs and applying adaptive management.

Eighty-five percent of the coastal wetland loss in the contiguous United States occurs in the Gulf of Mexico. Documenting and understanding the occurrence of this wetland loss will provide for effective planning, mitigation, and restoration activities.

Extreme drought and temperature in the southeastern United States may become more frequent in the future, and any extreme shifts in climate condition are likely to have effects on wetland ecosystem function. USGS research predicts the effects of climate change by shifts in function and biodiversity across existing climate gradients in baldcypress swamps.

The Mississippi barrier islands are dynamic coastal landforms that are the first line of defense between the Gulf of Mexico and the Mississippi mainland coast. These islands are experiencing changes in structure (land area and habitat) and geomorphic processes (erosion and accretion) due to frequent intense storms, relative rise in sea level, and changes in sediment supply. A long-term monitoring...