35
Ecological Assessments and
Implementing Ecosystem Management:
Challenges, Opportunities,
and the Road Ahead
Richard A. Haeuber
35.1 Introduction
Ecosystem management is a recent policy alternative proposed to address a new generation of
environmental issues characterized by greater sociocultural, political, economic, and biophysical
complexity. For most ecosystem management efforts, scientific uncertainty and lack of data commonly are listed among the most significant stumbling blocks to success (Yaffee et al., 1996). As we
move beyond the boundaries of the safe and known
into the uncharted territory of ecosystem management, at both grand and small scales, the compass
that science can provide to assist decision making
is frequently the missing element (Lee, 1993). Ecological assessments are fundamental to ecosystem
management precisely because they provide a tool
pointing the way and giving direction to difficult
decisions made in the face of great uncertainty
(Lackey, 1998).
At the most basic level, the goal of ecological
assessments is to provide functional data to guide
land-use planning and management decisions. Success in fulfilling this goal demands that ecological
assessments collect accurate and useful data and information, be relevant to critical land-use and management decisions, and directly support planning
and management processes and institutions. Yet, if
ecological assessments are to fulfill these requirements, providing the knowledge base necessary to
guide goal setting and decision making in the face
of uncertainty, substantial challenges must be faced
and resolved. In this chapter, we explore examples
of challenges facing ecological assessment efforts
in three broad categories: knowledge based, sociopolitical, and institutional. Certainly, these challenges are not insurmountable, and we briefly examine general and specific developments currently
underway in environmental policy and law that
may provide opportunities for the further evolution
of both ecosystem management and ecological assessment tools. Inevitably, however, for ecosystem
management to be a widely accepted land management approach-and, more specifically, for
ecological assessment to become a useful planning
and management tool-the research community
must be willing to assume an active role. As the
Ecological Society of America observes in its white
paper on ecosystem management, " 'Science as a
model for ecosystem management' is unlikely to
become reality unless scientists are involved with
managers and the public in adaptive management
processes" (Christensen et al., 1996). Yet the question remains: Are the natural, physical, and social
sciences communities ready and able to take part
in this endeavor? We weigh this prospect in considering the road ahead for ecosystem management.
35.2 Implementing Ecosystem
Management: Challenges
for Ecological Assessment
35.2.1 Knowledge-based Challenges to
Ecological Assessment
The basic function of ecological assessments is to
characterize the affected environment, including
species and community patterns, habitat factors,
biotic-abiotic relations, and ecosystem properties
(Bourgeron et aI., 1994; also see Chapter 1). However, significant natural science challenges make
ecological assessments more than an exercise in
data gathering and reporting. For example, the dif513
Ecological Assessments and
Implementing Ecosystem Management:
Challenges, Opportunities,
and the Road Ahead
Richard A. Haeuber
35.1 Introduction
Ecosystem management is a recent policy alternative proposed to address a new generation of
environmental issues characterized by greater sociocultural, political, economic, and biophysical
complexity. For most ecosystem management efforts, scientific uncertainty and lack of data commonly are listed among the most significant stumbling blocks to success (Yaffee et al., 1996). As we
move beyond the boundaries of the safe and known
into the uncharted territory of ecosystem management, at both grand and small scales, the compass
that science can provide to assist decision making
is frequently the missing element (Lee, 1993). Ecological assessments are fundamental to ecosystem
management precisely because they provide a tool
pointing the way and giving direction to difficult
decisions made in the face of great uncertainty
(Lackey, 1998).
At the most basic level, the goal of ecological
assessments is to provide functional data to guide
land-use planning and management decisions. Success in fulfilling this goal demands that ecological
assessments collect accurate and useful data and information, be relevant to critical land-use and management decisions, and directly support planning
and management processes and institutions. Yet, if
ecological assessments are to fulfill these requirements, providing the knowledge base necessary to
guide goal setting and decision making in the face
of uncertainty, substantial challenges must be faced
and resolved. In this chapter, we explore examples
of challenges facing ecological assessment efforts
in three broad categories: knowledge based, sociopolitical, and institutional. Certainly, these challenges are not insurmountable, and we briefly examine general and specific developments currently
underway in environmental policy and law that
may provide opportunities for the further evolution
of both ecosystem management and ecological assessment tools. Inevitably, however, for ecosystem
management to be a widely accepted land management approach-and, more specifically, for
ecological assessment to become a useful planning
and management tool-the research community
must be willing to assume an active role. As the
Ecological Society of America observes in its white
paper on ecosystem management, " 'Science as a
model for ecosystem management' is unlikely to
become reality unless scientists are involved with
managers and the public in adaptive management
processes" (Christensen et al., 1996). Yet the question remains: Are the natural, physical, and social
sciences communities ready and able to take part
in this endeavor? We weigh this prospect in considering the road ahead for ecosystem management.
35.2 Implementing Ecosystem
Management: Challenges
for Ecological Assessment
35.2.1 Knowledge-based Challenges to
Ecological Assessment
The basic function of ecological assessments is to
characterize the affected environment, including
species and community patterns, habitat factors,
biotic-abiotic relations, and ecosystem properties
(Bourgeron et aI., 1994; also see Chapter 1). However, significant natural science challenges make
ecological assessments more than an exercise in
data gathering and reporting. For example, the dif513