ECOSYSTEM APPROACHES TO MANAGEMENT:

EAM

SUMBER: ecosystems.noaa.gov/...National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

10 Common Myths Regarding EAM

1. EAM is not well defined and we don’t know how to do it….. [nonsense!]

2. Complex models of species interactions are necessary to guide EAM

3. MPAs are an essential component of EAM (=equivalent)

4. There is insufficient information for any area to answer all ecosystem questions for EAM

5. There are no good examples of EAM in practice anywhere in the world

1. EAM is too difficult to apply in multinational settings

2. EAM can only apply to a few developed countries in the world because of the technical and financial resources required

3. There are no good sets of principles or guidelines for implementing EAM

4. It is impossible to establish boundaries necessary to implement EAM

5. EAM only pertains to biological interactions among components but not other complex phenomena including social-economic relationships, climate change, etc.

10 Common Myths Regarding EAM

Individual Species

Narrow Perspective & Scale

Human Activities Evaluated forIndividual activities

Resource Management by Sectors

Scientific Monitoring programsFocused narrowly

Single Use and Purpose Observations

Multiple Species

Broad Perspective & Scale

Humans Integral to Ecosystem

Integrated Resource Management

Adaptive Management Based On Scientific Monitoring

Shared and Standardized Observations

Ecosystem Mandates: A Paradigm Shift or Evolution?

Current Mandates Future Mandates

Focus on ManagingEcosystem parts

Focus on Ecosystem Relationships,Processes, and Tradeoffs

12 Principles of the Ecosystem Approach

1. Objectives of land, water and LR management are a matter of societal choice

2. Management should be decentralized to the lowest level possible

3. Managers should consider effects on adjacent ecosystems

4. Conservation of ecosystem structure & function to maintain services should be a priority

5. Consider economic effects to:

- reduce market distortions that adversely affect ecosystems

- align incentives that promote biodiversity- internalize costs and benefits in a given ecosystem

1. Ecosystems managed within limits of their functioning

2. EA undertaken at appropriate spatial and temporal scales

3. Recognizing temporal variability & lag effects, objectives should be set for the long term

4. Management must recognize that change is inevitable

5. EA should seek the appropriate balance between & integration of conservation and use of biodiversity

6. EA should consider all forms of relevant information, including scientific and ingigenous and local knowledge

7. EA should involve all relevant sectors of society & scientific disciplines

12 Principles of the Ecosystem Approach

Definitions of EAM• An ecosystem is a geographically specified system of

organisms (including humans), the environment, and the processes that control its dynamics.

• Characteristics of EAM are:

- adaptive,

- incremental,

- takes account of ecosystem knowledge and uncertainties,

- considers multiple external influences,

- strives to balance diverse social objectives, and

- geographically specified.

Objectives for EAM

(1) Develop broad Stakeholder-Based Governance system

(2) Conserve essential Parts of the ecosystem

(3) Conserve essential ecosystem Processes

Question, if (2) is done well, is (3) necessary?

Develop Ecosystem Governance System Manage Tradeoffs

­ among fisheries sectors, optimize fishery benefits, prevent sequential depletion/effort transfer, use management processes that are fair, equitable and transparent, consider cumulative impacts, evaluate impacts of non-fishery sectors, include diverse stakeholder views

Use Adaptive Approaches to Management ­ consider multiple causes for observed changes and

sources of uncertainty in assessment & prediction, reverse burden of proof where consequences are great, imbed experiments in management approaches to increase ecosystem knowledge

Establish Appropriate Ecosystem Boundaries­ allows for interconnections between adjacent ecosystems,

allows for imports and exports, includes multiple spatial scales depending on issue - paradox of scale

Fishery Management(council, state, state

Commissions,International agree-

ments)

Protected Resource Management

(MMPA, ESA, BirdsEtc.)

Water QualityManagement

(EPA, states, etc.)

Other management authorities for navigation, food quality/safety,International agreements, climate change, etc.

Coastal & EEZModifications

(COE, MMS, etc.)

Elements of Regional Ecosystem Governance

interaction

Need forcoordination

Ecosystem Observing System (e-IOOS)

Inputs fromMultiple, Diverse

Stakeholders

IntegratedEcosystemGovernance

Systems

ManagementDecisionSupportSystems

• provides users perspectiveson desired outcomes fordecisions

• provides forum for resolving conflicting uses of ecosystems

• develops management measures to achieve strategic goals for species & ecosystems

• develop managementoptions to achieve goals

• evaluate effects of policy choices/tradeoffs

Science Components Supporting Ecosystem Approaches to Management

• synthesizes observations• conducts process research to link

dynamics between components• develops status indicators for

individual components & ecosystems• provides forecasts of status & trends

• develop types, frequency & spatial density of observations

Biological, Economic, Social

Communication

Outreach

communication

Conserve & Manage Ecosystem Parts

Conserve and Manage Species­ Target species, assemblages, non-target

species, PET* species, biodiversity protection

Minimize Bycatch­ Target, non-target & PET species, and minimize

waste

* PET = Protected, Endangered or Threatened Species

Alaskan Groundfish Stock Status 2002

B2001/BMSY

0.0 0.5 1.0 1.5 2.0 2.5 3.05.0

F20

01/F

MS

Y

0.0

0.5

1.0

1.5

2.0

GA P-CodEBSP-Cod

GA Sable

GAPOP

AI POPEBS Pol

GA ThornyEBS YF Sole

GA Pol

EBSTurbot

EBS ArrowEBS F SoleGA Arrow

EBSO Flats

AMack EBS

R Sole

no overfishingnot overfished

overover

overfishingnot overfished

noover

FMSY

1/2 BMSY

Account for Ecosystem Processes

Evaluate & Inform Feedback Effects­ predator-prey relationships, gear impacts on habitat

productivity, irreversibility of fishing impacts, harvesting-induced regime change

Maintain Ecosystem Productivity, Balance Ecosystem Structure­ evaluate ecosystem carrying capacity, maintain

resilience/resistance to perturbations, attain trophic balance

Account for Climate Variability– low-frequency variation (decadal scale changes), high-

frequency variation (year-to-year or more frequent), climate-based regime change

The Chesapeake Bay Ecosystem – basis for FEP

Conserve & Manage Ecosystem Parts

Conserve and Manage Species

- Target species, assemblages, non-target species, PET* species, biodiversity protection

Minimize Bycatch

- Target, non-target & PET species, and minimize waste

* PET = Protected, Endangered or Threatened Species

Cold-water Coral Research and Protection

Habitat of Particular Concern

Key Science Needs Supporting EAM

1. Operational Ocean Observation System integrating biology, physical oceanography, chemistry, ocean-atmosphere links and socio-economic data (at appropriate geographic scales) ~ ½ built

2. Systematic reporting on the status of marine and coastal ecosystems through Integrated Ecosystem Assessments (IEAs), including key indicators of pressures on ecosystems and their state

3. Ecosystem research plan that enables linking of human activities to incremental change in ecosystem state indicators

4. Modeling, experimental ecology, and observation systems linked to support adaptive approaches to human uses of marine ecosystems consistent with goals of sustainable use

Need to Link High-Level Principles to Informative Performance Measures

-High-Level Principles

e.g., healthy and productive ecosystems…

-Operational Objectives

-Indicators

-Reference Points

-Performance Measures

Sainsbury & Sumaila 2003

In many cases indicators, reference points and performance measures are notyet well specified for many ecosystem-level objectives, but likely will notbe used as traditional fish stock reference points (F and biomass)

Characteristics of Ecosystem Indicators – (ICES WG on Ecosystem Effects of Fishing)

1. Easy to Understand

2. Responsive to Manageable Human Activities

3. Responses Linked in Time to Management Action

4. Easily and Accurately Measured

5. Low Responsiveness to Other Factors

6. Measurable Over Large Portion of Area

7. Existing Data to Provide Historic Dynamics

8. (DESIRABLE, not NECESSARY Conditions)

Indicators & Decision Criteria

1. Most indicators are not yet usable as reference points.

2. Empirical use of state indicators (e.g. biomass) as a function (or partial function) of pressure indicators (e.g. fishing rate) can help establish specified thresholds or Limit Reference Points.

3. Development of empirically based indicator thresholds needs further development, but can be used NOW to establish some intermediate decision criteria.

Decision support tools for EAF

• Links governance to key issues, e.g. data, indicators, models, socio-economic analyses, etc.

• Management Strategy Evaluation is one example of a decision support tool that could be used for EAF

• Tool to help a broad and diverse set of stakeholders understand the likely consequences of alternative management actions and the tradeoffs across management objectives.

Decision Support Tools for EAF• Decision support system would include

tools such as:

– Management information system (data collection, management, and use)

– Indicators– Bioeconomic, ecosystem, social choice, stock

assessment models– Risk assessment

What is an “Integrated Ecosystem Assessment”?

• Compile and archive all relevant data sets for a defined ecosystem

• Report on current conditions and trends in relevant time series of physical, biological and human use information

• Synthesize time series information to link important ecological responses to changes in climate and human use drivers,

• Evaluate data time series to provide suites of key indicators of ecosystem state (status), and propose reference levels for the desired state of marine ecosystems

• Forecast the relationship between state indicators and pressure indicators (e.g., pollution, climate change, fishing-related removals, coastal development, etc.)

• Provide periodic ecosystem assessment updates to inform the managers, stakeholders and the public on the state of marine ecosystems

Account for Ecosystem Processes

Evaluate & Inform Feedback Effects- predator-prey relationships, gear impacts on habitat

productivity, irreversibility of fishing impacts, harvesting-induced regime change

Maintain Ecosystem Productivity, Balance Ecosystem Structure

- evaluate ecosystem carrying capacity, maintain resilience/resistance to perturbations, attain

trophic balance

Account for Climate Variability- low-frequency variation (decadal scale changes), High-frequency variation (year-to-year or more

frequent), climate-based regime change

Climate & Ecosystems

• Ocean acidification• Loss of sea ice• Distribution, abundance, recruitment• Sea level rise• Coral bleaching• Oscillating systems vs. trends

Conclusions & Suggested Actions

Need to invest local, national, and international management venues with similar or complementary principles for management.

One strategy we can use is to develop a standard definition, objectives and requirements into the reauthorization of federal (and state) legislation: e.g.,

- Coral Reef Protection Act- Marine Sanctuaries Act- National Aquaculture legislation, others…

Science venues such as IOOS: need to provide a coordinated vision and investments for monitoring & research for Ecosystem Goods and Services (e.g., PaCOOS, Regional Associations…)

Our community must do a better job of explaining what ecosystems are and what specific outcomes will result from EAM – a Communication strategy is essential