Transcript Slide 1
“Nature always wearsthe thecolors colors of of the the spirit” EMERSON “Nature always wears spirit” –– EMERSON Designing a state-wide volunteer monitoring program Paul C West--August, 2003—Citizen Monitoring Conference The mission of The Nature Conservancy is to protect the plants, animals and habitats that represent the diversity of life on earth by protecting the lands and waters that they need to survive. Setting Priorities (Ecoregional Assessments) Designing Strategies Measuring Success (Conservation Project Planning) Conservation Action Outline • • • • Volunteer monitoring examples Use of the monitoring data What to monitor Recommendations Nature Conservancy monitoring programs Use of monitoring data • Inform public policy or DNR priorities? • Guide site-specific management actions? Use of monitoring data Types of Indicators From Cairns (1993): Compliance indicators Diagnostic indicators Early-warning indicators Current Status & Trends High Wetlands of the Mukwonago River Watershed What to monitor? •Increase H20 levels, stable H20 level •Increase nutrients Surface water input & nutreints Cattails •Increase nutrients/ h20 levels •Restore hydroperiod •Kill cattails Emergent marsh •Increase h20 levels •Dry out wetland sedge•Fire exclusion Tussock meadow Shrub carr •Dry out wetland •Fire exclusion •High contribution of calcium rich groundwater •Fire •Small scale disturbance Low •Burn Relict kettle bog Low Calcareous fen •Fire •Seasonal water level changes pH •Reduce groundwater input •Fire exclusion High High Wetlands of the Mukwonago River Watershed What to monitor? Tussock sedge meadow Shrub carr Emergent marsh Calcareous fen Cattails Recommendations 1. Develop state-wide monitoring objectives based on conceptual models and key driving factors Example: Between 2005 and 2010, we want to have a 90% probability of detecting a 10% change in [water quality, invasive species] and are willing to accept a 1 in 10 chance that we’ll say that a change occurred when it really didn’t. Key components: timescale, chance of detecting change, minimum detectable change, what to monitor chance of detecting a false change Recommendations 2. Monitor both target-based and threat-based monitoring (and possibly management-based, such as voluntary BMPs). 3. Focus on limited data at greatest number of sites reduce observer bias use for trend analysis to guide policy and budget decisions complement detailed monitoring at fewer places, done by DNR and others. 4. Data management structure needs to be developed prior to collecting data. Recommendations 5. Citizen-based monitoring should complement a comprehensive monitoring program What? How? Who? Landscape metrics: GIS-based Overall extent; distribution, patch size Public agencies, possibly NGOs Presence/absence or abundance of species; threat indicators Field work Citizens, NGOs, public agencies Community-level monitoring, eg., species inventory Field work Public agencies; possibly NGOs Recommendations References Cairns et al. 1993. A proposed framework for developing indicators of ecosystem health. Hydrobiologia 263: 1-44. Elzinga et al. 1998. Measuring and Monitoring Plant Populations. BLM Technical Reference 1730-1. Parrish et al. 2003. Are we conserving what we say we are? Measuring ecological integrity within protected areas. BioScience 53:851860.