Ecosystem Management Workshops

1
Ecosystem Management Workshops

• Michael Jepson, Ph.D.
• Facilitator

2
Workshop Overview

• Review of Ecosystems Management Approach
• Gulf Council Ecosystem Plan Approach
• Discussion of Stakeholder Concerns
• Review Stakeholder Comments and Consensus

3
Why Ecosystems Management?

• Over half of the U.S. population lives on the
  coast
• Human activities on land, along the coast and in
  the ocean are affecting marine ecosystems by
• altering marine food web
• changing the climate
• damaging habitat
• eroding coastlines
• introducing invasive species
• and polluting coastal waters

4
Why Ecosystems Management?

• NOAA has reorganized to better position itself to
  work under an ecosystem approach.
• In FY04, Congress allocated 2 million for
  NOAA-Fisheries to conduct ecosystem management
  pilot projects in four regions
• New England
• Mid-Atlantic
• South Atlantic
• Gulf of Mexico

5
Development of the Generic Essential Fish Habitat
Amendment (1998)

• Linkages between different habitats and life
  cycles
• Relationships between terrestrial and marine
  habitats
• Species interactions

6
What is the definition of an ecosystem approach
to management?

• NOAA defines an ecosystem approach to management
  as one that is
• Adaptive
• Regionally directed
• Takes account of ecosystem knowledge
• Takes account of uncertainty
• Considers multiple external influences
• Strives to balance diverse societal objectives

7
What is an Ecosystem

• An ecosystem is a geographically specified system
  of organisms (including humans), the environment,
  and the processes that control its dynamics.
• Humans are an integral part of marine and
  terrestrial ecosystems
• Ecosystems come in many sizes, often with smaller
  systems embedded within larger ones.

8
(No Transcript)
9
What is different?

• Ecosystem approach to management considers the
  cumulative impacts of different sectors and
  differs from current approaches that usually
  focus on a single species, sector, activity or
  concern
• Present species oriented management incorporates
  many aspects of ecosystem management, but not
  always in the same context
• Ecosystems approach to management will not
  replace current management, but will supplement
  and enhance it

10
Issues of Importance to the Gulf

• Bycatch or Fishery Interactions
• Bycatch and fishery interactions including
  mortalities of non-target species when multiple
  fisheries encounter the same species.
• Indirect Effects of Harvesting
• Indirect effects of harvesting through trophic
  interactions, and indirect effects through
  habitat-alteration, e.g. by fishing gear.
• Interactions between Biological, Physical and
  Human Components of Ecosystems
• Trends in environmental variables (e.g.
  temperature, other oceanographic attributes) may
  result in long-term changes of ecosystems

11
Fishery Issues in the Gulf

• Shrimp trawls ??Red Snapper ??Vermilion Snapper
• LNG Terminals ?? Estuarine dependent species
• Shallow-water grouper ?? Deep-water grouper
• Offshore Aquaculture

12
Fishery Issues in the Gulf
13
Environmental Events in the Gulf

• Tropical storm/Hurricane effects
• Red tide effects
• Hypoxic (Dead) Zone effects

14
Gulf of Mexico Hypoxia Zone
15
(No Transcript)
16
Gulf Council Ecosystem Plan Approach

• Step 1 Collect information
• Task 1 Public Meetings with Stakeholder Groups
• Task 2 Attitudes/Values Survey
• Task 3 Identification of Technical Needs and
  Inventory of Existing Information
• Task 4 Synthesis of Public Input on Ecosystem
  Goals and Objectives
• Step 2 Develop Fishery Ecosystem Plan (FEP)
• Step 3 Modify Species Oriented Approach to
  incorporate the components of the FEP

17
Topic Areas for Workshops

• (1) Adequacy of current approaches for addressing
  ecosystem considerations
• (2) Nature of ecosystem-based management and the
  goals to be achieved in addressing ecosystem
  issues
• (3) Nature of the public decision making
  processes for addressing management tradeoffs,
  consistent with identified goals
• (4) Mechanisms for considering activities outside
  the Gulf Councils purview
• (5) Boundaries of sub-regional ecosystems within
  the Gulf of Mexico

18
Topic Areas for Workshops

• (6) Types of management measures that would be
  incorporated into ecosystem approaches for
  fishery management, consistent with the
  identified goals
• (7) Specific regional issues that need to be
  addressed in a FEP
• (8) Techniques for determining success of
  ecosystem-based management
• (9) Other issues considered important to the
  stakeholders in any particular region.