Expectation Management: Communicating to Public/Stakeholders/Decision Makers

UP TO RESTORATION & CONSERVATION REGULATIONS

background

synopsis of topic

We outline some of challenges of dealing with public perception of beavers and implementing a restoration project that encourages their proliferation. We discuss how to:

Communicate benefits of process-based restoration and uncertainties (adaptive management?)
Describe the economic benefits of ecosystem services provided by beaver.

why we're covering it

Michael Pollock explains how beavers manipulated this site but then their dam blew out.

Perhaps the biggest hurdle to implementing stream restoration using beaver is to convince public and stakeholders that the potential benefits beavers provide, and associated uncertainties, out-weigh the potential cost of status quo.

learning outcomes

This topics helps us with the following learning outcome for the workshop:

How to manage public expectations regarding potential restoration responses involving beaver.

resources

slides & handouts

Choose Workshop for Slides:

Relevant or Cited Literature
Communicating about Charismatic Mega-fauna

Bird B, O’Brien M and Peterson. M. 2011. Beaver and Climate Change Adaptation in North America: A Simple, Cost-Effective Strategy for the National Forest System, WildEarth Guardians, Grand Canyon Trust, & The Lands Council 56 pp. Available: http://www.grandcanyontrust.org/research/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/Beaver-Report_Final.pdf.

Communicating Uncertainties

Wheaton, J.M., Darby, S.E. and Sear, D., 2008. The Scope of Uncertainties in River Restoration. In: S.E. Darby and D. Sear (Editors), River Restoration: Managing the Uncertainty in Restoring Physical Habitat. John Wiley and Sons, Chichester, U.K., pp. 21-39. DOI: 10.1002/9780470867082.ch3.
Sear, D.A., Wheaton, J.M. and Darby, S.E., 2008. Uncertain restoration of gravel-bed rivers and the role of geomorphology. In: H. Habersack, H. Piegay and M. Rinaldi (Editors), Gravel-Bed Rivers VI: From Process Understanding to River Restoration. Elseiver, pp. 739-760.

Economic Evaluation

Buckley M, Souhlas T, Niemi E, Warren E and Reich S. 2011. The Economic Value of Beaver Ecosystem Services: Escalante River Basin, Utah, ECO Northwest, Eugene, OR, 65 pp. Available: http://www.econw.com/reports/ECONorthwest_Economic-Value-Beaver-Ecosystem-Services_2011.pdf.

Expectation Management

Needham MD and Morzillo AT. 2011. Landowner incentives and tolerances for managing beaver impacts in Oregon. Final project report for Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife (ODFW) and Oregon Watershed Enhancement Board (OWEB), Oregon State University, Department of Forest Ecosystems and Society, Corvallis, OR. Available at: http://www.dfw.state.or.us/wildlife/living_with/beaver.asp.

Relevant Links
Economic Evaluation