The ecosystem approach: healthy ecosystems and sustainable economies, Volume II - implementation issues

Call Number:

Abstract:

Vice President Gore's National Performance Review called for the agencies of the federal government to adopt a proactive approach to ensuring a sustainable economy and a sustainable environment through ecosystem management. The Interagency Ecosystem Management Task Force was established in August of 1993 to carry out this mandate. The member agencies of the Task Force are working to increase our understanding of the cooperative framework known as the ecosystem approach. The Task Force formed a working group to assist in its efforts. The working group conducted case studies to learn about ecosystem efforts to date, to identify barriers to implementing the ecosystem approach, and to identify ways the federal government could assist in overcoming those barriers. Seven areas were selected as case studies: Anacostia River watershed, Coastal Louisiana, Great Lakes basin, Pacific Northwest forests, Prince William Sound, South Florida, and Southern Appalachians. The working group also examined major issue areas that influence the effectiveness of the ecosystem approach, categorizing problems into the following issue areas: budget issues, institutional issues, public participation, science and information, and legal authorities. The report of the Task Force is focused on the activities of the federal agencies and what they can and should be doing to implement the ecosystem approach. It is presented in three volumes: Volume I - Summary and Overview. The overview volume describes the ecosystem approach and identifies key crosscutting issues relevant to implementation. It is aimed at those who wish to obtain a general understanding of what the ecosystem approach is, what its benefits are, difficulties in implementing it, and things that have been done or could be done to make it more effective. Volume II - Implementation Issues. The collective findings and recommendations of the five interagency issue groups are contained in Volume II. This volume is aimed particularly at those who wish to focus on a specific issue area such as science and information or legal authorities. Volume III - Case Studies. The findings and recommendations of each of the seven survey teams are contained in Volume III. Each survey team report contains a detailed description of the nature of the ecosystem, its history, current activities, and summaries of what the survey team learned from interviews with many participating parties. This volume is aimed particularly at those who wish to know a great deal about one or more specific ecosystems and the partnership efforts to manage the resources in those ecosystems.

Notes:

Reference Code: U95IEM02IDUS

Full Citation:Interagency Ecosystem Management Task Force. 1995. The ecosystem approach: healthy ecosystems and sustainable economies. Volume II - implementation issues. U.S. Department of Commerce, National Technical Information Service, Springfield, VA. 137 pp.

Location:

URL: http://www.denix.osd.mil/nr/upload/ecosystem2.htm