Poster Details
DEFINING SOCIAL AND ECOLOGICAL MEASURES OF STREAM RESTORATION SUCCESS
Substantial time and financial resources are spent on stream restoration projects across the United States with little information about the ecological response of the stream or the cost-benefit ratio for the community as the stream site recovers. Stream restoration projects encourage participation by a diverse group of stakeholders during all phases, from design to funding to implementation. Yet, because of the associated diversity of participant goals for restoration design and implementation, defining success can be challenging. Therefore, we are evaluating how definitions of success vary across stakeholders for six stream restoration projects in two watersheds through in-person interviews and determining how those definitions vary across stakeholder roles (e.g., agency, landowner) and values. These results will ultimately be paired with an ecological assessment of the stream function at those sites. Initial results demonstrate that diverse social and economic factors contribute to stakeholder assessments of restoration success and point to the need to understand the human dimensions of restoration. Our results demonstrate the importance of consistencies between permit conditions and finished projects along with funding for suitable post-assessments of restoration projects for inclusive success.
Alyssa Millard (Primary Presenter/Author), Idaho State University, millaly2@isu.edu;