A strategy for collaborative, science-based decision-making in a Great Lakes Area of Concern

Session: Beyond Peer Review: Why You Must Connect Your Science to Stakeholders (and how to do it) (4)

Josh Miller, U.S. Geological Survey - Great Lakes Science Center, [email protected]
Jeffrey Schaeffer, USGS Great Lakes Science Center, [email protected]

Abstract

Three dozen local regions around the Great Lakes have been designated “Areas of Concern” (AOCs). Federal, state, and local agencies and organizations have gathered around each of these AOCs to remediate impairments. The partners identify impairments, set targets for restoration, and implement management actions. We work in one of the largest AOCs, which includes the city of Toledo and surrounding agricultural watersheds. Our goal is to leverage scientific information and deliberative process to ensure collaborative decisions regarding aquatic restoration are effective and efficient. The heavily utilized landscape, coupled with multi-layered agency jurisdictions, makes for a challenging yet rich environment in which to work. Our science communications strategy is trifold: generate an online spatial information application; gather a subset of the local representatives implementing the program to nurture engagement; and decode the technical language of the AOC program and clarify objectives for workshops involving scientists, engineers, program managers, etc. We have seen positive results: at the end of the first workshop, all 50 participants were interested in participating further and our list of implementable restoration projects is growing. This approach can be used especially in urban contexts where issues are multifaceted, complex and intertwined; stakeholders are abundant; and jurisdictions are many.