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Journal of Environmental Hydrology
ISSN 1058-3912 |
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Electronic Journal of the International Association for
Environmental Hydrology
JEH Volume 19 (2011), Paper 13 Posted May 30, 2011 ASSESSING THE CAPACITY OF A NORTH AMERICAN WATERSHED MANAGEMENT REGIME TO SUPPORT ADAPTIVE MANAGEMENT
Juan Pablo Reig ABSTRACT The benefits of adopting an approach based on the principles of adaptive management to overcome water resources management challenges and uncertainties are becoming clearer within the scientific community. Ongoing changes in climate and watersheds increase the already complex scenario of trans-boundary watershed management and the associated level of uncertainty. In 2005, the European NeWater project identified a number of key features required for the successful management of trans-boundary river basins. These features were then incorporated into a framework to evaluate whether watershed management regimes were capable of supporting adaptive management, and this framework was then used to assess river basins in Europe, Africa and Central Asia. This paper makes use of the framework for the first time in the United States to evaluate the Chesapeake Bay and its watershed management regime. The outcomes of this research help evaluate the framework, characterize the existing management regime in the Chesapeake Bay, identify elements still missing, and provide material for future research. In addition, the results of this research should prove very useful for other watershed management regimes in the US in incorporating the principles of adaptive management into their trans-boundary basins. Reference: Reig, J.P., and J. Adamowski. 2011. Assessing the capacity of a North American watershed management regime to support adaptive management. Journal of Environmental Hydrology, Vol. 19, Paper 13. CONTACT: Juan Pablo Reig Integrated Water Resources Management Program Department of Bioresource Engineering Faculty of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences McGill University 21,111 Lakeshore Road Ste-Anne-de-Bellevue, QC H9X 3V9 Canada E-mail: juan.reig@mail.mcgill.ca |
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