Managers must balance the economic costs and ecological benefits of water quality and habitat improvements to maintain conditions suitable for both aquatic life and human uses. Reliable estimates of costs and benefits can aid allocating resources and communicating the rationale for restoration planning. Tools and approaches are needed that link management actions to water quality and habitat improvements, and further link those improvements to changes in fish populations and human values. For this symposium, we welcome contributions that address:
1) biophysical models linking human actions to water quality, habitat, and fish populations responses, and
2) economic tools and approaches for evaluating benefits associated with water quality improvements and fish population responses.
We especially encourage examples that link water quality improvements to fish populations in a decision support framework.
This symposium aims to generate discussion and foster collaborations to advance the science and practice of water quality valuation for fishery endpoints.
Organizer: Joseph Ebersole, US EPA, [email protected]
Co-organizers: Hannah Lesch, Michael Papenfus, Brittany Beebe, Ryan Hill, Robert Fonner
Supported by: US Environmental Protection Agency, US Fish and Wildlife Service, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration