Putting Flesh On The Bones

We on the Adaptive Management Work Group (amwg) have been working in committee meetings for nearly two years to write a Strategic Plan for the Adaptive Management Program to benefit downstream resources. It will provide direction to all river research and long-term monitoring projects for the near future and influence our recommendations to the Interior Secretary on how to accomplish the primary directive of the Grand Canyon Protection Act of 1992. That directive is to operate the dam to preserve, mitigate adverse impacts to, and improve the values for which the two national parks were created, including natural and cultural resources and visitor use. We plan to complete the Strategic Plan for acceptance by the full amwg in July, 2001. As your recreation representative on the amwg, I've worked to include language that places value on native species, natural pattern and process, and adequate public access. So far, we've drafted a Vision-Mission statement, 8 Principles, 13 Goals, 54 Management Objectives arrayed beneath the Goals, and a Glossary of Terms.
Presently, we are “putting flesh on the bones” of the Management Objectives by quantifying our baseline and target levels for each one. I am leading the effort to quantify the Management Objectives for Recreation Goal 10 and Sediment Goal 6.
Following, is the draft Strategic Plan language we've developed to date. I've only included the Management Objectives for Recreation Goal 10. If you want to see the other Management Objectives or the Glossary, or provide your thoughts, contact me at gcrg@infomagic.com, attn: amp Strategic Plan.
It's a good time for feed back. I'm all ears.
Andre Potochnik

Glen Canyon Dam Adaptive Management Program
Draft Strategic Plan—November, 2000

This document consists of the following components, which should be viewed as an integrated whole. Together, they guide the work of the Glen Canyon Dam Adaptive Management Work Group.
Vision and Mission
Principles
Goals
Management Objectives
Glossary of TermsVision and Mission
The Grand Canyon is a homeland for some, sacred to many, and a national treasure for all. In honor of past generations, and on behalf of those of the present and future, we envision an ecosystem where the resources and natural processes are in harmony under a stewardship worthy of the Grand Canyon.
We advise the Secretary of the Interior on how best to protect, mitigate adverse impacts to, and improve the integrity of the Colorado River ecosystem affected by Glen Canyon Dam, including natural biological diversity (emphasizing native biodiversity), traditional cultural properties, spiritual values, and cultural, physical, and recreational resources through the operation of Glen Canyon Dam and other means.
We do so in keeping with the federal trust responsibilities to Indian tribes, in compliance with applicable federal, state, and tribal laws, including the water delivery obligations of the Law of the River, and with due consideration to the economic value of power resources.
This will be accomplished through our long-term partnership utilizing the best available scientific and other information through an adaptive ecosystem management process.Principles
The Glen Canyon Dam Adaptive Management Work Group embraces the following Principles. They guided development of the Goals and Objectives for the Glen Canyon Dam Adaptive Management Program (gcdamp). These Principles are:
The Goals represent a set of desired outcomes that together will accomplish our Vision and achieve the purpose of the Grand Canyon Protection Act. Some of the Objectives and actions that fall under these Goals may not be the responsibility gcdamp, and may be funded by other sources, but are included here for completeness.
The construction of Glen Canyon Dam and the introduction of non-native species have irreversibly changed the Colorado River ecosystem.
Much remains unknown about the Colorado River ecosystem below Glen Canyon Dam and how to achieve gcdamp ecosystem Goals.
The Colorado River ecosystem is a managed ecosystem. An ecosystem management approach, in lieu of an issues, species, or resources approach, will guide our efforts. Management efforts will prevent any further human-induced extirpation or extinction of native species.
An adaptive management approach will be used to achieve gcdamp ecosystem Goals, through experimentation and monitoring, to meet the intent of the Grand Canyon Protection Act, the Environmental Impact Statement, and the Record of Decision.
Management actions, including changes in dam operations, will be tried that attempt to return ecosystem patterns and processes to their range of natural variability. When this is not appropriate, or beyond the range of operational flexibility of the dam, experiments will be conducted to test other approaches.
Because management actions to achieve a Goal may benefit one resource or value and adversely affect another, those action alternatives that benefit all resources and values will be pursued first. When this is not possible, actions that have a neutral impact, or as a last resort, actions that minimize negative impacts on other resources will be pursued, consistent with the final Glen Canyon Dam eis and the Record of Decision.
Recognizing the diverse perspectives and spiritual values of the stakeholders, the unique aesthetic value of the Grand Canyon will be respected and enhanced.
Goals
Goal 1. Protect or improve the aquatic foodbase so that it will support viable populations of desired species at higher trophic levels.
Goal 2. Maintain or attain viable populations of existing native fish and remove jeopardy from humpback chub and razorback sucker.
Goal 3. Restore populations of extirpated species, as feasible.
Goal 4. Maintain a wild reproducing population of rainbow trout above the Paria River, to the extent practicable and consistent.
Goal 5. Establish water temperature, quality, and flow dynamics to achieve gcdamp ecosystem goals.
Goal 6. Maintain or attain levels of sediment storage within the main channel and along shorelines to achieve gcdamp ecosystem goals.
Goal 7. Maintain or attain viable populations of Kanab ambersnail.
Goal 8. Protect the presence of southwestern willow flycatcher and its critical habitat in a manner consistent with riparian ecosystem goals.
Goal 9. Protect or improve the biotic riparian and spring communities.
Goal 10. Maintain or improve the quality of recreational experiences for users of the Colorado River ecosystem, within the framework of gcdamp ecosystem goals.
Goal 11. Maintain or increase power and energy generation within the framework of gcdamp ecosystem goals.
Goal 12. Preserve, protect, manage, and treat cultural resources for the inspiration and benefit of past, present and future generations.
Goal 13. Maintain a high-quality monitoring, research, and adaptive management program.Management Objectives for Goal 10
mo35: Maintain physical access and safety for visitors to the main stem.
mo36: Maintain or improve the quality and quantity of the recreational spectrum in Glen Canyon.
mo37: Maintain or increase camping beaches along the main stem, including: size, quality, number, and distribution.
mo38: Maintain or improve the navigability of rapids in the main stem.
mo39: Maintain or enhance the wilderness experience in Grand Canyon.

Glossary of Terms
Adaptive Management: Adaptive management is an iterative process, designed to experimentally compare selected management actions by evaluating alternative hypotheses about the ecosystem being managed. It consists of three parts: management actions, monitoring, and adaptation. Management actions are treated as experiments subject to modification. Monitoring is conducted to detect the effects of the management actions. Finally, management actions are refined based on the enhanced understanding about how the ecosystem responds.
Biodiversity: Biodiversity is “the variety of organisms considered at all levels, from genetic variants belonging to the same species through arrays of species to arrays of genera, families, and still higher taxonomic levels [including]…the variety of ecosystems…”(38)
Biotic Community: A biotic community is a “group of organisms…that co-occur in the same habitat or area and interact through trophic and spatial relationships…”(20)
Colorado River Ecosystem: The Colorado River ecosystem is the Colorado River mainstem corridor and interacting resources in associated riparian and terrace zones, located primarily from the forebay of Glen Canyon Dam to the western boundary of Grand Canyon National Park. It includes the downstream inundation level to which dam operations impact physical, biological, recreational, cultural, and other resources. The scope of gcdamp activities may include limited investigations into some tributaries (e.g., the Little Colorado and Paria Rivers).
Conceptual Model: A conceptual model is an “assessment of the dynamics of the more important compartments and fluxes of material or energy in a system [i.e., patterns and processes], or of changes in a population.”(20) A conceptual model is a heuristic tool to provide a framework for thinking about how an ecosystem functions and to discover gaps in our knowledge.
Cultural Resources: Cultural resources includes, but is not necessarily limited to, any prehistoric or historic district, site, building, structure, landscape, or object included in, or eligible for inclusion in the National Register, including artifacts, records, and material remains related to such a property or resource. Properties of traditional religious and cultural importance to an Indian tribe are included in this definition under Section 101(d)(6)(A) of nhpa.
Ecosystem: An ecosystem is “a community of organisms and their physical environment interacting as an ecological unit.”(20) An ecosystem consists of patterns and processes that are dynamic and occur within a particular range of temporal and spatial variability.
Ecosystem Integrity: Ecosystem integrity is “the ability to support and maintain a balanced, integrated, adaptive biological system having the full range of elements (genes, species, and assemblages) and processes (mutation, demography, biotic interactions, nutrient and energy dynamics, and metapopulation processes) expected in the natural habitat of a region.”(13) Ecosystem integrity is related to ecosystem resilience (i.e., the capacity to maintain characteristic patterns and processes) following a disturbance.
Ecosystem Management: An ecosystem management approach differs from an issue-, species-, or resource-specific approach. Ecosystem management is a method for sustaining or restoring ecosystems and their functions and values. “It is goal driven, and it is based on a collaboratively developed vision of desired future conditions that integrates ecological, economic, and social factors. It is applied within a geographic framework defined primarily by ecological boundaries.”(11) Ecosystem management is a process that attempts to mimic appropriate ecosystem patterns (abundance and distribution of species and habitats) and ecosystem processes (drivers of ecosystem patterns). It includes managing for viable populations of all native species.
Ecosystem Patterns: Ecosystem pattern is the abundance of species, biotic communities, and physical habitats, as well as their spatial and temporal distribution. This is a broader concept than “composition and structure.” Composition usually refers only to species presence or absence, and structure usually refers to the distribution of biotic communities.
Ecosystem Processes: Ecosystem processes are the abiotic (i.e., non-living) and biotic (i.e., living) functions, disturbances, or events that shape ecosystem patterns. There are physical processes (e.g., fire, hydrologic, geomorphic, and climatic regimes; air chemistry, nutrient cycling), biological processes (e.g., competition, predation, herbivory, parasitism, disease, migration, dispersal, gene flow, succession, recruitment, maturation), and anthropogenic processes (e.g., habitat conversion, novel toxins, vandalism).
Monitoring: Monitoring is the “collection and analysis of repeated observations or measurements to evaluate changes in condition and progress toward meeting a management objective.”(4) Monitoring needs to produce data of sufficient statistical power to detect a trend if in fact it is occurring.(8) Monitoring differs from inventorying, which is the measurement of environmental attributes at a given point in time to determine what is there. It also differs from research, which is the measurement of environmental attributes to test a specific hypothesis.
Range of Natural Variability: The Range of Natural Variability is the spatial and temporal variation in ecosystem patterns and ecosystem processes under which the ecosystem has evolved. The range of natural variability for ecological processes is usually defined by their frequency (e.g., number/year), intensity (e.g., cubic feet per second), duration (e.g., number of days), magnitude (e.g., acres), seasonally, and rate of change. See Landres(18) for a full discussion.
Reasonable and Prudent Alternative: “Reasonable and prudent alternatives refer to alternative actions identified during formal consultation that can be implemented in a manner consistent with the intended purpose of the action, that can be implemented consistent with the scope of the Federal agency's legal authority and jurisdiction, that is economically and technologically feasible, and that the Director believes would avoid the likelihood of jeopardizing the continued existence of listed species or resulting in the destruction or adverse modification of critical habitat.”(5)
Reasonable and Prudent Measure: “Reasonable and prudent measures refer to those actions the Director believes necessary or appropriate to minimize the impacts, i.e., amount or extent of incidental take.”(5)
Recovery: Recovery is improvement in the status of a listed species to the point at which listing is no longer appropriate, under the criteria set out in section 4(a)(1) of the Endangered Species Act (5).
Removal of Jeopardy: To “jeopardize the continued existence of [a listed species] means to engage in an action that reasonably would be expected, directly or indirectly, to reduce appreciably the likelihood of both the survival and recovery of a listed species in the wild by reducing the reproduction, numbers, or distribution of that species.”(5) Removing (or avoiding) jeopardy is intended to be accomplished through the implementation of reasonable and prudent alternatives.
Riparian Ecosystem: The riparian ecosystem is the streamside zone that is influenced by riverine processes, e.g., flood regime and distance to subsurface water.
Riverine Ecosystem: The riverine ecosystem is any area typically inundated by the river.
Viable Population: A population is considered viable when there is a high chance of persistence over a long timeframe without demographic or genetic augmentation. Population viability is not the same as “recovery” or “removal of jeopardy” for a species. However, the concept of population viability is an important consideration in determining recovery and removal of jeopardy.