Decision‐Making Triggers in Adaptive Management

Abstract

We analyzed whether decision-making triggers increase accountability of adaptive-management plans. Triggers are prenegotiated commitments in an adaptive-management plan that specify what actions are to be taken and when on the basis of information obtained from monitoring. Triggers improve certainty that particular actions will be taken by agencies in the future. We conducted an in-depth, qualitative review of the political and legal contexts of adaptive management and its application by U.S. federal agencies. Agencies must satisfy the judiciary that adaptive-management plans meet substantive legal standards and comply with the U.S. National Environmental Policy Act. We examined 3 cases in which triggers were used in adaptive-management plans: salmon (Oncorhynchus spp.) in the Columbia River, oil and gas development by the Bureau of Land Management, and a habitat conservation plan under the U.S. Endangered Species Act. In all the cases, key aspects of adaptive management, including controls and preidentified feedback loops, were not incorporated in the plans. Monitoring and triggered mitigation actions were limited in their enforceability, which was contingent on several factors, including which laws applied in each case and the degree of specificity in how triggers were written into plans. Other controversial aspects of these plans revolved around who designed, conducted, interpreted, and funded monitoring programs. Additional contentious issues were the level of precaution associated with trigger mechanisms and the definition of ecological baselines used as points of comparison. Despite these challenges, triggers can be used to increase accountability, by predefining points at which an adaptive management plan will be revisited and reevaluated, and thus improve the application of adaptive management in its complicated political and legal context.

Best Practice Framework and Principles for Monitoring the Effect of Coastal Development on Marine Mammals

“…There are very few examples of environmental monitoring using empirically derived trigger points for marine mammals, due to the difficulties in defining a significant or biologically meaningful change and our limited knowledge of the relationships between most species and their habitats (Nie and Schultz, 2012). The slow life histories and delayed response to vital rates in marine mammal species adds an additional monitoring challenge as detection of a problem can arise long after thresholds have been crossed (Brakes and Dall, 2016).…”

“…Accordingly, the limits of change may be set on societal values rather than system thresholds or ecological limits alone (e.g., zero mortality for an iconic species). This approach can lead to confusion and debate between stakeholders and management agencies about where the burden of proof lies (Nie and Schultz, 2012). We suggest that thresholds of change should initially be derived using the principle of sustainability, i.e., populations should not decline due to a development, and this is particularly important for threatened species.…”

“…These initial four stages are then followed by the collection of baseline information that establishes pre-exposure measures and a point of reference to compare and evaluate changes over time (Nie and Schultz, 2012). It is essential that baseline information be robust and based on a defensible sampling design that is applied from the outset with sufficient time and budgetary resources to encompass the natural variation inherent in the indicator species at the impact site, e.g., changes in seasonal presence and abundance prior to exposure to the impact.…”

The Challenge of Collecting and Using Environmental Monitoring Data

“…Triggers cannot produce agreements when there are none to be found (Nie and Schultz 2012). Sophisticated stakeholders can manipulate the setting of triggers and may even simply refuse to agree to any triggers.…”

Practitioner Perceptions of Adaptive Management Implementation in the United States

“…Adaptive management is seen as a key strategy for fostering resilience, and emerging from the literature are increasingly robust engagements of AM, both in terms of theoretical advancements (e.g., Lee 1999, Salafsky et al 2002, McCarthy and Possingham 2007 and practical applications (e.g., Berkes and Seixas 2005, King and Brown 2006, Allan et al 2008, Brugnach et al 2008, Nie and Schultz 2012.…”