Ecological Risk Assessment: Riparian Zone and Access Road
Jericho Research Forest
Jericho, VT
17 March, 2006
Proposal to Dr. William Bowden and David Brynn
Consultants:
Meredith Curling, Kristin Elsmore, Luke Emerson-Mason, Pearson McCracken, and Jason Wiener
Meredith Curling Telephone: (802) 658-3123 Email: Address: 130 Robinson Pkwy Burlington, VT 05401
Context of the Issue:
Where water meets land, in a riparian zone, we find some of the most productive and biologically diverse environments on the planet. Riparian zones are often subject to some of the highest degrees of vulnerability in a landscape due to a variety of anthropogenic and natural stressors (Gaberscik 2003). Given the high degree of productivity and vulnerability, riparian zones warrant the need for preservation. Preservations of these areas is also a major concern for the intrinsic benefits they provide to local ecosystems. These benefits can include habitat for numerous organisms as well as erosion control and stream protection. A brief search of vulnerable riparian zones might highlight prominent areas such as the everglades, or the marshlands at the mouth of the Mississippi River in Louisiana; however, here in Vermont we have equally wonderful and fragile riparian systems. One riparian zone of local significance is located in the University of Vermont’s Jericho Research Forest. This aquatic system plays an integral role in the natural environment of northern Vermont. Due to the University’s ownership of this land we posses the responsibility of stewardship and the possibility of restoration. The responsible stewardship must begin with an accurate assessment of the specific ecological conditions surrounding this interconnected resource. An ecological risk assessment will provide the foundation for progressive research and subsequent action. The risk assessment will be primarily focused with one of the EPA guidelines for ERA, which is the characterization of effects. Following the definition of the major risk elements we may progress to the three phases of the actual assessment which are problem formulation, analysis, and risk characterization.
Problem: In order to affectively address the issue of degradation of the Riparian zone in Jericho Research Forest, an Ecological Risk Assessment must be conducted in order to provide information to risk managers within the Jericho Forest about potential adverse effects of different management decisions.
Goal/Purpose:
The intent of the ERA of the Jericho Research Forest riparian zone is to provide an understanding of the potential risks to the stream in regards to the nearby road, as well as those involved with the future restoration project. This information should aid risk managers regarding land management and potential restoration efforts with the greatest reduction in uncertainty.
Justification:
The problem at hand in the Jericho Research Forest riparian zone is the disruption of a stream resulting from a constructed road that produces runoff, erosion, and subsequent sediment deposition in the stream. The runoff, erosion, and sediment deposition create a variety of adverse affects on the riparian zone, including the loss of vegetation within the riparian zone, declines in water quality, and successive loss of valuable habitat and species native to the riparian zone and stream. An ERA of the Jericho riparian zone will facilitate informed decision making by the risk managers, which will ultimately result in maximized benefit to the land and its inhabitants.
Framework Focus:
In the Jericho Research Forest, managers are planning a restoration effort whose target is a section of road within the forest and its neighboring riparian zone. In order to facilitate their future adaptive management approaches, the implementation of an ERA will provide information to the risk managers regarding the potential adverse effects of different management alternatives.
Proposed Effort:
In order to aid Jericho Forest risk managers in their selection of management alternatives for the proposed restoration of a road segment located in a riparian zone, we will identify the prominent sources of risk associated with potential management strategies. Risks will be characterized as things that may potentially cause adverse effects within the riparian zone. We will assess the degree of severity associated with each identified risk, in order to provide a means for the risk managers to prioritize their efforts accordingly.
The primary goal of the Jericho Research Forest risk management team is to restore an existing road segment, in order to reduce erosion and sedimentation within the neighboring stream. In order to address this goal we will conduct a thorough assessment of all identified risks associated with the proposed efforts to reduce the sedimentation and erosion through the restoration. We will also complete a preliminary assessment of potential risks that may result from failure to restore the road segment. The results of this basic risk assessment of current conditions will serve as a basis for comparison for the risk characterization of proposed management alternatives. After we have identified and prioritized risks according to the potential severity of their impacts, we will present our findings to the risk management and other interested parties for review. In addition to providing a list of discovered risks and their potential implications, we will provide justification for our selections and proposed alternatives/solutions. The finalized report that will be submitted to all involved parties will contain verbal suggestions, as well as informative conceptual models to help ensure the assessment findings are useful to all parties. Ultimately, our completed risk assessment will provide a suitable means for the Jericho risk management to make more informed decisions regarding the proposed restoration effort, with limited uncertainty. This product will be based on an assessment formed with consideration for management goals and objectives, as well as scientific issues as a basis for the problem formulation phase of risk assessment. The methods used to determine risks are contingent upon the availability and receipt of data from the risk managers and additional stakeholders. We hope that the assessment product will be beneficial in assessing both ecological risks of various management alternatives, but also in economic decisions through the use of cost-benefit analysis, thereby offering additional interpretation of the effects of different management strategies.
Effort Assignment:
All team members will be involved in the identification, prioritization of associated risks, and the establishment of appropriate justification for team findings. All members will attend all meetings and presentations. Individual roles will be as follows:
Meredith Curling –Team contact for risk managers and interested parties, complete background section of report
Kristin Elsmore – Photo-documentation of the site, assist with GIS maps, complete objectives and approach/methods of report
Luke Emerson-Mason –Complete findings section of report, assist with powerpoint presentation
Pearson McCracken – Responsible for formulation of a risk model and creating powerpoint presentation
Jason Wiener – Creating GIS maps, complete conclusions/recommendations section of report.
Time line:
§ Establish contacts with risk managers in Jericho Research Forest by February 18, 2006.
§ Obtain information regarding potential management alternatives and relevant data available on the site from risk managers and any other stakeholders by March 1, 2006.
§ Establish goals for the risk assessment process by March 7, 2006.
§ Establish process for obtaining goals for risk assessment by March 12, 2006.
§ Submission of Formal Request for Proposal by March 17, 2006.
§ Complete a preliminary assessment of risks associated with current conditions of the road in Jericho Research Forest to serve as a basis for comparison by March 31, 2006.
§ Begin assessment of proposed management alternatives by April 1, 2006.
§ Complete risk assessment of management alternatives by April 10, 2006.
§ Complete a knowledge review, integrating all available information by April 12, 2006.
§ Complete the construction of conceptual models, potential risk model, and summarization of assessment results (for the finalized assessment report that will be presented to managers and stakeholders) by April 18, 2006.
§ Present risk assessment findings to risk managers and stakeholders by May 1, 2006.
§ Submit final hardcopy of risk assessment report by May 2, 2006.
§ Present findings of risk assessment project in Jericho Research Forest Riparian Zone to the ENSC 202 class by May 5, 2006.
Literature Cited
Gaberscik, Alenka. Threats to Biodiversity in Riparian Zones. Centre for Ecology and Hydrology: Natural Environment Research Council. E-conference. 12 February 2003.