Toward Ecosystem-Based Management in the Upper Columbia River Basin: Workshop Summary Report
Summary
The Columbia River is the dominant river system in the Pacific Northwest United States and southeastern British Columbia. Its health is of vital importance to communities and stakeholders on both sides of the border. Resource managers in Canada and the United States recognize that open, honest communication and effective information sharing are important foundations for resolving land and water use conflicts, and are essential to economic and environmental sustainability in the Columbia Basin. To this end, an international workshop, entitled Toward Ecosystem-Based Management in the Upper Columbia River Basin: An International Conference and Workshop, was convened April 27-30, 1998 to foster information exchange and cooperation among resource managers, First Nations, policy makers, scientists, industry, environmental groups and concerned citizens. The workshop was attended by over 400 delegates on both sides of the border.
The workshop, held in Castlegar, B.C., consisted of plenary sessions, technical presentations, exhibits, and work group sessions. This workshop design was used to provide delegates with opportunities to explore a wide range of technical, environmental and community issues and to develop recommendations for fostering proactive aquatic resource management in the entire basin.
Workshop delegates advocated an ecosystem-based approach to managing the Upper Columbia River Basin. Unlike past approaches to resource management which consider community, economic and environmental factors separately and in isolation of each other, ecosystem-based management integrates and inextricably links all these factors from planning through decision-making, law-making and implementation. Workshop delegates responded to the challenge of fostering ecosystem-based management in the Upper Columbia River Basin by developing a common vision for the future, identifying the factors that are constraining our ability to achieve this vision, and recommending a series of strategic actions to support watershed sustainability. Distinguishing this workshop from many other meetings on watershed management and sustainability was the level of commitment shown by workshop delegates for advancing their recommendations. Specific commitments and progress to date are outlined in the report.
The international workshop was intended to be one step in a longer-term process to advance ecosystem management objectives in the Upper Columbia River Basin. In the near-term, the next steps include communicating the workshop results to decision-makers and the public on both sides of the border, continuing to follow through on the commitments that were made at the workshop, and compiling the Principles for Ecosystem-Based Management. In the longer-term, there is a need to convene another workshop to share new information, report on the progress that has been made, continue the strategic planning process, and renew our shared commitment to sustainability in the Upper Columbia River Basin.
Please download the workshop summary report for more information on the results of this workshop and the technical information that was presented by participants.
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