Introduction
Methods
Case Study
Research Phases
Phase I: Developing a Revised Conceptual Framework and Applying It to a Case Study
Phase II: Testing and Refining the Framework by Hosting a 1-Day Stakeholder Workshop
Phase III: Creating a Causal Loop Diagram Based on System Dynamics
Results
Phase I and Phase II: A CHANS Framework for Lake St. Clair
Socioeconomic system (SS) | Ecosystem services (ES) | Lake system (LS) | |||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Human activities (HA) that produce stressors | Stressors from HA | Human well being components from HA and ES | Environmental policies regulating stressors | ES as inputs to SS | ES impacted by LS responses | Water quality indicators that are impacted by stressors | Ecosystem condition response to water quality indicators |
Pathway 1: residential and non-residential, water use and discharge | Wastewater: BOD, TSS, nutrients, waterborne pathogens, temperature, metals, PCBs | Basic human needs, economic needs, environmental needs, subjective well-being | Clean Water Act, Safe Drinking Water Act, MI Phosphorus Ban | Freshwater (D), waste processing (ID), nutrient cycling (ID) | Freshwater, primary production, nutrient cycling, waste processing, recreation, biodiversity, food | TP, TN, E. coli, sediment, transparency, temperature, dissolved oxygen, mercury, PCBs | Biomass and composition of flora and fauna; concentrations in flora and fauna tissue |
Pathway 2: land use (agr and urban runoff) | Runoff: nutrients, TSS, waterborne pathogens, altered hydrology | Basic human needs, economic needs, subjective well-being | Clean Water Act, local land use policy | Freshwater (D), recreation, aesthetics, navigational routes, physical structure | Same as Pathway 1 | TP, TN, E. coli, sediment, transparency, temperature, dissolved oxygen, metals, PCBs | Same as Pathway 1 |
Pathway 3: tourism (boating, beach usage and fishing) | Disturbances: physical, noise, sediment, submerg. veg., litter; discharges from vessels | Economic needs, subjective well-being | Beach Act, Fish catch limits, fish consumption guidelines | Recreation (D), primary production (ID), nutrient cycling (ID), waste processing (ID), food (D), aesthetics, navigational routes (D) | Freshwater, recreation, primary production, biodiversity, food | Noise, transparency, litter, concentrations of anti-fouling paints | Flora and fauna movement and distribution, habitat alterations, flora and fauna tissue; fish communities composition and abundance |
Pathway 4: shipping/transporting | Ballast water: non-native mussels, algae, fish, and pathogens; dredging | Economic needs, environmental needs, subjective well-being | Ballast Water Regulation, Clean Water Act | Physical structure (D), navigational routes (D) | Recreation, food, biodiversity | Non-native organisms; sediment | Diversity and abundance of native flora and fauna; habitat alterations |