How do we assess and evaluate success of Habitat Restoration ...

How do we assess and evaluatesuccess of Habitat RestorationProjects:Jason Quigley and Ryan GalbraithOceans, Habitat and Enhancement Branch, DFO

How do we define success?1. Increase habitat productive capacity2. Change social values – awareness ofand support for habitat conservation andrestoration3. Adjust future restoration efforts bybuilding on our successes and learningfrom our mistakes

What are the benefits of evaluatingsuccess of restoration projects?• Improved public support and awareness of thevalue of habitat restoration• Enhanced cost effectiveness• Ability for shared learning of what is working andwhat is not.

What are the challenges to evaluatingsuccess of restoration projects?• The social value of restoration projects is oftenintangible• Biological systems are dynamic• Diverse groups conducting and monitoringrestoration projects• These make standardisation, measurement andquantification difficult

How do we overcome these challenges toevaluating success of restoration projects?• Development of a framework for evaluation ofrestoration projects in a consistent andstandardised manner – Guidebook.• Purpose: Guidance to evaluate changed socialvalues, to address biological variability and toprovide standardised approaches for the diversityof groups assessing restoration projects.• Intended audience: DFO, Industry, communitygroups, consultants

Monitoring and Assessment Guidebook - Outline1. Three level framework:• Qualitative monitoring• Project effectiveness monitoring• Program effectiveness evaluation2. Hypothetical case studies3. What to measure? How to measure it? Checklists. Data forms. Experimental designs.Data analyses. Reporting formats.

Monitoring and Assessment GuidebookThe social component of project effectivenessmonitoring.How did the project affect social values in the community?• awareness of fish and fish habitat?• attitudes towards habitat preservation with respect to landand water use practices?• support for fish habitat restoration?Approaches:• How to do: opinion surveys, questionnaires, before andafter, question samples and analytical approaches

Monitoring and Assessment GuidebookThe biological component of project effectivenessmonitoringHow to overcome the dynamic nature of biological systems?Experimental designs are used to establish that anobserved change is due to a project’s impact rather than tomere chance or some other unknown effect.Outlines:Baseline data – what to measure and howControl sites – how to selectReplication – how many are necessary, frequency and durationof monitoring

Conceptual experimental design resultsProjectSiteBiomassControlSiteDifferenceBeforeProjectImplementationAfter

Monitoring and Assessment GuidebookExampleFor example, to evaluate success of a restorationproject an experimental design will allow us toanswer the following questions:• Has juvenile density of a particular speciesincreased at the site?• If it has, is the increase due to recruitment withinthe site, or did the fish simply move in fromadjacent habitats?• If recruitment has increased, is it due to therestoration or is this just a particularly good yearfor fish?

Monitoring and Assessment GuidebookThe biological component of project effectivenessmonitoringHow to overcome the dynamic nature of biological systems?Multiple indicators – an array of ecological indicators atseveral trophic levels will represent the capacity of a habitat tosupport fish more accurately than current fish densities, whichare influenced by other factors (e.g. fishing pressure, oceanconditions, production bottlenecks).

Monitoring and Assessment GuidebookProgram Effectiveness EvaluationIn addition to determining success of individualrestoration projects, the guidebook promotesconsistent methodologies and experimentaldesigns so that program effectiveness evaluationand large-scale adaptive management can occur.

Program Effectiveness EvaluationObjectives• To assess success of management actions (e.g. restorationprojects) at a watershed and/or program level.• To assess relative effectiveness of different restorationmethods.• Depends upon collection of comparable data across largenumber of projects conducting habitat restoration.

Program Effectiveness Evaluation• The pooling of this data, analysis and reporting enables us tobuild on our successes and learn from our mistakes (i.e.feedback loop).• As an outcome, management approaches (restorationstrategies) can be adjusted to be more successful.Benefits include:• Improved cost-effectiveness of restoration strategies.• Improves public support of restoration activities.• Enhanced shared learning on what is working well.

Design AProject 1Project 1ImplementationProject 1EffectivenessMonitoringAdjustManagementDecisionsDesign AProject 2Project 2ImplementationProject 2EffectivenessMonitoringDesign BProject 1Project 1ImplementationProject 1EffectivenessMonitoringDesign BProject 2Project 2ImplementationProject 2EffectivenessMonitoringProgram Effectiveness Evaluation(compares design A to design B)

How to assess and evaluate success ofrestoration projects?In summary, the benefits of assessing restorationprojects include the ability to….• Demonstrate that capacity was built within thecommunity• Demonstrate habitat restoration objectives met• Improve public support and awareness of the valueof restoration• Enhance cost-effectiveness• Opportunity for shared learning – what is workingand what is not

How to assess and evaluate success ofSummary:restoration projects?• Assessment plan should be developed at the project designstage• Success of restoration projects should include an evaluationof changed social values.• A multi-metric approach and quantitative experimentaldesign will assist project level evaluations.• Consistent and standardised methods across many projectswill enable large-scale adaptive management.

How to assess and evaluate success ofrestoration projects?Possible next steps:• Guidebook is in final draft stage – publication spring 2005• Initiate the framework internally for restoration activities(opportunity for partnership with PSF on select watersheds)• Opportunities for external training and outreach workshops• Coordination role (methods, data collation – centralrepository, analyses) with internal DFO projects (includingthose with our partners)

Thank-You