Watershed restoration has in recent years received a great deal of attention from policy makers and other stakeholders in British Columbia. Two hundred twenty seven watershed restoration projects were approved for funding by Forest Renewal British Columbia during the 1995-1996 fiscal year, with an approved budget of $22.2 million dollars. Despite this attention, there is no clear agreement on what watershed restoration is or how it should be evaluated. There is a pressing need for a watershed restoration evaluation process to be developed and implemented at the program level. The purpose of this research is to develop an evaluative framework for watershed restoration initiatives generally, and apply it to the Squamish River Watershed Restoration Project as a means of testing and improving the framework. In the process an evaluation of the Squamish River Watershed Restoration Project is conducted. The methods used to conduct this research included: (1) a comprehensive review of project reports, proposals and other relevant literature, (2) the design and application of a structured evaluative framework and (3) informational interviews with individuals representing legitimate interests in the case study. The evaluative framework appeared to be successful at measuring the performance of the case study, and may have great potential as a program evaluation tool. Application of this evaluative framework to other watershed restoration initiatives may help advance the goals of ecological restoration and sustainable development through investment in natural capital. It is recommended that future initiatives could benefit by: • Utilizing an ecosystem approach to natural resource management, one that emphasizes investment in natural capital, the establishment and maintenance of self sustaining social and ecological systems. • Utilizing a commonly recognized definition of ecological restoration, as promoting: (1) ecologically and socially desirable ecosystem values; (2) identifies functional and structural elements essential to self-sustaining systems; (3) facilitation of ecosystem recovery. • Applying the principles of decision analysis, and the use of the fundamental objectives that have been developed as a part of this work throughout the different phases of the project. • Incorporating the principles and practice of Adaptive Management. • Incorporating a collaborative approach to problem solving and, decision making when appropriate. / Applied Science, Faculty of / Community and Regional Planning (SCARP), School of / Graduate

This research develops an interactive algorithm for solving a class of multi-objective decision problems. These problems are characterized by a set of objective functions to be satisfied subject to a set of nonlinear constraints with continuous policy variables and stochastic parameters. The existence of a decision situation is postulated in which there are N resources to be allocated so that P satisfactory objective levels may be attained. A probabilistic tradeoff development algorithm, labeled PROTRADE, is developed to provide a framework in which the decision maker can articulate his preferences, generate alternative solutions, develop tradeoffs among these, and eventually arrive at a satisfactory solution provided it exists. As the decision maker arrives at a vector-valued solution, with a value for each objective function, he also generates the probabilities of achieving such values. Then, as his preferences are articulated, he is able to trade-off objective function values against one another, and directly against their probabilities of achievement. A central assumption of this research is that there is not an "optimal" solution to the problem, but only "satisfactory" solutions. The reason for this is that the decision maker is allowed to have a dynamic preference structure that changes as the various tradeoffs are generated and new information is made available to him. The algorithm is developed in the context of parameters normally distributed. Several theorems are presented which extend the applicability of the algorithm to nonnormal random variables, specifically exponential, uniform, and beta random variables. A case study of the Black Mesa region in northern Arizona is provided to demonstrate the feasibility of the algorithm. This region is being strip-mined for coal and the managing agency must decide on the extent of several management practices. The practices or objective functions considered in the study are: (1) livestock production, (2) augmentation of water runoff, (3) farming of selected crops, (4) control of sedimentation rates, and (5) fish pond-harvesting. Finally, conclusions are presented and areas for future investigation are suggested.

This project has explored the implementation of an integrative and collaborative policy _ vision in a real world setting - the emerging relationship between the river basin management planning (RBMP) and development planning regimes in Scotland. This relationship fits comfortably with some of the latest paradigms in the fields of water management and land use planning. Both fields espouse the need for greater integration and collaboration, particularly within and between public sector organisations. Such approaches are often portrayed as key to achieving ambitions for sustainability. The EU Water Framework Directive (WFD) places particular emphasis on building linkages between water management and land use planning systems. There is growing understanding that such linkages can emerge as a patchwork of overlapping and interrelated institutions. However, there is still limited empirical understanding of such institutional relationships and what they mean in practical terms for those involved. This project's approach is based in interpretive policy analysis, and it has explored how various public bodies have constructed different understandings of this emerging relationship - what it is, how it works, and why it is needed. Methods included analyses of key documents, as well as in-depth interviews, primarily with RBMP and planning staff from local authorities, SEPA and other agencies. The findings show that the locus of the relationship is 'downshifting' towards lower levels of the planning regime - i.e. local development plans, and development management. In keeping with this, some higher level issues - such as the wider tradeoffs between enabling new development and ensuring the protection and improvement of the water environment - are not being discussed in this context. This pattern is shaped by wider socio-political aims, such as the government's central purpose of increasing sustainable economic growth. These findings support the need for higher-level interactions in which these wider aims can be discussed and debated.

Thesis (M.A.)--West Virginia University, 2001. / Title from document title page. Document formatted into pages; contains vi, 87 p. : ill. (some col.), maps (some col.). Includes abstract. Includes bibliographical references (p. 81-85).

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Texas at Austin, 2000. / Vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 140-144). Available also in a digital version from Dissertation Abstracts.

No description available.

Thesis (M.S. - Renewable Natural Resources)--University of Arizona, 1988. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 23-24).

Thesis (M. S. - Renewable Natural Resources)--University of Arizona, 1998. / Known page missing: Pg. #135 Includes bibliographical references (leaves 211-213).

Thesis (M. S. - Renewable Natural Resources)--University of Arizona, 1999. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 158-164).

Thesis (M.S. - Renewable Natural Resources)--University of Arizona, 1980. / Includes bibliographical references.