The Importance of Process in Ecosystem Management: Lessons from the Lachlan Catchment, New South Wales, Australia

Abstract

Effective river management requires integration of biophysical and human dimensions of the ecosystem, which in turn involves the development of new forms of decision-making processes and institutional frameworks. In New South Wales, institutional changes to river management have been formalized in the Water Management Act 2000. This paper presents the findings of a case study that investigated decision-making processes in the establishment of environmental flow regimes for the Lachlan River in western New South Wales. The study was based on document analysis, observation and interviews with members and support staff of a stakeholder-based river management committee. The findings of the study highlight social capital, adaptive management and consensus decision making as key components in establishing environmental flow regimes as part of a participatory approach to river management.

Response to environmental flows in the lower Tarim River, Xinjiang, China: Ground water

“…However, this can only be achieved for about half of the lower reaches. Even this will require multiple community negotiations at different levels, and new policies for the project, the reorganization of social groups, and a series of supporting projects (McMahon and Finlayson, 1995;Hillman et al, 2003).…”

OPINIONOpen‐minded Geographers: Their Potential Role in Integrated Adaptive Environmental Management

“…It is thus extremely important to have sound, comprehensive information. Furthermore, most situations are so complex and¯uid that they demand integrated adaptive management, rather than a more restricted or rigid form intent on reaching a set of predetermined goals by predetermined methods (Haney & Power 1996;Hillman et al 2003).…”

“…Many other geographers also have taken integrative and contextproviding roles in environmental or related ®elds: for example, Howitt (2001) working on social impact assessment and indigenous communities, Fagan and colleagues on various projects in Western Sydney (Fagan et al 2003), and Brierley and team working on River Styles (Brierley et al 2000). The work by Hillman (2000;Hillman et al 2003) broke new ground on a more theoretical front. Examples of integrative books from Australia include Aplin (2002), Conacher and Conacher (2000), Mercer (2000), and Young (2000), while in the UK, Simmons (e.g.…”

Bayesian network models for environmental flow decision‐making: 1. Latrobe River Australia

“…These methods generally attempt to achieve a flow regime similar to that which would have occurred naturally, in particular by considering the magnitude, frequency, timing, duration and rate of change of flow for the various flow components (Poff et al, 1997;Hillman et al, 2003). The range of available methods has been well reviewed by Arthington et al (2007).…”