Using qualitative network models to assess the influence of mussel culture on ecosystem dynamics

Forget, Nathalie; Duplisea, Daniel E.; Sardenne, Fany; McKindsey, Christopher W.

doi:10.1016/j.ecolmodel.2020.109070

Cited by 12 publications

(6 citation statements)

References 90 publications

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“…As a rapid, iterative tool, the structure of the Puget Sound QNMs could be updated (by adding or removing links or nodes) and the network re-simulated when additional information describing these nodes and their interactions is gained. In a recent QNM analysis, (Forget et al 2020) applied additional semi-quantitative validation criteria to require certain links to have weights greater or less than other linksan advancement that could be applied in the special case that there is sufficient empirical evidence to constrain the set of final simulations in this way. Furthermore, the scenarios examined here represent a subset of potential applications and the base model could be tailored to address many other coastal watershed management issues.…”

Section: Future Directionsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Evaluating ecosystem-based management alternatives for the Puget Sound, U.S.A. social-ecological system using qualitative watershed models

Magel

Francis²

2022

Front. Mar. Sci.

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Population growth and the associated transformation of landscapes is a major management challenge for coastal ecosystems. Coastal conservation and management should be guided by social, cultural, economic, and ecological objectives, but integrative decision support tools appropriate for complex ecosystems remain underutilized. Evaluating alternative policies for objectives that span the interconnected terrestrial, freshwater, and estuarine habitats along coastlines is limited by the lack of appropriate quantitative tools and available data. We employed qualitative network models (QNMs) to evaluate multi-benefit outcomes of potential management interventions to address population growth and development using a case study of Puget Sound – a large, urbanized fjord-type estuary in Washington, U.S.A. With input from regional scientists and stakeholders, we developed a base conceptual model of the links among human stressors and ecosystem components across the terrestrial-freshwater-estuarine gradient of a generalized Puget Sound watershed. We simulated scenarios representing alternative strategies for accommodating human population growth, namely new development outside of urban centers versus redevelopment (densification) within urban centers, and characterized the responses of multiple recovery objectives and ecosystem stressors for each scenario. Of the urban redevelopment scenarios, reducing stormwater runoff and increasing green infrastructure provided the most favorable outcomes. On rural lands, limiting new development to existing transportation corridors and iincreasing floodplain and riparian habitat extent concomitant with new development produced similar outcomes. Moderate levels of coordinated interventions on both urban and rural lands had favorable outcomes for more ecosystem objectives compared to either moderate intervention applied separately. This study demonstrates the value of qualitative tools for cross-habitat evaluations of possible futures in complex ecosystem-based management systems.

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Section: Future Directionsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Evaluating ecosystem-based management alternatives for the Puget Sound, U.S.A. social-ecological system using qualitative watershed models

Magel

Francis²

2022

Front. Mar. Sci.

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“…The identification of these conditions could then be combined with quantitative studies. The addition of semiquantitative information on the relative strength of particular interactions can improve the accuracy and determination of the sign of the results (Forget et al, 2020). Another possibility to go beyond qualitative models is to ask experts about the relative strengths of some key interactions.…”

Section: Added Value and Drawbacks Of Stakeholder Integrationmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Such qualitative modeling has been appliedamong other fields-in the context of ecosystem approaches to fisheries and aquaculture. For instance, some analyses used qualitative models to explore responses of coastal ecosystems to the addition of suspended mussel culture under environmental scenarios (Forget et al, 2020), or to investigate bivalve aquaculture-environment interactions (Reum et al, 2015). Other studies used qualitative models to integrate fisheries information on environmental, ecological and human dimensions into a common analytical framework to examine linkages among those components (Zador et al, 2017).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Participatory Qualitative Modeling to Assess the Sustainability of a Coastal Socio-Ecological System

et al. 2021

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Assessing the sustainability of socio-ecological systems requires understanding the interactions between numerous ecological, economic and social components. Models are often used to investigate how interactions shape system feedbacks and drive the complex dynamics at play in such systems. However, building these models is a non-trivial exercise, which often neglects stakeholder knowledge and perceptions. We adopted a participatory approach that relies on conducting workshops to engage stakeholders into the development of qualitative models of system feedback. This type of participatory qualitative modeling is well suited to address the complexity of socio-ecological systems in a holistic manner, identify key stakes and feedbacks, and predict responses to perturbations. We use this approach to investigate the factors that condition sustainability of the socio-ecological system associated with shellfish aquaculture in the Normand-Breton Gulf in France. Six region-specific workshops were organized with shellfish producers, managers and other stakeholders to identify and describe key components, interactions and pressures that contribute to overall socio-ecological dynamics. Differences and commonalities in system perceptions were identified across the different regions and focus groups. We reconciled stakeholder-specific discrepancies in model structure into a synthetic representation that conciliates alternative views of the system. Next, we predicted how the system might respond to alternative scenarios of change. Overall, our participatory qualitative modeling exercise identified key drivers of the system under study that constitute effective management levers to maintain system sustainability. For instance, low social acceptability of the aquaculture industry generally appears to be a major constraint on the sustainability of shellfish aquaculture in the Normand-Breton Gulf, while reducing rearing density appears to be a key driver of sustainability.

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“…By contrast, conceptual models or maps, such as those presented by [71], transform the information into qualitative network models, including ecological processes and the relationships between the system components. These models can also include the values and thresholds of impact of stress variables beyond those included in the more synthetic conceptual models and can be used in data-poor systems or as a complimentary approach [72,73].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Assessment of Risks Associated with Extreme Climate Events in Small-Scale Bivalve Fisheries: Conceptual Maps for Decision-Making Based on a Review of Recent Studies

Domínguez

Olabarria

Vázquez

2023

JMSE

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Extreme climate events, such as heatwaves and torrential rain, affect the physiology and functioning of marine species, especially in estuarine habitats, producing severe ecological and socioeconomic impacts when the affected species support important fisheries, such as artisanal shellfisheries. Studies of the impact of sudden decreases in salinity and increases in temperature were reviewed with the aim of producing comprehensive conceptual maps to aid the management of fisheries of the native clams Ruditapes decussatus and Venerupis corrugata, the introduced Ruditapes philippinarum, and the cockle Cerastoderma edule in Galicia (NW Spain). The maps show the effects on mortality, scope for growth, ability to burrow, changes in gonad development or predation risk. While V. corrugata will generally be more affected by low salinity (5 to 15) or high temperature (30 °C) during only two tidal cycles, C. edule populations may recover. Both species are also expected to become more vulnerable to predators. The clams R. philippinarum and R. decussatus will be more resistant, unless extreme events occur after massive spawning episodes; however, the presence of the intertidal seagrass Zostera noltei may buffer the negative effects of high sediment temperature on the growth of some species, such as R. decussatus. Finally, recommendations for assessing climate risk and designing management actions for shellfisheries are given.

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Using qualitative network models to assess the influence of mussel culture on ecosystem dynamics

Cited by 12 publications

References 90 publications

Evaluating ecosystem-based management alternatives for the Puget Sound, U.S.A. social-ecological system using qualitative watershed models

Evaluating ecosystem-based management alternatives for the Puget Sound, U.S.A. social-ecological system using qualitative watershed models

Participatory Qualitative Modeling to Assess the Sustainability of a Coastal Socio-Ecological System

Assessment of Risks Associated with Extreme Climate Events in Small-Scale Bivalve Fisheries: Conceptual Maps for Decision-Making Based on a Review of Recent Studies

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