Ecological Functional Assessment Models

Workshop Description

Capturing the condition of an ecosystem of a site for any purpose is a huge challenge and something ecologists have been attempting to do for a long time. A number of methods, approaches, or models have been developed for selected ecosystems or parts of an ecosystem but have largely relied on subjective approaches or opportunistic observations that may have one or more biases embedded in them. Biological consultants who perform project-related impact assessments on natural ecosystems have largely been left on their own with few if any tools to measure ecosystem functionality and how the ecosystem functions may be changed by a proposed activity or development/change in the landscape. Biological assessments pursuant to the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) is the standard part of what guides how certain development projects are assessed prior to issuance of a permit. These assessments should include habitat functionality and how a project changes them and how adverse changes can be mitigated. A number of jurisdictions focus on a few habitat functions, such as wildlife migration corridors or the presence of host plant species; however, none require assessments of entire ecosystem functions. Two ecosystem functional assessments will be examined in this workshop, one developed by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and U.S. Environmental Protection Agency for wetland ecosystems and one developed by the instructor for upland habitat ecosystems. These two basic functional assessment models can provide a consistent and objective approach to measuring ecological functions and how a project might affect them. Althouse and Meade is offering a 3-day workshop on how to understand the two functional assessment models, how they are/can be developed, and how they can be used during the regulatory review and permitting processes. This workshop is designed for the senior and junior consulting biologists that want to become more familiar with ecosystem functions that can have practical applications for their impact assessments, mitigation planning, and mitigation monitoring. This workshop qualifies for 6 Professional Development Credits for Certified Field and Consulting Botanists. It is also beneficial for botanists that wish to prepared for the Botanist Certification exams. Instructor bios and workshop outline (preliminary) below: