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<br />Adaptive Management <br /> <br />By: Raymond Gunn <br />National Park Service <br /> <br />A subject whicb has received a great deal of attention <br />for a year now is adaptive management. Many people <br />have said it will accomplish a great many things; so, <br />what is it? . <br /> <br />Adaptive management, in this context, is simply <br />evaluating the rmdings of monitoring and research <br />when making decisions on bow best to manage for the <br />benefit of the resources of the river corridor within <br />Glen and Grand Canyons as a whole, including water <br />and hydropower. . <br /> <br />Adaptive management is not a concept for the future, <br />it is a fact of life today. The health of the river <br />environment is continually being monitored. The Glen <br />Canyon Environmental Studies, Phases I and II, <br />research program has expanded our understanding of <br />specific components of the riverine system and tbe <br />complex cause and effect nature of relationships <br />among those components, It is this process of <br />adapting management actions to new knowledge which <br />led to the interim flow criteria which have been in <br />place at Glen Canyon Dam since November 1991. <br />And it is this same process which has led the <br /> <br />cooperating agencies to recommend that the Secretary <br />alter these criteria by increasing upramps from 2,500 <br />to 4,000 cIs per hour for 90 days; and if no degredation <br />results, then to also increase the allowable maximum <br />release from 20,000 to 25,000 cIs. <br /> <br />The proposed 45,000 cIs beach.building flow experi. <br />ment now being designed for the spring of 1995 is <br />another direct product of adaptive management. <br /> <br />The term "adaptive management" is commonly used to <br />refer to a formalized structure organized into an <br />adaptive management work group, a technical work <br />group, and a scientific review board which will carry <br />out the decisions made by the Secretary of the Interior <br />and provide information for the Secretary's use in <br />responding to resource conditions on the river. <br /> <br />The details of how the structure will be organized and <br />who will lead the work on behalf of the Secretary are <br />decisions which will be made between the release of <br />the draft EIS and the final. As with all other elements <br />of the draft EIS, public comment on an adaptive <br />management program will be appreciated, <br /> <br />ADAPTIVE MANAGEMENT PROGRAM <br />GLEN CANYON DAM EIS <br /> <br />C' <br /> <br />---- -- <br />/ <br /> <br /> <br />Secretary <br />of the <br />Interior <br /> <br />Designate <br /> <br />Adaptive Management <br />Work Group <br /> <br /> <br />4 <br /> <br />.. <br />