Generating a Visual Effects Analysis for the Deepwater Horizon Endangered Species Act Biological Assessment

2014 ◽  
Vol 2014 (1) ◽  
pp. 300294
Author(s):  
Travis Coley ◽  
Jessica Odell ◽  
Doug Anderson
Keyword(s):  
Endangered Species ◽  
Best Management Practices ◽  
Management Practices ◽  
Endangered Species Act ◽  
Deepwater Horizon ◽  
The United States ◽  
Biological Assessment ◽  
Incident Command ◽  
Species Response ◽  
Species Responses

Although species expertise, professional judgment, and scientific literature pave the way for making determinations of effects, the vastness of the Deepwater Horizon Incident response inspired a systematic approach. The United States Coast Guard (USCG) Endangered Species Act Biological Assessment (BA) for this response began with the development of ecological models for each of the listed species potentially affected by the response. These models are tabular and connect individual strands of logic, referred to as effects pathways, which relate a potential cleanup activity to the anticipated species response. Effects pathways cannot be used alone, as they are inherently isolated and independent of any response action data. To bring the effects pathways into the context of the actual cleanup effort, a forensic geographically aware action record was generated. This record was primarily built using prescriptions for cleanup, known as Shoreline Cleanup Recommendations (STRs), Incident Command System (ICS) Forms, and Best Management Practices (BMP) Checklists. The combination of effects pathways and the action record was completed using table joining techniques. The anticipated species responses to actions were then used to create a series of heat maps. These show the accumulation of species responses along the landscape based on temporal components of activities, such as frequency and intensity. These maps provide a visual means of consuming the vast occurrences of the response to facilitate the effects analysis of the BA.

Lessons Learned Developing the Universal Best Management Practices Index for the Deepwater Horizon Endangered Species Act Biological Assessment

2014 ◽  
Vol 2014 (1) ◽  
pp. 1004-1010
Author(s):  
Jessica Odell ◽  
Travis Coley
Keyword(s):  
Endangered Species ◽  
Best Management Practices ◽  
Management Practices ◽  
Emergency Situation ◽  
Endangered Species Act ◽  
Deepwater Horizon ◽  
Lessons Learned ◽  
Biological Assessment ◽  
Response Factors ◽  
Best Management

ABSTRACT In an oil spill emergency situation, how do you simultaneously protect listed species, track important events, and plan for a post-emergency Endangered Species Act Biological Assessment? This was the daunting question faced by hundreds of environmental regulators, field biologists, and technology developers during the Deepwater Horizon (DWH) Incident Response. With the help of mobile technology, legacy expertise, and a dedicated field presence, they answered with a system of Best Management Practices (BMPs). During the response, factors such as urgency, expansive geography, response duration, and technical experience disparity threatened to compromise the integrity of the BMP datasets. Because of these factors, over one hundred separate BMP lists were issued, and highly accurate field data collection was often sacrificed for after-hours web entry or paper records. For the purposes of the Endangered Species Act Biological Assessment, the Universal BMP (UBMP) Index was created to retroactively track the implementation of these various lists and properly credit responders with conservation efforts. The development of this index yielded lessons from practical BMP implementation and documentation in a response environment to constructing sophisticated database architecture needed for consumption. Here we present the evolution of UBMPs, their role in the Effects Analysis of the Deepwater Horizon Biological Assessment, and a plan for a better way.

New Guidelines for conducting Endangered Species Act Consultations on Oil Spill Planning and Response Activities

2017 ◽  
Vol 2017 (1) ◽  
pp. 2017424
Author(s):  
John A. Tarpley ◽  
Stacey Crecy ◽  
William Marhoffer ◽  
Elizabeth Petras ◽  
Damian Higgins ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Endangered Species ◽  
Oil Spill ◽  
Best Management Practices ◽  
Economies Of Scale ◽  
Management Practices ◽  
Endangered Species Act ◽  
Biological Assessment ◽  
Environmental Harm ◽  
Service Agency ◽  
Environmental Compliance

The framework for cooperation and participation regarding Endangered Species Act (ESA) compliance at every stage of oil spill planning and response activities is contained in an Interagency Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) signed in 2001; and although the agreement is still valid, the guidance for implementation was in need of updating. The MOA was established between the USCG, EPA, Department of the Interior through the Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS), and the Department of Commerce – National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) through National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) and the National Ocean Service. These procedures are designed to help fulfill requirements under ESA Section 7(a)(2) as well as those mandated in the National Contingency Plan. It is a holistic approach to protection and conservation of the ecosystem upon which listed species depend that also facilitates interagency cooperation, reduces paperwork, makes the best use of limited financial and personnel agency resources, and develops a quality response plan. After more than a decade of no consultations on ESA, there was an overall lack of awareness and understanding about environmental compliance on the part of the “action” agencies (USCG & EPA), and about response actions and oil spills on the part of Service agency personnel (NMFS & FWS). Through the National Response Team - National Environmental Compliance (NEC) Subcommittee; guidelines to conduct an ESA Consultation and write a Biological Assessment (BA) were completely re-written for clarity and practicality to meet today's resource-challenged agencies. These guidelines will provide Sectors and Regional Response Teams with numerous suggestions on how to include Best Management Practices to protect species and habitats while developing protection and oil recovery strategies in their Area Contingency Plans (ACP). The guidelines reaffirm how the action agencies and service agencies must work together to best understand the others expertise and needs. The guidelines will identify economies of scale with consultations such that time, effort and costs are reduced for all agencies involved. Knowing the environmental risks in advance will allow planners and response practitioners to develop the most effective strategies while minimizing environmental harm. Smartly built ACPs and new-found economies to writing BAs will greatly advance the ability to be ESA compliant; avoid lawsuits; and support decisions for the most appropriate cleanup methods for specific habitats, in order to maximize oil recover and minimize any impacts to species or habitat.

New Tools for the SCAT Program: An Innovative Approach to Assimilating Newer Responders into the Shoreline Cleanup Assessment Technique Program

2014 ◽  
Vol 2014 (1) ◽  
pp. 1298-1314
Author(s):  
Heather A. Parker ◽  
Josie Clark ◽  
Brad H. Martin ◽  
Linda Pilkey-Jarvis ◽  
Brian MacDonald
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Best Practices ◽  
Pacific Northwest ◽  
Best Management Practices ◽  
Management Practices ◽  
Task Force ◽  
Field Work ◽  
The United States ◽  
Assessment Technique ◽  
Incident Command

ABSTRACT As less experienced responders join spill response operations, concurrent with the loss of experienced responders to retirements and fewer large spills, the need for tools that capture and promote the best practices of spill response functions becomes imminently critical. Better, more practical tools help less-experienced responders assimilate not only the basics of the planning assignments but also provide them with guidance gained from seasoned responders. The Shoreline Cleanup Assessment Technique (SCAT) program within the Incident Command System (ICS) is one assignment that often sees a number of less experienced participants. In many instances, responders participate on SCAT Field Teams and are not adequately exposed to planning or managing the overall SCAT program. Most SCAT tools are oriented towards field work, or focus only on single components of the SCAT process (e.g. treatment recommendations, endpoints). Comprehensive guidance that unites the elements of planning for SCAT, that highlights timing, integration into ICS and best management practices has previously not been available. The Northwest Area Committee (NWAC) in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States created a SCAT Task Force in 2012, comprised of Federal and State agencies, industry and experienced consultants, to develop “smarter” checklists and innovative tools that assist responders from “pre-SCAT” activities through the Treatment Endpoints and Sign Off process, within the ICS framework. Through a collaborative process, this Task Force developed a suite of unique products designed to guide new and less experienced responders to walk through the process of establishing a comprehensive SCAT program and empower them with best practices learned over many years of spill response experience, including those gleaned from some of the larger responses around the United States in the last ten years. This paper will describe this NWAC suite of SCAT checklists and products in greater detail, and describe how they might be used in other regions to help less experienced responders expedite their working knowledge in performing the range of SCAT program tasks, responsibilities and functions.

scholarly journals Quinoa’s Potential to Enhance Dietary Management of Obesity and Type-2 Diabetes: A Review of the Current Evidence

Diabetology ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 2 (2) ◽  
pp. 77-94
Author(s):  
Alexander Little ◽  
Kevin Murphy ◽  
Patrick Solverson
Keyword(s):  
Type 2 Diabetes ◽  
Best Management Practices ◽  
Management Practices ◽  
The United States ◽  
Lipid Absorption ◽  
Current Evidence ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Dietary Management ◽  
Obesity And Diabetes

The prevalence of diet-induced obesity and type-2 diabetes remains a growing concern in the United States. As best management practices still include improved diet and physical activity, bioactive food components, contained within functional foods, show promise in curbing the cardiometabolic complications associated with excess weight and diabetes. Quinoa is an emerging candidate crop for its versatility in wide-ranging growing conditions as one approach to address food security, but it also contains several components that may serve as a dietary tool for post-industrial countries struggling with the health complications of caloric excess. Preliminary rodent feeding studies demonstrate that components within quinoa, namely, phytosteroids, phenolics, polysaccharides, and peptides, can prevent adiposity, dyslipidemia, and hyperglycemia. Mechanistic activity may involve reduced lipid absorption and adipogenesis, increased energy expenditure and glucose oxidation and corrected gut microbiota. Other intestinal actions may include blocked carbohydrate digestion with enhanced incretin signaling. Evidence in clinical trials is lacking and future research spanning cells to the clinic is needed to further elucidate the interesting preliminary reports reviewed here. Quinoa offers several unique attributes that could be harnessed to improve the dietary management of obesity and diabetes.

scholarly journals Extinction and the U.S. Endangered Species Act

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Noah Greenwald ◽  
Kieran F Suckling ◽  
Brett Hartl ◽  
Loyal Mehrhoff
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Endangered Species ◽  
Endangered Species Act ◽  
The United States ◽  
Species Extinction ◽  
Number Of Species ◽  
The U.S ◽  
Species Extinctions

The United States Endangered Species Act is one of the strongest laws of any nation for preventing species extinction, but quantifying the Act’s effectiveness has proven difficult. To provide one measure of effectiveness, we identified listed species that have gone extinct and used previously developed methods to update an estimate of the number of species extinctions prevented by the Act. To date, only four species have been confirmed extinct with another 22 possibly extinct following protection. Another 71 listed species are extinct or possibly extinct, but were last seen before protections were enacted, meaning the Act’s protections never had the opportunity to save these species. In contrast, a total of 39 species have been fully recovered, including 23 in the last 10 years. We estimate the Endangered Species Act has prevented the extinction of roughly 291 species since passage in 1973, and has to date saved more than 99 percent of species under its protection.

scholarly journals Rewarding Best Pest Management Practices via Reduced Crop Insurance Premiums

2019 ◽  
Vol 2019 ◽  
pp. 1-11 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hugh J. Beckie ◽  
Stuart J. Smyth ◽  
Micheal D. K. Owen ◽  
Savannah Gleim
Keyword(s):  
Pest Management ◽  
Best Management Practices ◽  
Financial Incentives ◽  
Management Practices ◽  
Crop Insurance ◽  
The United States ◽  
Best Management ◽  
Policy Objectives ◽  
Sites Of Action ◽  
Industry Sectors

Despite decades of research, development, and extension on the mitigation and management of pesticide resistance, the global agricultural situation is becoming increasingly dire. Pest populations with evolved resistance to multiple pesticide sites of action are becoming the norm, with fewer remaining effective xenobiotics for control. We argue that financial incentives and not regulations are needed to encourage farmers or land managers to use best management practices recommended by academia. Although some incentives are offered by pesticide manufacturers or distributors, there is a paucity of incentives by other industry sectors and all levels of government (federal or state/provincial). Crop insurance can be important to facilitate and reward best pest management practices and address other important agricultural policy objectives. Herein, we describe possible changes to crop insurance programs in the United States and Canada through premium rate changes to incentivise clients to adopt best management practices.

How well do phylogenetic studies inform the conservation of Australian plants?

2000 ◽  
Vol 48 (3) ◽  
pp. 321 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stephen D. Hopper
Keyword(s):  
Endangered Species ◽  
Genetic Resources ◽  
Best Management Practices ◽  
Phylogenetic Relationships ◽  
Management Practices ◽  
Cladistic Analysis ◽  
Active Management ◽  
Conservation Priorities ◽  
Plant Phylogeny ◽  
Biological Studies

Conservation of Australian plants depends on a spectrum of activities from descriptive and experimental biological studies to active management and restoration of wild ecosystems by local communities who value their native biota. On the basis of the premise that available resources for conservation will not allow for all threatened biodiversity to be saved, some systematists and conservation geneticists argue that phylogenetic relationships should be used to set conservation priorities. The principle advocated is that characters, not species number, should become the currency of conservation, that cladistic analysis of phylogenetic pattern provides a predictive means of modelling the underlying distribution of characters among taxa, and that priority should be given to that subset of taxa with the greatest number of character states. This approach has been applied for some time in the conservation of genetic resources within species (e.g. Eucalyptus caesia), and has been an extra impetus for action with taxonomically isolated endangered species such as the recently discovered araucarian Wollemi pine (Wollemia nobilis). However, most plant conservation activity in Australia has paid little heed to phylogenetic relationships. Degree of threat has been a driving motivation, with endangered species receiving legislative and management attention irrespective of their systematic relationships. Moreover, the current revolution in understanding plant phylogeny associated with DNA sequence studies highlights the need for caution in accepting results of morphologically based analyses. A series of studies on the kangaroo paw and bloodroot family Haemodoraceae highlights this cautionary tale. The derivation of phylogenetic principles relevant to ecosystem and landscape processes is a new field of some promise to conservation managers. An understanding of the Gondwanan origins and landscape evolution of the south-west Australian flora provides a useful case study. Scaling up phylogenetic knowledge of genetic resources within species, and of the evolutionary relationships of taxa to an integrated overview of best management practices for all taxa at the local landscape level, is perhaps the most effective contribution phylogeneticists might make to help conserve Australian plants.

scholarly journals Obesity and Energy Balance in GI Cancer

2016 ◽  
Vol 34 (35) ◽  
pp. 4217-4224 ◽  
Author(s):  
Justin C. Brown ◽  
Jeffrey A. Meyerhardt
Keyword(s):  
Energy Balance ◽  
Best Management Practices ◽  
Management Practices ◽  
The United States ◽  
Cancer Prognosis ◽  
Gi Cancer ◽  
Cancer Types ◽  
Gi Cancers ◽  
Obesity And Cancer ◽  
The Relationship

The prevalence of overweight (body mass index [BMI], 25 to 29.9 kg/m2) and obesity (BMI ≥ 30 kg/m2) have increased dramatically in the United States. Because increasing BMI is associated with the development of multiple different cancer types, including most GI cancers, providers will frequently encounter patients with GI cancer who are overweight or obese. Mounting evidence associates overweight and/or obesity with worsened prognosis in multiple GI cancers, including esophageal, gastric, hepatocellular, pancreatic, and colorectal. However, these data are observational and may be subject to bias and/or confounding. Furthermore, in some cancer types, the associations between BMI and outcomes is not linear, where overweight and class I obese patients may have an improvement in outcome. This report provides a brief highlight of existing studies that have linked overweight and/or obesity to prognosis in GI cancer; provides recommendations on best management practices; and discusses limitations, controversies, and future directions in this rapidly evolving area. There are multiple areas of promise that warrant continued investigation: What are the comparative contributions of energy balance, including weight, dietary patterns, and physical activity on cancer prognosis? What are the specific physiologic pathways that mediate the relationship between energy balance and prognosis? What is the relationship between low muscle mass (sarcopenia) or sarcopenic obesity and cancer prognosis? Are there subsets of patients for whom purposefully altering energy balance would be deleterious to prognosis? This area is rich with opportunities to understand how states of energy (im)balance can be favorably altered to promote healthy survivorship.

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