Ecological Integrity and the Management of Ecosystems

Today, efforts are being made to rehabilitate badly degraded ecosystems and protect areas which have important ecological value, such as national parks, critical fish and wildlife habitats, natural communities and endangered species. Since human values are an integral part of the decisions to protect or rehabilitate-the goals and objectives for such actions are often unclear. Concepts of "health," "integrity" and "diversity" express important values associated with management actions but they do not provide clear guidelines for these actions. The criteria developed and applied in this book provide guidelines and serve as a road map to anyone involved in ecosystem management-scientists, land managers and policy makers.

SETTING THE STAGEThe Notion of Natural and Cultural Integrity, Henry A. ReigerConsiderations of Scale and Hierarchy, Anthony W. KingApplying Notions of Ecological Integrity, Robert Steedman and Wolfgang HaiderChoosing Indicators of Ecosystem Integrity: Wetlands as a Model System, Paul A. Keddy, Harold T. Lee and Irene C. WisheuAPPLYING THE CONCEPTSMeasuring Biological Integrity: Lessons from Streams, James R. KarrMonitoring for Ecosystem Integrity, R.E. MunnNational and Regional Scale Measures of Canada's Ecosystem Health, I.B. Marshall, H. Hirvonen and E. WikenNational Environmental Monitoring: A Case Study of the Atlantic Maritime Region, N.L. Shackell and B. FreedmanMonitoring and Measuring Ecosystem Integrity in Canadian National Parks, Stephen WoodleyAn Approach to the Development of Biological Sediment Guidelines, Trevor B. Reynoldson and Michael A. ZarullOn the Nature of Ecological Integrity: Some Closing Comments, James J. KayIndex