The impact of conservation efforts and population characteristics on land use and land cover in the Hudson River estuary watershed

Keywords: ecosystem conservation, land use-land cover change, community engagement, Municipal Conservation Efforts Index, Hudson River watershed
Session Type: Virtual Paper Abstract
Day: Monday
Session Start / End Time: 2/28/2022 02:00 PM (Eastern Time (US & Canada)) - 2/28/2022 03:20 PM (Eastern Time (US & Canada))
Room: Virtual 56

Abstract

Local planning initiatives play an important role in ecosystem management. The role of ecologist is to help local governments in reducing negative impacts of development on ecosystems by providing them with conservation tools and guidelines. This research analyzes the relationships between municipal conservation efforts, socio-economic characteristics of the population and land use-land cover (LULC) changes in the Hudson River Estuary watershed by investigating the connections between the areas with significant LULC changes and various municipal conservation policies and practices obtained through the collaboration with the Hudson River Estuary Program. Created in 1987, the Hudson River Estuary Program uses a combination of science and outreach to help people enjoy, protect, and revitalize the Hudson River estuary. Comprehensive conservation actions represent an effective, place-based approach to provides communities with ecosystem services through the creation, restoration and conservation of ecological components. This research analyses municipal conservation planning actions by developing a comprehensive Conservation Efforts Index that integrates various conservation strategies and reflects the municipal capacity to ecosystem-based adaptation. These strategies and actions target different elements of ecosystems and, as the result, aim to protect and sustain different ecosystem services. The proposed index recognizes the interaction between alternative natural resources (for example, forest and wildlife), and consequently, the interconnection between associated conservation plans and policies. This analysis utilizes a political ecology and the socio-ecological systems (SES) frameworks to examine the associations between the differences in the Conservation Efforts Index values, population characteristics and land use-land cover in the Hudson River estuary watershed.