The human ecosystem Part II: Social indicators in ecosystem management

Abstract

The human ecosystem model presented in an accompanying article in this issue (Machlis et al. 1997) has several applications. One such application is as an organizing concept in selecting social indicators for ecosystem management. This article describes a contemporary example of such an application using the Upper Columbia River Basin (UCRB). Social indicators are statistics that can be collected over time and used for policy and management. The human ecosystem model provides a rationale for selecting specific social indicators to assess socioeconomic conditions. In the UCRB example, data ‐were collected from 1990 U.S. Census documents and other secondary data sources for 39 indicators. In this article, two indicators are presented as examples for all 57 counties in the study area. Applications of social indicators for ecosystem management are discussed, such as (1) monitoring social conditions; (2) doing comparative studies within a region, between regions, and overtime; (3) evaluating human ecosystem responses to resource management actions; and 4) providing managers and citizens with information for collaborative decision making.