North American HELP Basins

1. North American HELP Basins

2. North American HELP Basins • The Willamette River Basin Operational • Lake Champlain Basin Demonstration • Lake Ontario-St. Lawrence River Proposed • Luquillo Mountains Basin Evolving • Mystic Basin Evolving • Upper San Pedro Basin Demonstration • Upper Washita Basin Operational

3. Community knowledge & expectations Outreach Governance HELP Accepted practices Research knowledge & skills Government vision & policy Isolated by legal and professional precedence Isolated by lack of proven utility Contracting Biophysical Scientists Technical Stakeholders research ideas design output understanding implementation HELP for Water Resources Management The US/HELP Program Partners United Nations Educational Scientific Organization World Meteorological Organization • HELP is a joint initiative of the United Nations Educational Scientific Organization (UNESCO) and the World Meteorological Organization (WMO). On a global level, HELP is led by International Hydrological Programme. Within the US, HELP is coordinated by the US Global Change Research Program and by a voluntary network of cooperating partners. Efforts with in the US/HELP initiatives are consistent with international HELP Action Areas: • Water and Climate • Water and the Environment • Water Quality and Human Health • Water and Food • Water and Conflicts • Improving Communication • HELP in the US • Seven US basins are currently participating in the HELP program. These basins represent a diverse set of climatic, hydrologic, ecological and socio-economic conditions. Currently, three are considered established “operational” HELP basins. These include: • San Pedro River • Red Arkansas River • Lake Ontario • Four basins have recently joined the HELP program and are considered developing partnership basins. They include: • Yakima River • Luquillo Mountains • Lake Champlain • Hudson River • HELP is a global hydrology program that is problem-driven and demand-responsive. • HELP is establishing a global network of basins where better links between hydrology and the needs of society are forged. • HELP is creating a new, integrated approach to basin management by establishing a framework for dialogue among water law and policy experts, water resource managers and water scientists. • HELP is encouraging the integration of scientific research with policy and management to break the “paradigm lock” dividing the operational from the scientific research realms. Want to learn more? Then see… …for more information about the UNESCO/HELP program: http://www.unesco.org/water/ihp/help …for more information about the US/HELP program: Richard Lawford, lawford@noaa.gov Susanna Eden, seden@usgcrp.gov US Global Change Research Program …for more information about individual US/HELP initiatives: San Pedro River Robert Varady, U Arizona, rvarady@email.arizona.edu Red Arkansas River Anne Aiken-Browning, U Arizona, browning@email.arizona.edu Lake Ontario Ted Edreny, SUNY, te@esf.edu Yakima River Jake Peters, USGS, jpeters@usgs.gov Luquillo Mountains Fred Scatena, U Pennsylvania, fns@sas.upenn.edu Jorge Ortiz, CSA Group, jrortiz@CSAGROUP.com Lake Champlain Breck Bowden, U Vermont, breck.bowden@uvm.edu Bill Howland, L Champlain Basin Program, whowland@lcbp.org Hudson River To be determined Canadian Tourist Commission Robert Lyons Photography USGS Photo Dogmatic and - often - regulated approaches to resource management promote isolation of knowledge ‘generators’ from knowledge ‘users’. This ‘Paradigm Lock’ stifles innovation and leads to management Toronto Waterfront on Lake Ontario Converse Bay, Charlotte, Vermont Yakima River Basin Pivot Irrigation decisions that are often inefficient and ineffective. Reinforcement within each group strengthens their isolation from each other…and from the communities that need their help and guidance. USGS Photo USGS Photo USGS Photo The HELP program partners are working on various approaches that promote shared learning among researchers, policy makers, resources managers and community leaders. Shared learning is based on outreach that promotes open dialogue leading to interactive governance and ultimately to public works that are environmentally, economically, and socially acceptable. San Pedro River Riparian corridor Luquillo Mountain stream Homestake Reservoir Upper Arkansas River Common Issues • Urbanization & suburbanization • Agricultural pesticides & nutrients • Industrial toxins • Erosion & sedimentation • Loss of valued native fish • Introduction of nuisance species • Protection of water supplies • Groundwater extraction • Water rights • Riparian restoration • Wetland management • Recreational assets

4. Activities of North American HELP Regional Coordinating Unit • Workshop in March 2003 • Poster at Chapman “Ecosystem Interactions with Land Use Change,” Santa Fe, NM. June 2003 • Quasi-monthly teleconferences since 2002 • Coordinators of RCU from NOAA, GWCP, NASA • Session at 2005 Environmental and Water Resources Institute (EWRI) Watershed Management Conference in July 2005 • Article to be published in EWRI proceedings • Part of prospective panel at Fourth World Water Forum

5. “The HELP (Hydrology for the Environment, Life and Policy) Experience in North America” D.C. Goodrich, E.Z. Stakhiv, A. Browning-Aiken, K. Vache, J.R. Ortiz-Zayas, J.F. Blanco, F.N. Scatena, R.G. Varady, W.B. Bowden, W. Howland To be presented at EWRI (ASCE Environmental and Water Resources Institute) Watershed Management Conference. Williamsburg, VA. 20 July 2005. To appear in Proceedings of the EWRI (ASCE Environmental and Water Resources Institute) Watershed Management Conference