On the Use of Maps and Models in Conservation and Resource Management (Warning: Results May Vary)

Vincent Lecours

doi:10.3389/fmars.2017.00288

Abstract

Conservation planning and management typically require accurate and spatially explicit data at scales that are relevant for conservation objectives. In marine conservation, these data are often combined with spatial analytical techniques to produce marine habitat maps. While marine habitat mapping is increasingly used to inform conservation efforts, this field is still relatively young and its methods are rapidly evolving. Because conservation efforts do not always specify standards or guidelines for the production of habitat maps, results can vary dramatically. As representations of real environmental characteristics, habitat maps are highly sensitive to how they are produced. In this review paper, I present four concepts that are known to cause variation in spatial representation and prediction of habitats: the methodology used, the quality and scale of the data, and the choice of variables in regards to fitness for use. I then discuss the potential antinomy associated with the use of habitat maps in conservation: while habitat maps have become an invaluable tool to inform and assist decision-making, maps of the same area built using different methods and data may provide dissimilar representations, thus providing different information and possibly leading to different decisions. Exploring the theories and methods that have proved effective in terrestrial conservation and the spatial sciences, and how they can be integrated in marine habitat mapping practices, could help improve maps used to support marine conservation efforts and result in more reliable products to inform conservation decisions. Having a strong, consistent, transparent, repeatable, and science-based protocol for data collection and mapping is essential for effectively supporting decision-makers in developing conservation and management plans. The development of user-friendly tools to assist in the application of such protocol is crucial to a widespread improvement in practices. I discuss the potential to use interactive and collaborative Geographic Information Systems to encourage the conservation and management community, from data collectors and mapmakers to decision-makers, to move toward a digital resilience and to develop such science-based protocol. Until standards and protocols are developed, habitat maps should always be interpreted with care, and the methods and metadata associated with their production should always be explicitly stated.

Highlights

In the past 25 years, the impacts of anthropogenic pressure on marine environments (e.g., Fraschetti et al, 2010) and a growing awareness of the significance of these ecosystems (Borja, 2014) have steered many nations toward increasing efforts to better manage and protect marine resources (Leslie, 2005; Laffoley et al, 2016; Wells et al, 2016)
To support my argument and propose ways to move forward, I explore the theories and methods that have proved effective in terrestrial conservation and spatial sciences, and how they can be integrated in marine habitat mapping practices to improve maps and models as spatial decision-support tools for conservation and management
The proportion of habitat mapping studies set in a context of conservation or management is higher in the marine environment than in other types of environments (Figure 1)

Summary

INTRODUCTION

In the past 25 years, the impacts of anthropogenic pressure on marine environments (e.g., Fraschetti et al, 2010) and a growing awareness of the significance of these ecosystems (Borja, 2014) have steered many nations toward increasing efforts to better manage and protect marine resources (Leslie, 2005; Laffoley et al, 2016; Wells et al, 2016). Maps representing the actual or predicted spatial distribution of organisms and ecological features are currently among the best available spatial decision-support tools (Guisan et al, 2013; Levin et al, 2014) They have become key for data integration and synthesis to inform decision-making in a variety of contexts (Costello, 2014); in a meta-analysis of marine conservation planning approaches, Leslie (2005) identified that 24 of the 27 cases examined used maps to make decisions. The proportion of habitat mapping studies set in a context of conservation or management is higher in the marine environment (about 67%) than in other types of environments (about 58%) (Figure 1) These numbers are in line with observations made by Harris and Baker (2012a) for the GeoHab Atlas of Seafloor Geomorphic Features and Benthic Habitats (Harris and Baker, 2012b), in which about 64% of the case studies were performed for conservation or management purposes (e.g., baseline mapping for management, fisheries resources management, marine protected areas design).

Methods

Methodology Data Quality Scale Data Selection

Findings

CONCLUSION