MAKING THE CONNECTION BETWEEN QUATERNARY SCIENCE AND DECISION MAKING (Invited Presentation)

Today, more than ever, Quaternary science is well-positioned to play an important role in decision making related to environmental issues. The long-term perspective on climate and ecosystem variability and change provided by Quaternary science has become critical for the assessment and attribution of climate change. As resource management strives to balance limited supplies and growing demand on resources, an understanding of the range of natural variability possible, along with the influence of warming temperatures, is necessary for anticipating future conditions. Information about past environmental conditions has become a useful management tool, as it often is seen as a more reliable assessment of the range of conditions possible, compared to model-based projections for the future. The integration of paleohydrologic data into water resource management decision making is used here as an example to show some of the challenges and rewards of connecting science and decision making. Recent drought conditions in the western US have created a window of opportunity for paleohydrologic science to inform decision making. Common questions asked include: how bad is this drought, and it is due to climate change or have similar droughts occurred over past centuries? While tree-ring based reconstructions of streamflow can address these questions and have become an aid to decision making in a number of ways, this integration of science into decision making has required a different way of doing science. Key challenges include an approach that is not only applied, but that starts with collaborations between researchers and decision makers, and identifies research questions based on decision making concerns and needs. User-driven science requires iterative interactions between collaborators, mutual respect, and an understanding of the decision making context. However, Quaternary science has much to contribute to the resolution of societal problems, particularly as part of a transdisciplinary effort. By considering the ways science may inform decisions, and incorporating approaches that lead to successful collaborations between scientists and practitioners, Quaternary scientists can design research that is useful and relevant to environmental decision making.