Florida Everglades: SEI Multi-species Avian Summit

SEI is convening a multi-species avian summit aimed at helping advance the restoration and recovery effort for the Florida Everglades. This summit is at the request of the Department of Interior and the South Florida Everglades Restoration Task Force. This is a scientific effort to help reach a common understanding of the science, and communicate this science to all parties, including decision makers. An external panel of scientific experts will review material presented by scientists whose research and expertise has contributed to our understanding of the ecosystem. There will be questions and answer sessions.

On March 17-19 we will convent the first part of a two-phase event. This will consist of a workshop to articulate, analyze, and synthesize the scientific information. This will take place at the Westin Resort in Key Largo. The next phase will consist of a second workshop to focus on articulating and integrating scientific information.

Visit this link for more information and agenda.

NEW- Go here for a short report on the first workshop.

January-February 2003

At SEI we are announcing new initiatives, expanding ongoing programs, and making administrative changes. We want to share these programs with you and alert you to the important changes at SEI.

Full details of the main highlights of 2002, and the important new projects and changes can be found in the New SEI Update

Are marine reserves effective for conservation and restoring fish abundance?

Latest SEI finding from the Marine Reserve of St. Barthelemy indicate that they are. Click here for a summary and to download the newest SEI report in pdf format.

NMFS Issues Biological Opinion on Columbia River Channel Deepening

May 20, 2002: The National Marine Fisheries Service issued it biological opinion on the Columbia River Channel Deepening Project. SEI facilitated independent scientific review of the project during 2001 using the SEI process. For further information on SEI's role, contact Dr. Steven Courtney.

Telluride Final Report Released

At a press conference in Telluride, Colorado on Thursday, Feb 14, 2002, SEI released the final scientific report San Miguel Headwaters-Valley Floor: Scientific Analysis, Synthesis and Recommendations.

"All land use decisions should start with a sound understanding of the science and ecology. I congratulate the residents of Telluride and the scientists for taking this important step."
-Former Secretary of the Interior Bruce Babbitt

Dr. Rex Sallabanks invited to speak at two plenary sessions.
Dr. Sallabanks has been invited to present his results at two plenary sessions in 2002. The first is the Oregon Chapter of the Wildlife Society annual meeting (click here for details). The second is in the UK, at the International Association for Landscape Ecology annual conference in September, 2002, organized by the British Trust for Ornithology (details here).

SEI’s peer review program continues to gain momentum. Executed through the Institute’s Conservation Science Network, SEI currently has a number of peer review efforts in progress, including review of critical habitat for plants listed under ESA (at the request of USFWS). USFWS has joined SEI’s peer review efforts undertaking a pilot program in which the Institute coordinates outside scientific peer review of Service ESA decisions and plans.

Dr. Kate Sullivan gave a presentation entitled 'The River Runs Through It... Considering the Watershed' to the American Fisheries Society in Corvallis, Oregon on November 13, 2001. You can view the presentation here.

Telluride Colorado, San Miguel Headwaters-Valley Floor project: SEI scientists completed their invertebrate and plant survey of montane and wetland habitats surrounding Telluride. Concurrently scientists completed their exhaustive scientific review. A report combing the results of the field research, and analysis and synthesis of existing information is due at the end of November.

Marine Protected Areas in the Caribbean: Dr. Deborah Brosnan recently returned from St. Barthelemy where she worked with the Marine Reserve to start implementing the next phase of monitoring and research phase with St. Barthelemy Marine Reserve. Her report will be available here soon.

Scientific peer review of the Columbia River Project was completed in October. Headed by Dr. Steven Courtney, and staffed by Dr. Tatiana Boyle and Wendy Hudson, this project drew extensively on the SEI’s scientific panels for in-process review. A team of seven independent scientists carried out review and met formally and in public to evaluate the potential environmental impacts of deepening the Columbia River navigation channel.

Dr. Steven Courtney led a scientific evaluation and review of the San Bruno Mountain HCP. His work involved field evaluation of techniques, and analytical calculations involving other SEI scientists. His report has helped to refine techniques so that critical management questions can be addressed.

Dr. Deborah Brosnan testifies on the use of scientific peer review under the Endangered Species Act on Wednesday, May 9, 2001. Her testimony will be heard by the U.S. Senate Subcommittee on Fisheries, Wildlife, and Water. View print copy of the presentation here.

SEI staff are working with the Port of Portland and several federal agencies on the Columbia River Project. The project is using an independent, scientific, peer-review process to evaluate the potential environmental impacts of deepening the Columbia River navigation channel.

SEI staff are working with a citizens group in Telluride, Colorado, on the San Miguel Headwaters to Valley Floor Project. This project is helping to document the scientific knowledge of the region through exhaustive scientific literature reviews and on-the-ground fieldwork.

Melissa Powers, a third-year law student at Lewis and Clark College's Northwestern School of Law in Portland, Oregon, recently completed An Overview of Environmental Laws Governing Wetlands Development in Telluride, Colorado". This 30-page report is a comprehensive analysis of the legal and regulatory framework governing the development of wetlands in Telluride, Colorado. Its purpose is to help the citizens of Telluride make informed land use decisions for the Valley Floor.

Visit the newly updated Forest Ecosystems Program website, and learn about SEI's continuing efforts to conserve some of the world's most valuable ecosystems.

SEI has joined with Lewis and Clark College's Northwestern School of Law in Portland, Oregon, to offer a course in marine ecology and marine law in June 2001 in Friday Harbor, Washington. Contact sei@sei.org for details.

The US Fish and Wildlife Service has joined SEI's peer review efforts, undertaking a trial program in which the Institute will coordinate outside scientific reviews of Service decisions and plans. To read the memo announcing this partnership, click here. For more on SEI's Peer Review program and its participating scientists, visit our Services section

SEI's new Watershed Analysis and Ecosystem Functions program will go online soon. To get a sneak-preview, download our recent report on the effects of environmental temperature on salmon,, by Dr. Kate Sullivan et al.

Dr. David Bigger is opening a new SEI office in Scotia, California which will initially focus on research and conservation issues in coastal California forests, and on marbled murrelets in particular.

Can peer review help solve natural resources conflicts? Dr. Deborah Brosnan considers this problem in an article published in the latest Issues in Science and Technology, the journal of the National Academy of Sciences.