Phát triển và ứng dụng các chỉ số sức khỏe hệ sinh thái lưu vực Great Lakes tại Bắc Mỹ Đánh giá sức khỏe của hệ sinh thái Bắc Mỹ Great Lakes lưu vực là một thách thức đáng kể. Bản thân các hồ chứa một phần năm của mặt nước ngọt của thế giới với hơn km đường bờ biển. Lưu vực bao gồm hơn km2 đất với khoảng 33,5 triệu người sống ở đó. Lưu vực (bao gồm cả sông St Lawrence) được điều chỉnh bởi hai quốc gia, tám bang, hai tỉnh, và hàng trăm của. | CHAPTER 4 Development and Application of Ecosystem Health Indicators in the North American Great Lakes Basin H. Shear P. Bertram C. Forst and P. Horvatin Assessing the health of the North American Great Lakes Basin ecosystem is a significant challenge. The lakes themselves contain one-fifth of the world s fresh surface water with over 17 000 km of shoreline. The basin consists of over 520 000 km2 of land with about million people living there. The basin including the St. Lawrence River is governed by two nations eight states two provinces and hundreds of municipal and local governments. A set of Great Lakes Basin ecosystem health indicators will enable the Great Lakes community to work together within a consistent framework to assess and monitor changes in the state of the ecosystem. Data collected through various government and nongovernment programs can be analyzed interpreted and ecosystem health information characterized within a series of such indicators. A consensus agreement by environmental management agencies and other interested stakeholders about what information is necessary and sufficient to characterize the state of the Great Lakes ecosystem s health and to measure progress toward ecosystem goals will facilitate more efficient monitoring and Copyright 2005 by Taylor Francis reporting programs. This chapter will present the process for indicator selection or development with some examples of indicator reporting. INTRODUCTION Background on the Great Lakes Basin The purpose of this chapter is to present information on some of the indicators representing various ecosystem components of the Great Lakes Basin. Assessing the health of the Great Lakes Basin ecosystem is a significant challenge. The Great Lakes St. Lawrence River Basin consists of over 520 000 km2 of land and the lakes themselves contain one-fifth of the world s fresh surface water surrounded by over 17 000 km of shoreline. About million people reside within the basin. .
