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Environmental Management (2010) 46:340350 DOI 10.1007/s00267-010-9529-8
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A Case History of the Science and Management Collaboration in Understanding Hypoxia Events in Long Bay, South Carolina, USA
Denise Sanger Debra Hernandez Susan Libes George Voulgaris
Braxton Davis Erik Smith Rebecca Shuford Dwayne Porter
Eric Koeper Joseph Bennett
Received: 9 September 2009 / Accepted: 1 July 2010 / Published online: 31 July 2010 Springer Science+Business Media, LLC 2010
Abstract Communication of knowledge between the scientic and management communities is a difcult process complicated by the distinctive nature of professional career goals of scientists and decision-makers. This article provides a case history highlighting a collaboration between the science and management communities that resulted from a response to a 2004 hypoxia, or low dissolved oxygen, event in Long Bay, off Myrtle Beach, South
Carolina. A working group of scientists and decision-makers was established at the time of the event and has continued to interact to develop a rm understanding of the drivers responsible for hypoxia formation in Long Bay. Several factors were found to be important to ensure that these collaborative efforts were productive: (1) genuine interest in collaboratively working across disciplines to examine a problem; (2) commitment by agency leadership, decision-makers, and researchers to create successful communication mechanisms; (3) respect for each others perspectives and an understanding how science and management are performed and that they are not mutually exclusive; (4) networking among researchers and decision-makers to ensure appropriate team members are involved in the process; (5) use of decision-maker input in the formulation of research and monitoring projects; and (6) commitment of resources for facilitation to ensure that researchers and decision-makers are communicating effectively.
Keywords Hypoxia Water quality Science to
management Coastal resource management Long Bay
South Carolina
Introduction
Creating an effective connection between scientists and decision-makers is a difcult endeavor, requiring individual and group commitment as well as nancial resources not generally allocated in either research or management budgets. Most often, communication between scientists and decision-makers (e.g., state natural resource managers, local stormwater engineers, general public), when it does occur, is a one-way end-of-the-research activity limited to
D. Sanger (&)
South Carolina Sea Grant Consortium, 287 Meeting Street, Charleston, SC 29401, USAe-mail: [email protected]
D. HernandezSoutheast Coastal Ocean Observing Regional Association, Charleston, SC, USA
S. Libes E....