Watershed Management Working Group Fred Beall, CFS Chris Knopp, USFS Ramon Cordoza Vazquez, CONAFOR

History BOA meeting in Oct. 2001 requested a scoping paper on watershed management issues Commissioners approved creation of Watershed Management Working Group in Oct. 2002 First meeting to draft WG charter was held in Guadalajara in Feb. 2006 Charter approved by BOA May 2006

Mandate Mission: Objectives: The mission of the Watershed Management Working Group is to promote sound management of watersheds by sharing methodologies, experiences and information and by stimulating collaboration and scientific exchange among the three countries Objectives: Identify areas of scientific and technical collaboration among all three countries Promote the importance of sound watershed management to water and forest resource managers, policy and decision makers and the public

Potential projects Watershed restoration In-stream flow needs Watershed functions have been impacted by past practices, e.g. road building, channel re-routing, what are the best practices for restoring function? In-stream flow needs The portion of forested landscapes in and around water bodies are known to be areas of high biodiversity and productivity, what do we know (and not know) about conserving these characteristics? Hydroecological classification A classification system identifies the dominant hydrological processes in different landscapes and facilitates application of appropriate management

Potential projects (2) Ecosystem services Watershed monitoring systems Forested watersheds provide essential ecosystem services to downstream users, what mechanisms ensure continuing provision? Watershed monitoring systems Central to adaptive management is the ability to measure changes in the system being managed, what are the best practices for monitoring? Climate Change adaptation The elephant in the room. CC adaptation must permeate all research, management approaches and policy development

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