PARENT SESSION
Contributed Oral Session 4: Forest Management
Monday, August 8, 8:00 AM - 11:30 AM, Meeting Room 514 A, Level 5, Palais des congrès de Montréal
Science in acid deposition decision making: A Vermont case study.
Errecart, Jacqueline1, Ginger, Clare*,1, 1 University of Vermont, Burlington, VT
ABSTRACT- This investigation examines the role of information in policy decision-making in four settings (judicial, legislative, management, research) at the state level. Devolution in government has led to increasing responsibility for environmental decision making at the state level, yet challenges of limited formalized boundary institutions and funding exist at this scale. How can the science-policy interface be improved in a decentralized context? A case study of acid deposition in Vermont provided the focus for this research. Twenty-seven decision-makers were purposively selected based on involvement in acid deposition issues and participated in interviews designed to assess their use of scientific information in decision-making. Interviews were transcribed, coded, and analyzed based on emergent themes and themes in the science-policy literature. We gathered and analyzed documents produced by interviewees' organizations to identify scientific information used to define the issue, and policy and management actions in response. We compared data across the four settings to analyze approaches to linking science and policy in decision making. Our analysis focused on communication channels, the types of information that were deemed useful, and processes for deciding how much information was enough for making a decision. All participants emphasized a desire to base their actions and decisions on "good science." However, the means that decision makers used to achieve this end differed among the four settings. Litigators asked "What do the experts say?" while legislators approached information more skeptically though they were open to a greater diversity of sources. Management professionals' main concerns were efficiency and access to information that had not been spun for political purposes. Analysis is underway to define how 'credible' information is constructed within each arena. This research shows how approaches to information may vary among settings that are established parts of our government system.
Key words: science-policy, acid deposition policy, forest health