Application of Logic and Decision Models in Sustainable Ecosystem Management

The Northern Region of the USDA Forest Service is using the ecosystem management decision support system (EMDS) to evaluate ecosystem sustainability for National Forest plan revisions following the 2008 Planning Rule. We describe how this knowledge-based system can be successfully used in the development of logic models for integrated evaluations of social, economic, and ecological information to support strategic forest planning. We also describe basic features of EMDS decision models and provide examples of their use in identifying potential treatment areas that best meet integrated landscape restoration objectives for a variety of natural resource uses. Scenarios concerning optimum locations for hazardous fuel reduction, protection of developed recreation values, and watershed condition improvement are presented to illustrate how the evaluation and decision modeling capabilities of EMDS can be used sequentially in both strategic and tactical planning.