Cody Cox Wayde Morse, Christopher Anderson, and Luke Marzen Auburn University

Background Shift in natural resource management philosophy from expert driven to collaborative approach Need for research on participatory decision making Need to capture and incorporate spatial data on stakeholder management preferences for comparison with other spatial data

Introduction to PPGIS Public Participation Geographic Information Systems (PPGIS) Developed in 1996 Captures local values, knowledge, and preferences Used to spatially identify important places for stakeholders

Project Objectives Determine whether a representative sample of the general public can spatially conceptualize and identify places of ecosystem service provisioning for specific services Assess the spatial accuracy of these PPGIS results to understand how this information can be used to inform decision making Identify threats to places of ecosystem service provisioning from water pollution

Study Area Mobile Bay, AL (Baldwin and Mobile counties) 4,600 square miles Mixed urban and rural landscape Variety of terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems Mobile Fairhope Bay Minette Orange Beach Gulf Shores Dauphin Island Bayou La Batre Citronelle Mobile Bay Mobile Co. Baldwin Co.

Survey Methodology Dillman method: 1.Pre-notice letter 2.Survey packet 3.Reminder postcard 4.Reminder letter 988 survey packets sent to randomly selected residents 274 received (27.7% response rate)

Questionnaire 6 parts 1.Bay knowledge and length of residence 2.Participation in outdoor recreation activities 3.Opinions on a range of wildlife, water, and development issues 4.Satisfaction with a range of regional characteristics 5.A PPGIS mapping activity 6.Demographic information

PPGIS Implementation Participants used color- coded 0.25 inch stickers to identify places on a map of the study area that they think are important for a range of natural resource management topics, including places that provide watershed services

Mapping Components

PPGIS Mapping Exercise Example completed map 87 possible points 24 x 36 in. True color aerial imagery Scale: 1:150,000

PPGIS Mapping Results Results from 242 respondents (88% of survey respondents) 11,391 points Mean: points per respondent

Ecosystem Service Choice Rationale Ecosystem services are any benefits that humans derive from ecosystems Services provided by watersheds General enough to be understood by public Spatially explicit Provided by large portions of study area Regularly impact residents of the Mobile Bay region

Watershed Services Fish Nursery Storm Protection Flood Protection Water Quality Protection Image courtesy of NOAA

Watershed Service Results Watershed service Number of dots used Percent of dots used Hotspot area Fish Nursery %85.04 mi 2 Storm Protection %82.14 mi 2 Flood Protection %8.78 mi 2 Water Quality Protection %36.00 mi 2

Kernel Density Analysis: Fish Nursery

Kernel Density Analysis: Storm Protection

Kernel Density Analysis: Flood Protection

Kernel Density Analysis: Water Quality Protection

Accuracy Assessment: Fish Nursery Total Area Providing Service km 2 Percent of PPGIS Points in Total Accurate Area 52.58% Percent of Total Accurate Area in Hotspot 25.90% Percent of Hotspot Identifying Accurate Land Cover 54.37%

Accuracy Assessment: Storm Protection Total Area Providing Service km 2 Percent of PPGIS Points in Total Accurate Area 41.00% Percent of Total Accurate Area in Hotspot 7.74% Percent of Hotspot Identifying Accurate Land Cover 20.34%

Accuracy Assessment: Flood Protection Total Area Providing Service 5, km 2 Percent of PPGIS Points in Total Accurate Area 78.37% Percent of Total Accurate Area in Hotspot 0.30% Percent of Hotspot Identifying Accurate Land Cover 74.43%

Accuracy Assessment: Water Quality Protection Total Area Providing Service 5, km 2 Percent of PPGIS Points in Total Accurate Area 73.45% Percent of Total Accurate Area in Hotspot 1.49% Percent of Hotspot Identifying Accurate Land Cover 89.88%

Water Pollution 664 points identified Hotspot area: mi 2

Water Pollution Perceptions PPGIS hotspots located around listed polluted streams Except for Dog River, which should be further investigated by managers

Water Pollution Threats Area of overlap: 1.54 mi 2

Management Implications PPGIS is a useful tool for natural resource management Highlights places with strong stakeholder support for protection Helps identify knowledge gaps for outreach education efforts PPGIS should be used in conjunction with other data to create a more well-rounded decision; it does not replace them Data from this study are being used by the Mobile Bay National Estuary Program

Acknowledgements Funding for this project was generously provided by Mobile Bay National Estuary Program U.S. Forest Service