Definitions

Performance measures (or targets) refer to the desired outcomes of program and project implementation. Performance measures are derived from stressors and attributes identified in the conceptual models and should: (1) be measurable; (2) have a relatively strong degree of predictability (i.e., targets specified by predictive models or by best professional judgment); (3) change in response to project implementation; and (4) verify progress and evaluate hypotheses through monitoring and assessment.

Risk endpoints refer to undesired effects of management actions; they are essentially measures of negative project performance (i.e. adverse impacts or constraint violations). The concept of risk includes (1) the possibility that the anticipated project outcomes will not be achieved, (2) the potential that some other unexpected, undesired (and perhaps irreversible) outcome will occur, or (3) that there are certain adverse impacts to be avoided, minimized, or mitigated during project implementation. The first two aspects of risk result from the fact that ecosystems are inherently variable and incompletely understood. As a result, expected outcomes of management actions are not entirely certain. The third aspect of risk relates to defining risk endpoints; i.e. characterizing project constraints that cannot be violated.

Decision criteria (also referred to as Adaptive Management triggers) are used to determine if and when Adaptive Management actions should be implemented. These criteria can be specified as single values or ranges of desirable outcomes. They can be qualitative or quantitative based on the nature of the performance measure and the level of information necessary to make a decision, but should be quantified when possible. Because of the long response time for many ecosystem restoration efforts, decision criteria are often based upon trajectories or rates of change for metrics that are indicative of ecological function.

Decision criteria differ from success criteria, which are used to help the Division Commander determine when ecological success has been achieved. At that point, no further federal funding can be used for monitoring or Adaptive Management. Funding for monitoring and Adaptive Management expires after 10 years, whether or not success has been achieved. Success criteria can be related to observed trends in metrics that suggest ecosystem function, health and sustainability relative to the desired outcome for the restoration effort.