Digital Commons Network^™

Transient Social-Ecological Stability: The Effects Of Invasive Species And Ecosystem Restoration On Nutrient Management Compromise In Lake Erie, Eric D. Roy, Jay F. Martin, Elena G. Irwin, Joseph D. Conroy, David A. Culver

Rubenstein School of Environment and Natural Resources Faculty Publications

Together, lake ecosystems and local human activity form complex social-ecological systems (SESs) characterized by feedback loops and discontinuous change. Researchers in diverse fields have suggested that complex systems do not have single stable equilibria in the long term because of inevitable perturbation. During this study, we sought to address the general question of whether or not stable social-ecological equilibria exist in highly stressed and managed lacustrine systems. Using an integrated human-biophysical model, we investigated the impacts of a species invasion and ecosystem restoration on SES equilibrium, defined here as a compromise in phosphorus management among opposing stakeholders, in western Lake …