A Decision Support Framework for Conservation Introductions

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS)’s Pacific Region decision support framework for conservation introductions aims to foster inclusive, transparent and defensible decision making about when to use this strategy. Conservation introductions can be used for preventing species extirpation or extinction, re-establishing an ecological function lost through extinction, or directing ecosystem change toward a state that better supports conservation goals. The non-regulatory framework was developed by and for the USFWS in the Pacific Region based on input from a wide range of federal, state, territorial, Tribal, Indigenous, and non-governmental representatives in the Pacific Islands and Pacific Northwest. Guided by the tenets of structured decision making, the framework describes discrete steps to ensure an inclusive, transparent, and defensible decision on whether or not to pursue a conservation introduction. The framework recommends the formation of a team comprised of partners, interested parties, and subject-matter specialists, to work through the steps and support mutual learning and creative problem-solving. Both ecological and social objectives, including local and Indigenous community values related to the decision, are key considerations in the decision process. Risk assessment is a central component of the framework, where uncertainty in predicted outcomes of the proposed management strategies is explicitly considered. The framework is designed to be stepwise, forward-thinking, and inclusive to help the team reach a decision that accounts for the needs of the species, their habitats and ecosystems, and human communities in the face of ecological transformation.