An Evaluation of Stressor Interactions in the Great Lakes

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Precis

An environmental stressor is any factor whose presence adversely affects individuals, populations, or ecosystems. Often but not necessarily the result of human activities, examples include many different pollutants, excess nutrients, habitat loss and invasive species. Recognizing that interactions among multiple stressors in the Great Lakes are poorly understood, the International Joint Commission’s (IJC) Science Advisory Board undertook a review and exploratory analysis. The project included a facilitated expert workshop and a review and assessment of the literature from within and beyond the Great Lakes basin. This was followed by focused consideration of 11 stressor pairs selected as important for the Great Lakes.

The report finds that government management strategies often do not account for the effects of stressor interactions and includes recommendations related to research and monitoring to better manage for the interacting effects of multiple stressors.

The video below is of a public webinar about the report that was held on September 22, 2020. The slides from the presentation given on the webinar are available here.

 

Great Lakes Science Advisory Board's Stressor Interactions Report Public Webinar - September 22, 2020 from International Joint Commission on Vimeo.

 

Organization
SAB