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Stakeholder Involvement in Watershed Management: a Case Study of Sunday Creek

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Stakeholder Involvement in Watershed Management: a Case Study of Sunday Creek Stakeholder Involvement in Watershed Management: A Case Study of Sunday Creek Watershed Management Plans in Southeastern Ohio A thesis presented to the faculty of the College of Arts and Sciences of Ohio University In partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree Master of Arts Melissa E. Menerey June 2011 © 2011 Melissa E. Menerey. All Rights Reserved. 2 This thesis titled Stakeholder Involvement in Watershed Management: A Case Study of Sunday Creek Watershed Management Plans in Southeastern Ohio by MELISSA E. MENEREY has been approved for the Department of Geography and the College of Arts and Sciences by Dorothy Sack Professor of Geography Benjamin M. Ogles Dean, College of Arts and Sciences 3 ABSTRACT MENEREY, MELISSA E., M.A., June 2011, Geography Stakeholder Involvement in Watershed Management: A Case Study of Sunday Creek Watershed Management Plans in Southeastern Ohio Director of Thesis: Dorothy Sack This thesis explores the involvement of stakeholders in the Sunday Creek watershed in southeastern Ohio by examining the drafting process of the 2003 and 2011 comprehensive watershed management plans. Utilizing an established, active, multistakeholder watershed management group in southeastern Ohio, the Sunday Creek Watershed Group (SCWG), helped provide insight into what makes such a group and its process of developing a management plan successful. This research relies primarily on qualitative data obtained from group observation, semi-structured interviews, and document analysis to reconstruct and analyze the experiences of drafting two management plans in eight years for a single watershed. Utilizing qualitative methods this research explores the role of the watershed management document for stakeholders, and finds the actual document lacking effectiveness for daily activities in the watershed. Also, stakeholders perceive the document as long and technical. The research identifies the main groups of stakeholders in the Sunday Creek watershed as agency personnel, watershed staff, community members, and nonprofit groups. The process of writing the 2003 management plan was more effective at incorporating different groups of stakeholders than the 2011 plan. In the past stakeholders participated in surveys and public meetings to discuss the plan. 4 Overall stakeholders seemed satisfied with their levels of involvement however, more open lines of communication are necessary to keep stakeholders informed about the Sunday Creek watershed. Involvement in the group, especially of community members, has dwindled since its establishment. This thesis also suggests what a watershed management document should contain and then compares the state of Ohio‟s current regulation for such plans to the suggested requirements. The current watershed management plan needs to be altered for some stakeholders; ideas for alterations include adding community involvement and environmental education components to the plan as well as an executive summary to encourage more readership among stakeholders. Approved: _____________________________________________________________ Dorothy Sack Professor of Geography 5 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS First and foremost I would like to thank my advisor, Dr. Dorothy Sack, for her support, patience, and thorough editing without which this thesis would not have come to fruition. I extend my gratitude to Dr. Geoffrey Buckley, Dr. Harold Perkins, and Dr. Natalie Kruse for their instruction, comments, and encouragement. Thank you to the Ohio University Geography Department for their support throughout my graduate career and future endeavors. I would also like to extend a very special thank you to my fellow graduate students who have acted as sounding boards for academic ideas and made my time as a graduate student more enjoyable. To all of the individuals I interacted with during my research and to all the people I interviewed, thank you for making this research possible and sharing your stories with me. Also, thanks to Seth Brodbeck for calming and supportive words throughout this process. Finally to my family, especially my parents, who have offered unwavering support and words of encouragement throughout my life and education, for which I extend my sincerest gratitude. 6 TABLE OF CONTENTS Page Abstract ................................................................................................................................3 Acknowledgments................................................................................................................5 Table of Contents .................................................................................................................6 List of Tables .......................................................................................................................8 List of Figures ......................................................................................................................9 Chapter 1: Introduction ......................................................................................................10 Research Questions ....................................................................................................13 Chapter 2: Literature Review .............................................................................................15 Grassroots Watershed ................................................................................................15 Governance ................................................................................................................21 Success in Watershed Management: Incorporating Stakeholders .............................25 Conclusion .................................................................................................................31 Chapter 3: Sunday Creek watershed ..................................................................................33 Climate .......................................................................................................................34 Geology ......................................................................................................................35 Discharge ...................................................................................................................35 Census Data ...............................................................................................................36 History of the Watershed ...........................................................................................36 Chapter 4: Methods ............................................................................................................40 Data Collection ..........................................................................................................40 Data Analysis .............................................................................................................44 Chapter 5: Results and Discussion .....................................................................................46 Role of the Document ................................................................................................48 Importance of the Document......................................................................................49 Stakeholder Perception of the Documents .................................................................51 Stakeholder Involvement in Preparing the Management Plans .................................53 Stakeholder Input .......................................................................................................54 Stakeholder Opinions of the Plans .............................................................................57 7 Ideal Watershed Document ........................................................................................63 Appendix 8 Compared to Ideal ..................................................................................65 Alteration of Plan .......................................................................................................67 Conclusion .................................................................................................................75 Chapter 6: Conclusion........................................................................................................77 References ..........................................................................................................................83 Appendix A: Sample Interview Schedule ..........................................................................89 Appendix B: Consent Form ...............................................................................................91 8 LIST OF TABLES Page Table 1: Key Questions for Evaluating Watershed Plans ...............................................29 Table 2: 20 Themes Contributing to Successful Partnerships ........................................31 Table 3: Average Annual Discharge Values for the Sunday Creek................................35 Table 4: Census Data for Sunday Creek Region ............................................................36 Table 5: Emerging Themes Derived from Interviews and Observations .......................47 Table 6: Comparisons of the 2003 and 2011 Plans.........................................................56 Table 7: Phases of Drafting a Management Plan ............................................................72 9 LIST OF FIGURES Page Figure 1: Map of the Sunday Creek Watershed………….……………………………… .33 Figure 2: Land Use/Land Cover in the Sunday Creek Watershed……………………….
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